| Do you have a child who will be graduating high school | | | | student who is not only gets top grades, but also is |
| in the next couple of years? or even next year? Then | | | | involved in sports and community service, the number |
| now is time for you and your college bound student to | | | | of college scholarships available is astounding and your |
| start thinking about how to pay for college if you | | | | student should take advantage of everyone possible |
| haven't thought about it already. With the rising cost of | | | | available. Free college scholarship searches are |
| college tuition, the sooner you start planning how you | | | | available to assist in finding the appropriate college |
| will pay for college, the less worries you might have | | | | scholarship. |
| when it is finally time to actually make those tuition | | | | Student Loans for Parents |
| payments. | | | | Another less advantageous method of paying for |
| Pell Grants | | | | college is to take our a student loan for parents. These |
| Pell grants are the first type of aid you will apply for. | | | | are called PLUS loans and allow parents to borrow the |
| This simply requires that you fill out the Free | | | | entire cost of an undergraduate education including |
| Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This is | | | | tuition, room and board, supplies, lab fees and any |
| usually the first step in applying for student loans and | | | | other costs not covered by any other aid in the form |
| no one should avoid it. Once the application is sent in, it | | | | of scholarships and grants the student may qualify for. |
| is evaluated and if you qualify for a Pell grant, you will | | | | Additionally, these loans do not require collateral as a |
| get the full amount of what you qualify for. You need | | | | home equity loan would. So you don't have to worry |
| to do nothing further but supply the names of the | | | | about putting up the house to pay for college. Lastly, |
| schools your student will be applying for or has gotten | | | | PLUS loans can be consolidated under a variety of |
| into. | | | | repayment plans with a fixed interest rate for the life |
| Scholarships | | | | of the loan, and low monthly payments. |
| There are several ways to pay for college. The first | | | | Student Loans |
| and most advantageous is to pay for college with | | | | Student loans are similar to the PLUS loans with the |
| scholarships. College scholarships are not only about | | | | exception that they are given to the student and not |
| academics. Students can qualify for a multitude of | | | | the parent. The interest rates are usually a little lower |
| college scholarships for a variety of reasons. | | | | than the PLUS loans, but the responsibility of |
| Academics is one of the most obvious. A good | | | | repayment lies with the student and not the parent. |
| student with top grades will generally qualify for many | | | | The benefit of student loans over PLUS loans, is that |
| scholarships that are based on the student's GPA or | | | | some of the loan is subsidized, which means interest |
| class standing. Other qualifications are primarily based | | | | does not accrue until the student drops below half time |
| on what the student actually does outside of school. If | | | | or finishes school. It is also guaranteed that the student |
| they participate in community service work, there are | | | | will qualify for a student loan. |
| many scholarships available because this type of work | | | | So if you haven't started searching for ways to pay |
| shows a strong commitment to community | | | | for college, I recommend that you do immediately. In |
| involvement. This hold the same for membership in a | | | | the long run, your early start to looking for ways to |
| social group. Sports involvement is another that may | | | | pay for college, will reduce your overall costs. |
| qualify a student for a scholarship. If you have a | | | | |