Finding last-minute money sources for college

[BSClay]

If your child has been admitted to college and you’re still not sure how to pay for it all, take heart, there are still a few things you can do.

• Look for scholarships. Scholarship deadlines fall at different times throughout the year. It’s true that most scholarship deadlines are in the spring and fall, but there are other sources out there to tap. Get started now. If you can’t find something for this year, at least you’ll have a good start for next year.

• Submit your Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Because of your situation, you need to turn it in immediately.

• Pay off credit card balances and reduce your visible assets. This will maximize your eligibility for need-based aid.

• Check into education tax benefits. It won’t help you right now, but can provide some financial relief later for you.

• Start saving now. There are tax investment options that can benefit your college savings plan, but you will want to keep your money in liquid investments, so that you can access the money to pay school bills.

• Ask your employer if they offer any assistance. Some do provide student aid program for their employees and their children.

• Look for student employment. Your child should consider working 10 to 20 hours-per-week while attending school full time—and full time work during the summer.

• Consider less expensive schools. Your child can transfer to a more expensive school later.

• Consider residing at home while attending school. The savings are significant.

• Ask the school about tuition-installment plans. This helps ease the burden of coming up with large sums of money all at once.

[moneysense]

Those are some excellent points you have made and will be very useful with up and coming college for our children.

Many people arent aware of all the different steps that can be taken to ease the burdens of putting a child through collegs so I am sure they will be more than happy to see the list you have provided.

Thanks again for the great list.

[pennypinch]

Thanks for all of the great tips.

This is something that I has been weighing on my mind a lot lately. My oldest daughter will be a senior now and she wants to go to college which is awesome. The hard part is paying for it when I barely make ends meet now. I am scared to death that we won't be able to do this.

She wanted to go to a big school right away but I have been trying to talk her into going to the community college for two years which I am sure based on my income would be free and then she can transfer those credits after the two years.

If she doesn't go that route I am afraid she will have to find ways to pay for it on her own because I still have two other kids at home to take care of.

I am willing to try to take on another part-time job if necessary but I already work so much I don't know if I could handle it.

She is an awesome gal though and I want the best for her. I want her to become something that makes a decent wage so she doesn't have to work so much like I do and still not have much to show for it!

[centsgirl]

There are a million ideas on how to pay for college on the internet, money is out there to help just do a search on it and a lot of information will show up.