Financial aid for students
Financial Aid for Students
Guides students through the process of locating and applying for financial aid. Prepared by the Congressional Research Service for the U.S. Senate, updated September 2009.
Student aid and where it comes from
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Basic assistance categories:
- Financial need-based
Remember that students and their parents are responsible for paying
what they can-- financial aid is a supplement, not a substitute, for
family resources.
- Non need-based
Factors include academic excellence, ethnic background, or organization
membership. Corporations may also offer assistance to employees and
children.
Federal Student Aid:
- Provides nearly 70% of student aid under Loans, Grants and Work/study
programs.
- Available to all need-based applicants; some loans and competitive scholarships
for non need-based.
- Free information from the U.S. Department
of Education:
- Student Aid on the Web
- Financial Aid Resource Publications
- Loans must
be repaid when you graduate or leave college:
- Stafford Loans (FFELs and Direct Loans) include:
- Perkins
Loans for the most needy undergraduates; through participating schools.
- Scholarships/grants are mostly need-based and
require no repayment:
- Pell
Grants
- Federal
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG)
- Other grants, scholarships, and fellowships,
mostly graduate level: search the
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA)
by Beneficiary, such as "Student or Trainee" or "Graduate Student".
- "Congressional" scholarships:
- Named for Member of Congress or
other prominent individual (such as Byrd Honors Scholarships, Fulbright
fellowships)
- Merit-based and highly competitive
- Members of Congress do not
play a role in selecting recipients
- Work study programs allow you to earn money
while in school:
- Federal Work Study Program: college campus jobs
- Student Educational Employment: jobs with the federal government
- For questions not covered by the Department of Education Web
site, call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at
1-800-433-3243.
States offer residents a variety of scholarships,
loans, and tuition exemptions.
Colleges and universities provide some 20% of
aid, most need-based. Check university Web sites and the institution's financial aid office when
you apply for admission.
Private foundations, corporations, and organizations
offer scholarships or grants:
FastWeb
Free Scholarship Search
Grants for Individuals
Targeted aid for special groups
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Interested
in public service?
Federal assistance programs seek to encourage people to work in geographic
areas or professions where there's a particular need (such as doctors
in underserved areas); encourage underrepresented groups to enter a
particular profession; and provide aid in exchange for services provided
(such as military service).
Aid for
private K-12 education:
No direct federal assistance, check with schools themselves:
After
college, the federal government has ways to help you
repay your loans.
States, schools, and some private employers provide help in
repaying loans in exchange for public service.
CRS contact Merete Gerli, x77109
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