a guide to free colleges

8/14/2019 A Guide to Free Colleges

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/a-guide-to-free-colleges 1/19

www.bestofcolleges.com All rights reserved. © 2009.

http://www.bestofcolleges.com/





TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page No.

Introduction 3

Chapter I School Is Free, College Is Not! 4

Chapter II Scholarship Websites 5

Chapter III More Scholarship Websites 7

Chapter IV Maintaining Your Financial Aid – The Do’s And Don’ts 8

Chapter V Work Study Programs 10

Chapter VI Free Education As A Company Benefit 12

Chapter VII Employee Waiver Programs 13

Chapter VIII Continuing Education 16

Chapter IX Conclusion 17






Introduction

Private college education today can cost quite a bit – in tens of thousands of dollars. High school graduates are often stricken by this stark reality onlywhen they start applying for college education. Due to this, students from

poor families are often compelled to put off their plans for higher studies or even abandon them altogether. The fact of the matter, however, is thatanyone with a little ingenuity and confidence can complete their collegeeducation virtually free or at a significantly lower price.

This ebook is meant to serve as a guide for fresh high school graduates in

their pursuit for cost-effective education. The information given herein has been compiled from various sources including websites, survey of collegestaff, students and educational consultants. This book has been written basedon the recognition that a great majority of the parents and students I havediscussed with are not aware of the various opportunities available to themto make college education affordable.

This book seeks to give a complete picture of the various avenues availablefor candidates to get free college education. Therefore, some informationgiven herein may be standard, that which you may receive while speaking tofinancial aid counselors at private colleges. This book however is moreabout the lesser-known facts, those that still remain closely guarded secretsamong a few privileged people for various reasons.

Here’s hoping that you will find this book useful in your pursuit of your higher education goals.






Chapter ISchool Is Free. College Is Not!

As school students, we are all conditioned to take our education for grantedas it is offered for free by the State. However, college education is quitedifferent. In fact many students are struck by this reality only when theycomplete high school and look for college education opportunities. Yes, highschool graduation is a time when the realization hits them that from that

point on education is anything but free.

Financial aid officers at various colleges whom I met as part of collectingdata for this ebook were unanimous that most often young high schoolgraduates react with shock and disbelief when told about the cost of collegeeducation.

The financial aid office helps eligible students avail themselves of scholarships, grants or loans. In a majority of cases, the aid comes in theform of loans that must be paid back after the student graduates. In somecases, the pay back can start while the student is still in school. It must also

be borne in mid that there is something called the shortfall which essentiallyis the part of the part of the expenses that are not covered by the differentforms of financial aid. This results in a monthly payment that must be paid

by the student directly to the school itself. This can be anything from 10% to50% of the total cost of the program. Thus, the shortfall itself can be asizable amount for students who do manage to get an aid of some sort.

This is where this book comes in. It lists in sufficient detail the many waysto get a free or near-free college education. It equips you with all theinformation and resources you need to minimize or eliminate altogether inmany cases the cost of college education. These are not theoretical ideas or avenues available to a limited number of people. In fact we have severalexamples of individuals who used the methods and ideas given in this book to earn everything from Associates degrees right up to Masters degree or

higher. As such, we see no reason why these methods won’t work for you.Welcome to the world of free college education!






Chapter II

Scholarship Websites

Several philanthropic and charitable organizations as well as private partiesgive financial aid to students who show the right commitment and drive. Thereason why they do this is simple: Education is a powerful tool to positivelyinfluence the lives of people and thus effect social change. Money spent oneducation is money well spent. This fact prompts them to set aside large

parts of their welfare funds for promoting education. To ensure the proper utilization of such funds, they set suitable eligibility criteria. Some evenmonitor the progress of the beneficiary students through the program andinsist that they score a certain minimum grade in examinations.

As a diligent student willing to put in enough effort at studies, this shouldnot be a concern for you. The challenge however is sifting through all of thevarious opportunities so available and zeroing in on the legitimate ones.

Fast Web is a trusted source of information on such scholarships and grants.The site gives comprehensive information on the various aids available tostudents – local, national and college specific. The website states that theyhave access to 1.3 million scholarships worth over $3 billion.

How does one use fastweb.com to know which scholarships and grants oneis specifically eligible for? The site requires that you initially set up a

password-protected account for yourself. Apart from the usual informationsuch as name, address, email etc. the site collects information specific to thecandidate such as income, nationality, religion, age, likes and dislikes etc.These seemingly superfluous and random questions are asked for a purpose.They are designed to match your profile with the eligibility criteria of specific organizations and give appropriate advice on this basis. Thus, thesite allows you to apply only to just the scholarships/grants you are likely to

get approved for and avoid the others. This is a useful feature in a situationwhere there is a multitude of aid agencies with their own eligibility criteriaand conditions.

