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| Date: From: Subject: | 2/2/2006 3:11:52 PM Home School Legal Defense Association HSLDA's Homeschooling Thru High School Newsletter--February 2006 |
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#=====---------------------------------------------------------------- HSLDA's Homeschooling Thru High School Newsletter -- February 2006 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- College Financial Aid Dear Friends, February is here, and the school year keeps rolling along. As a homeschooling parent of a high schooler, you continue to be busy with teaching, driving, and most of all...praying! We've enjoyed speaking to many of our HSLDA members as you've called or emailed us with your questions. You have our respect and admiration as you train up your children in the way they should go. We know that your time is precious, so we are glad to do anything we can to make your job a bit easier, save you minutes, and perhaps find you some money. Now that we have your attention... This month's newsletter topic is College Financial Aid. We hope the information we provide below is beneficial for you, and points you in the right direction to search out whatever additional details you may need. If your child is not planning on attending college, you may want to just keep the information handy for later reference if his plans change, or you may want to pass on the information to another homeschooling family who may find the information helpful. Money for college is a big concern for many parents. Tuition and related college costs can put a financial strain on any family's budget. So it is important that you research and become familiar with sources of aid that can help you pay your child's anticipated college bills. College financial aid falls into three basic categories: 1. Scholarships and grants: This is "free" money that does not need to be repaid. Scholarships may be given by private organizations, employers, etc., or the colleges themselves. Scholarships can be awarded on the basis of either financial need or on merit. 2. Loans: This is money that is lent directly to the student or to the parent. Loans, of course, need to be repaid at some point in the future. Colleges, banks, credit unions, and federal and state governments make money available to students (usually at low interest rates) for college expenses. Depending on the type of loan, some loan payments are deferred meaning that repayment is not required until the student has graduated from college or when the student ceases to be a full time student. 3. Work study: As part of the financial aid package that some colleges award, they may offer your child an opportunity to work part time in order to cover some of his college expenses. By far, the most important thing to remember about applying for college financial aid is DEADLINES. (Interestingly, the word deadline comes from an old term meaning a line drawn within or around a prison that a prisoner passes at the risk of being shot. Missing a financial aid deadline will not get you shot (!), but you may definitely lose out on possible sources of money should you miss a deadline.) FAFSA Almost all colleges require that a student complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid commonly known as FAFSA (once the initial FAFSA is submitted, a renewal form is then submitted every year the student applies for aid). A parent with a student enrolling in college in September of 2006 can fill out the 2006 FAFSA form anytime after January 1, 2006--you do not need to wait until your student is accepted at a university to fill out the FAFSA. Since the FAFSA form is the most important form colleges use to determine need-based financial aid, completing the FAFSA should be high on your priority list. Financial information supplied on the FAFSA form by you will then be calculated and the government will provide you with the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is the amount that the government believes your family can contribute towards college costs. Colleges use the EFC amount to then calculate the amount of need-based financial aid they will award your student. Completing the FAFSA online is recommended since you will be prompted should you not fill out the form properly or if you've left an item blank by mistake. Also, notification of the EFC is usually available within 3 days using the online application. If the FAFSA is filled out manually the results are usually not available for six weeks. Paper FAFSA forms are available from public libraries and public schools. See http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ for an online FAFSA application and for further details and information. It is extremely important to contact the Financial Aid office of any college that your child is interested in applying to and ask them what additional financial aid applications besides the FAFSA must be completed and what the deadlines are for submission. Some colleges may have their own specific institutional financial aid application that needs to be completed. In addition to the FAFSA, some colleges require the Profile (available at the College Board website: https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/index.jsp online application only). Scholarships This is the "free" money - money given with no requirement for repayment that everyone would love to receive. Check with your employer, civic and community organizations, or organizations that your child is involved in (Scouting, 4-H, etc.) to determine if they make any college scholarships available. Some Christian colleges provide scholarships especially for homeschooled students. See the scholarship section of HSLDA's Homeschooling Thru High School website for resources that provide you with possible sources of scholarships, as well as the contest/competition section for opportunities to win money awards: http://www.hslda.org/highschool/college.asp#scholarships http://www.hslda.org/highschool/beyondacademics.asp#competitions College Loans Should you need to consider taking out loans for your child's college expenses, check out the College Board's website for an explanation of the various loans that can be used for educational purposes including Federal Stafford Loans, Federal PLUS Loans, and the College Board Connect Loan. http://www.collegeboard.com/article/0,,6-33-0-25523,00.html Your local bank can also explain to you other educational loans that are available. Don't be intimidated by the paperwork involved with securing financial aid. Be diligent, watch those deadlines, and depend on and trust the Lord to go before you as you complete applications. And remember, ultimately the Lord is your provider--He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and He will make a way for His purposes to be carried out in your child's life--including paying the college bills if that is how He is leading your family. A Few Words of Advice Have your child apply to any college (private or public) that he or she is interested in attending. Do not let the tuition cost prevent you from considering any school. Experience has shown that a higher tuition cost at a private school is sometimes offset by that school offering a larger financial aid package than a public school. Other than scholarship money, another way to save on college costs is to consider distance learning courses taken online from home. An accumulation of these credits allows the student the opportunity to shorten his or her on campus expenses by transferring into the school of his or her choice. Many homeschooling families utilize their community colleges to cut the cost of a college degree. Either by taking general education requirement courses or by acquiring a two-year degree, these students are then eligible to transfer to a four-year institution to complete their degree. A plus to this option is the opportunity afforded your student to make a slow transition from home to college while still under your roof. Next month's Homeschooling Thru High School email newsletter will be Options Other Than College. We'll explore the various opportunities available for students who do not plan to pursue college, as well as provide you with helpful resources as you direct your child's post high school plans. Until then, we carry you in our hearts and on our minds. Remember that "Sorrow looks back. Worry looks around. Faith looks up." ("God's Little Instruction Book, by Honor Books"). Available online at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id= 2815 . With joy to you, Becky Cooke and Diane Kummer What's New on the Homeschooling Thru High School website: Archeology The Lukeion Project--Archeology Courses http://www.hslda.org/highschool/curriculum.asp Military Military Academies--summer sessions to high school juniors (prior to their senior year). http://www.hslda.org/highschool/resources.asp#military Personality/Aptitude/Career Tests The Call--A Career Assessment tool recommended by Focus on the Family http://www.hslda.org/highschool/testing.asp#persaptcareer Math--Classmate Math http://www.hslda.org/highschool/curriculum.asp#subject ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> Who's knocking on your door? When a social service worker arrives at your door, tension can run high. Wouldn't it be nice to get your lawyer on the phone, providing you with immediate step-by-step guidance? More reasons to join HSLDA... http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=1099 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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