Daily Aid 15: Financial Aid Questions and Answers

Daily Aid 15: Financial Aid Questions and Answers

29 September 2008 1 views No Comment

Daily Aid 15: Financial Aid Questions and Answers

Last week, I sent out a quick survey asking you what you wanted from the Financial Aid Podcast and blog. This week, we’re going to tackle some of the questions and answers, along with the regular dose of financial aid and student loan news.

Student Financial Aid News

NASFAA and AP:

“College students have drained Oregon’s financial aid fund, and lawmakers are being asked to put up $4 million more,” the Associated Press reports. “The state set aside $72 million for aid this year. But when the economy sours, students typically turn to higher education in greater numbers. More than 100,000 Oregon students who need help to pay for college are flooding the state’s campuses this fall.”

Commentary

This is unsurprising, and in fact I’ll probably do a special later this week on the coming financial aid crisis, the one we’re just not talking about yet, despite increasing headlines about it.

Here’s the bottom line: financial aid is now something you do and plan for year-round. It’s not just a form or two in January, but a process for making college as affordable as possible. If you’re committed to paying as little for college as possible, it will require year-round effort.

Always be looking for scholarships. Always file your FAFSA early. Always be looking for more ways to save money, be thrifty and frugal, and still enjoy a great college experience, which has less to do with the name of the school and more to do with who you want to be.

Scholarship Update

Have you signed up for the Student Loan Network $10,000 Scholarship yet?

Click here to apply. It takes 32 seconds, it’s completely free, and it’s a shot at $10,000.

Mail Bag

Wayne writes in:

What private loan lenders are left and what do they offer and to whom? Best, W.

There are still a lot of private student loan lenders out there. Corporate plug, we’re one of them. Generally speaking, the easiest way to see who’s still in business is just to Google for the search term and see who’s still advertising with paid ads.

Here’s what you do need to know – average credit scores in America have declined at the same time that lending standards have risen. Where you might have been able to get a private student loan with a FICO credit score of 620 and no cosigner 2 years ago, today that’s a 720 with a co-signer. Virtually every private student loan out there, ours included, requires a co-signer and good credit.

Are there alternatives for families with less than perfect credit? Yes – check out the PLUS loan, which is a federal parent loan. The credit terms for a PLUS loan are a lot more lenient because the government backs the loan.

Thanks for writing in, Wayne!

Conference/Event

Friend and colleague Maria Koklanaris asked me to pass along this paid teleseminar announcement. Normally, I don’t do ads, but this appears to at least be worth mentioning.

Full disclosure: HEWI hasn’t paid the Student Loan Network or Financial Aid Podcast for this.

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