It is important here to not that questions that may not appear important or necessary, are sometimes very relevant in the context of obtaining certainscholarships. For instance, stating one’s nationality may stand one in good






stead to get a scholarship or grant aimed at certain specific ethnic groups or nationalities.

Once you complete the survey, the site will give you information on how toapply for the various grants and scholarships you personally are eligible for.In some instances, you may be required to write an essay explaining whyyou should receive the scholarship. Some may simply ask you to furnish

proof of income or provide some additional information. In any case, after you complete the initial survey you will find that from then on, you willreceive, for many years, e-mails on new scholarships available to youmatching the information you filled out about yourself. The option isentirely yours to decide whether to apply for those scholarships based onyour requirement and interest.

As you learn the ropes of the system, you will invariably find that youshould apply for as many grants and scholarships as you can. This isfacilitated by the fact that there is no limit to how many you can apply and

potentially qualify for. As there is no guarantee that you will qualify for individual scholarships, the more organizations you apply to, the better areyour chances of getting one.






Chapter III

More Scholarship Websites

Fastweb.com is of course the most popular among the scholarship websites.However, there are more websites that help students find scholarships andgrants for their education. The list given below is thought to compriselegitimate ones as it has been prepared with the help of the financial aidofficers of private colleges. Fastweb.com tops the list as it is the first namementioned by everyone. However, please don’t discount the usefulness of others. They too are known to have helped several students find legitimatescholarships and grants to help them through college.

www.bestofcolleges.com

www.fastweb.comwww.collegescholarship.comwww.fastaid.comwww.freschinfo.comwww.salliemae.comwww.scholarships.comwww.gocollege.comwww.scholarshipshop.comwww.college-scholarships.comwww.collegenet.comwww.wiredscholar.comwww.collegefunds.net/free-scholarships.htm


http://www.bestofcolleges.com/index.php?page_id=1001333


http://www.bestofcolleges.com/index.php?page_id=1001333




Chapter IV

Maintaining Your Financial Aid – The Do’s and Don’ts

As students, many of you are apt to falling prey to the temptation of skippingclasses for no justifiable reason. If you are on a scholarship or grant and areovercome by this desire, just banish it! For, the cost of doing it can be huge.As mentioned earlier, most organizations that offer scholarships and grantsdiligently follow up on the progress of their beneficiaries through college.

For federal financial assistance, there are two conditions that the studentsmust meet and maintain to continue receiving it. The first one is thestudent’s completion (attendance) rate. Most of the students who skip classes

do so without realizing how financially devastating it can be for them if theyfall short of the required minimum completion rate.

For instance, if you do not complete the required amount of your class timeyou will be removed from and not qualify again for a very long time for federal financial funding. The government requires you to maintain a 65%completion rate to continue supporting your education. Many uninformedstudents just bunk their classes and get a rude shock later when the collegeinforms them that they have lost their federal aid and must now apply for a

private loan or look for own means to continue their studies. This situationcan last for one or several semesters until the average completion ratereaches 65% again and stay there.

Another lesser-known fact about the completion rate is that the school must,drop a student on federal assistance, if a certain amount of classes are notattended, as per government regulations. This can set off a chain reactionoften with disastrous consequences. While such an unfortunate situation isnot impossible to recover from, if you find yourself in one, it can seriouslyaffect your studies and delay your graduation. It is therefore in your interest

to concentrate most of all on your studies and keeping up good grades.

This brings us to another very important factor in receiving and maintainingfinancial aid, that is, maintaining a good grade point average (GPA). Manystudents, admittedly, are concerned about their grades. However, they arenot always aware of the consequences in terms of financial assistance, if their grades drop.






For reason of lack of awareness about the importance of maintaining therequired course completion rate and keeping the required GPA, manystudents have had to either arrange for private loans or leave school beforegraduation. So the next time you feel tempted too miss class for whatever reason, remember that you are putting your education in the line by riskingthe continuity of your financial assistance.

If, however, you have an unavoidable situation that requires you to misssome classes, immediately contact the proper department of your school sothey can take remedial action so your funding is not affected. Remember it is

both your and your college’s interests to keep you in school. They will doanything possible to save you from such unfortunate eventualities aswithdrawal of financial assistance or discontinuance from the program.






