College education is often associated with high costs and for people with limited budget, they won’t pay more than necessary. Students should know more about financial aid and they have the right to ask questions. There are different types of financial aids for students, such as work-study, loan and grants or scholarship. It is a good idea to look for scholarships and grants, because we don’t need to pay them back. These financial aids are provided by state and federal government from individual colleges. However, grants and scholarships are only available for students with good educational performance.
On the other hands, loans need to be paid back. They are available from lending companies or the government. Loans from the government typically have lower interest rates, but their availability can be more limited. Lending companies could provide loans to more people, but the interest rates can be quite high. Work-study could be provided for students, so a portion of the salary can be used for college expenses. These financial aids are needed because not many students are able to pay the entire cost of the college education. When we are seeking for grants and scholarships, we will be asked to fill a form that allows government officials to determine the amount of scholarships and grants.
The form will ask specific information, such as the income of parents and whether the student is currently working. It may also be necessary to divulge information on family’s savings and investment. This will allow the government official to determine whether the family can pay for the college or not. It is preferable to obtain merit-based grants and scholarships. It means that students who perform well in school and have good grades can be given scholarship. Students who have exceptional capabilities, in music and sports could also be granted a scholarship. However, we should be aware that scholarship may not be provided at full amount, but this should still be helpful to many students.
As an example, the financial aid may only pay for the tuition and books; but not for living costs. It means that student will still need to work to obtain enough fund their education. Many students are able to complete their college education by combining scholarship, part time job and a small amount of loan. This is a much better option than relying entirely on loans that can put students in challenging financial situation after they graduate. It is quite normal that grants don’t provide 100 percent of the financial requirements for studying in college. So, before accepting scholarship, it is important for students to make sure that they can get additional funding.
It is important to know that scholarship can be evaluated after the first year is concluded. It is also available for a specific duration; such as 4 years. So, if the education period is extended to the fifth year; the student may not get additional fund. It means that students who get loans will be under pressure to perform well and finish their study in time.