Chapter V

Work Study Programs

An important way to cut down on the cost of education and receive financialaid while attending college is to enroll for a work-study program offered bythe school. In fact many educational institutions offer such programs for the

benefit of their students. Students who meet an accepted level of competency usually in terms of a GPA of at least 2.0 or higher and who havean adequate completion rate can take advantage of such programs. This willassist them in cutting down the cost of education further and in some caseseven help them earn money while they study.

Educational institutions that offer these programs do so to support diligentstudents who are committed to their education. Discussions with studentsand college officials suggested that many students are not aware of the factthat they can work at their college and receive compensation. The student’scompensation in such programs can come directly from the school itself or from the government and as part of the student financial aid program. Thevarious opportunities available include tutoring, assisting in student services,the library, information technology services and so on.

It must be stated here explicitly that to take advantage of these positions youmust be an excellent student. To know more about such opportunities, youneed to approach either the career development center or the financial aidoffice, the latter since many of these programs are actually funded bygovernment financial aid programs. If you meet the GPA and completionrate requirements, you need only to concern yourself with the things that youdo while applying for any job.

Among the few students who are aware of this opportunity, many think of this type of jobs as less important and so do not give them a professional

approach. But this is not on. You should always follow accepted rules of professionalism in your attire and the manner in which you conduct yourself.If you dress formally, you will surely be preferred over a fellow applicantwho turns up in casual attire.






An important and often overlooked additional benefit of attending a work-study program is the work experience you will obtain from your job. This is

particularly relevant to the present times, where many fresh graduates feelthe frustration of having to wait on and on to get that perfect job in the fieldof their choice due to its requiring a certain amount of real work experience.A work-study program thus gives you a head start when you enter the jobmarket.

Additionally, many student workers get hired as permanent employees bytheir colleges in due course. This of course depends on the student’s attitude,work ethics and personality. Some are even offered managerial positionsimmediately on graduation because the institution gets to assess their interpersonal, leadership and communication skills while they do their work.This shows that work study opportunities offer benefits far beyond

immediate financial relief, rather they can play a major role in shaping thecareers of the students.






Chapter Six

Free Education As A Company Benefit

Free education can be part of the many perks a company offers to itsemployees. With increased focus on human resources management,companies go that extra mile in their search for the best talent and efforts toretain them.

The additional advantage of offering free or subsidized education to theemployees is that the company too will benefit from the additional skills andknowledge acquired by the employee. Free education, when properlymanaged, is a win-win situation for both the company and the employee.

Companies offering such sponsored education programs pay various annual

amounts to the employees depending on their time on the job and therelevancy of the program to their jobs. Another benefit to the employee isthe tax exemption they can receive for the expenses incurred on education.

The companies often set certain eligibility criteria for their employees to toqualify for sponsored education programs. For example, you may have toexecute an undertaking that you are willing to remain on the job for a certainamount of time after obtaining the degree. Some may insist that youmaintain a certain minimum GPA. Some employers may also require thatfinish the program in a certain period of time.

While most companies set requirements an employee must meet to receivesupport for their education, they are more often than not, laid down in goodspirit and well worth meeting for the employees.

The benefits of obtaining a higher education will be long lasting. Suchemployees often have a faster climb up the corporate ladder if they decide tostay on. They can, if they so choose, leverage their new qualification to their advantage by opting for a more rewarding job in a new company. To know if

a company’s sponsored education program is right for you, you mustinvestigate the details of the plan and the eligibility requirements before

joining as an employee.






Chapter VII

Employee Waiver Programs

Quite a few private colleges provide free education to their staff as anincentive. Obviously, this is a perfect arrangement for both the institutionand the staff. While the employee gets free education in a certificate or degree program, the school gets a better employee and loyal student. Thiscan create a positive impression about the school among other students tooas they see the employees themselves attending the school.

Isn’t it then a cool thing to get free college education by securing a job at private, career-based college, which offers such a benefit to the employees?

It is a well-guarded secret that in many colleges, one of the employee benefits is in the form of education. This can take different forms asappropriate such as tuition remission, tuition waiver, employee waiver, andtuition reduction. Before taking up a job in such an institution, you mustassess the college’s free employee education program as to its suitability for you. For instance, does the college allow you to work flexi hours on the jobwhile you are enrolled on a program?

In fact this aspect of getting free education was not known to me when I setabout writing this book. It was a casual mention by a staff member of afinancial aid office that set me exploring this opportunity further. It thenturned out that many people actually take up jobs in career focused collegesto avail of this benefit.

That begs the question: If so many people make use of this opportunity, whyis it still not so well-known? One reason is that these colleges are not soliberal with their free education programs. Mind you, they make their moneyout of the fees paid by the students and it certainly does not suit their

purpose to publicize their employee education programs liberally. So whileadmitting new students a college prefers that they finance their tuition byway of student loans, scholarships, grants etc. and not on their getting a jobin the college for availing of the free education benefit.

The payoffs of getting a free education at the college where you work aremany. The work experience adds further value to the education you receive






and help you excel in studies. The fact that you do not have to drive or commute between your place of work and study helps you save time andmoney. Also, working for a school and becoming eligible for free educationwill even allow you in many cases to receive your training online if this isavailable, another great convenience. Plus you will be in a moreadvantageous position vis-à-vis the others for promotions or even a career change if you so decide.

Recognizing their value, lately, even traditional colleges and universitieshave started offering tuition waivers to their staff. Such institutions showtheir commitment to continuing education and programs that promoteemployees’ education are actively encouraged and supported.

There may be instances where a degree is a qualifying requirement for

getting a job at a college. Don’t let this discourage you; in fact there areseveral colleges which offer entry level jobs to high school graduates. Thusone option is to look for other colleges where your current education isenough to secure a job.

However, even in schools that require you to have an Associates or Bachelors degree to be considered for a job, a tuition waiver benefit can stillhelp you attain a higher degree, if that is offered at the college. So you canfirst take your AA degree using a scholarship, grant or loan as appropriateand then go on and earn a masters or doctorate degree tuition free at thecollege of your choice.

An online search will give you plenty of colleges who are hiring. A visit totheir websites will give additional information on the employee benefits theyoffer. If free education is not mentioned as a benefit, don’t assume it is notoffered. As previously mentioned, this is not liberally publicizedinformation and in such instances, you will have to do a little undercover investigation to find out all the relevant facts from people you know or “meet” who work for the college you are interested in.

Thus, working in a college and receiving free education there itself hasseveral benefits as outlined earlier. And this is not fanciful thinking. Believeme, this is a real possibility and thousands of smart people in our countrymake use of this opportunity.






If you qualify for a student loan or have other means to pay for your firstfew months at the college while you are attempting to get hired and that ishow you feel comfortable doing it by all means get enrolled, start school andapply for a job at your convenience.






Chapter VIII

Continuing Education

Is securing an Associates or Bachelors degree the end of your education?The answer is ‘No’ in many cases. In practice, graduation is by no means theend of your education, just the beginning of your journey on the road to lifelong learning.

What does this mean for your pursuit of free college? Many colleges anduniversities have programs especially aimed at alumni to keep them abreastof the latest developments in their respective fields and keep them fullycompetent in their jobs.

These programs can take the form of tuition free retraining where graduatescan return to their schools and participate again in courses that were part of their curriculum. Some schools, for instance, offer their alumni theopportunity to audit a class that has been revised. (to audit a class in thiscontext means to attend it without receiving a grade or credit). Auditing aclass allows you to stay completely up to date with the latest information andyou don’t get left behind due to lack of knowledge.

Similarly, if an entire program is restructured or additional classes addedthen alumni are also encouraged to take these classes. Of course, schoolsdiffer from each other in how and to what extent they provide such servicesto their alumni. Therefore, if this particular facet of free education appeals toyou, it would be wise to investigate before choosing a school to ensure thatyou are getting the maximum benefit.

The costs associated with retraining are often limited to such expenses as labfees, books and material fees, parking and such. These expenses, however,are usually minimal and really worth spending when compared to the valueof what you get in return- fresh education and information relevant to your

career.

Retraining can be especially helpful for graduates who work in fields whichare rapidly changing like information technology or where they now work ina field outside their qualification but wish to refresh their skills so as toincrease their marketability in their areas of expertise.






Chapter IX

Conclusion

I confess I have possibly not covered every possible way to obtain a collegeeducation for free. However, the ideas and methods discussed in theforegoing sections cover the most part of what is in the free educationdomain. The choice of the most appropriate method is dictated by your own

personal circumstances and you may find that you could explore multipleoptions in your pursuit for free education. In other words, you just need toinvestigate, ask questions, and apply for every grant and scholarship thatcomes your way as well as consider working for the college you attend toreceive a free education.

Remember that every year thousands of people receive free collegeeducation through the various means we have discussed and there is noreason why you too can’t do the same. Now that you have the right ideas,talk to students about what they are doing and what types of scholarships or grants they are getting. Talk to staff at colleges and find out about their work study programs and employee education benefits. You may have exercisediscretion while probing about employee education programs as most staff may not be that forthcoming on the relevant details.

To sum up, if you are determined to find a way of receiving your educationat a tremendous discount or even for free and willing to put in some effortfor this, you will most definitely succeed. And the time spent on it will bemore than made up by the savings you make.






Terms of use

The use of our information, products and services should be based on your own due diligence and you agree that we arenot liable for your success or failure.

Disclaimer

ALL CONTENT IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES ARE DISCLAIMED, WHETHER EXPRESSOR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY ORFITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Consent to Use Information

When you communicate with us, send us information, or provide content to us or out website, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, sublicensable right to exercise all copyright and publicity rightsyou have in the content, in any manner whatsoever, in any media now known or which may be created in the future,including in other works and forms not associated with this website.

No Waiver of Rights

Our failure to enforce any rights granted in this Agreement or to take action against any other party in the event of anybreach shall not be deemed a waiver by us as to subsequent enforcement of rights or subsequent actions in the event of future breaches.

Privacy Policy

We respect your interest in your privacy and as a result we have created this informational disclosure.

We collect and use personal information for many purposes, including but not limited to, billing; product and servicefulfillment; to better understand our customer needs; to provide a better website, products and services; to communicatewith customers and potential customers regarding our products and services and third party products and services.

Generally, your private information will only be disclosed to our owners, employees, independent contractors,subsidiaries, partners, affiliates, attorneys, consultants, business associates, service providers, suppliers and agents,acting on our behalf or request. This general rule, and disclosures in specific situations, is more particularly described

below.

Use of eMail Addresses and other Contact Information

An important part of our services includes being able to provide information to you. As a result, you expressly consent toreceiving communications from us via email, fax, telephone, mail, or any other delivery method.

As a customer you are agreeing to receive information about the product or service you purchased. This may include, butis not limited to, information about product or service updates, new features, or information we believe you may findinteresting.

We may also send you information about other products and services our company offers.

We will not sell, provide, or transfer you email address to others.

We may allow advertising to our customers, or engage in joint ventures, which result in your receiving advertisements

from selected third parties.

Cookies

Cookies may be used to keep track of referred affiliate commissions and to monitor access to our website. You consentto any future use of cookies for testing purposes and the use of cookies for publicly available data to gather statistics for the purpose of determining which search engines, referring sites, key words, etc., bring visitors to our website, whichpages visitors are most interested in, what web browsers are used, etc. Various providers may be used for this purpose.The purpose is obtain information that will help promote the website, make the website more interesting and useful tovisitors, and to identify areas where improvement is needed.






Additionally, various third party information suppliers and other entities that provide information for this website, or for useby us, may use cookies. Examples include, but are not necessarily limited to billing providers, third party advertisers, andthird party resources we promote.

Disclosure by Necessity

Private information may be disclosed if required by a court order, statute, law, or regulation.

Information is subject to disclosure to address a claim that you are violating the terms of any agreement pertaining to your use of your use this website or our products or services, or rights of any third party.

Information is also subject to disclosure if we believe that disclosure is necessary to identify, contact or bring an actionagainst someone who may be causing injury to or interfering (either intentionally or unintentionally) with our rights or property, your rights or property, other users of our website, products or services, or anyone else.

As we continue to develop our business, we or our affiliates may sell or buy other businesses or entities, or we maymerge with another company, or be bought by another company. In such transactions, personal information may be oneof the transferred assets.

Your information may be stored and processed in any country in which we maintain facilities or conduct operations. Byusing our website, products and services, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country.

After your account becomes inactive your information may remain in our databases, computers, and archives, and cannotreasonably be expunged.

Miscellaneous

This Agreement in all respects shall be governed by and construed according to the laws of the State of California, to theexclusion of any other applicable body of governing law, without regard to conflicts of laws principles.

This Agreement is entered into in Los Angeles County, California. You consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of Californiafor any dispute arising from or related to this Agreement.

You agree that the exclusive venue for any dispute arising from or related to this Agreement will be a court located in LosAngeles County, California.

Should any term of this Agreement be declared void or unenforceable, that term shall be severed from the Agreementsuch declaration shall have no effect on the enforceability of the remaining terms.

This Agreement contains the complete and entire understanding and agreement between you and us and supersedes anyprevious communications, representations, or agreements, verbal or written, related to the subject matter of this

Agreement.

This Agreement may not be modified or amended orally, impliedly, or in any manner not set forth in writing or permitted bythis Agreement.

This Agreement may be amended by us at any time and without notice, but only by amending this Agreement as postedon this website, unless otherwise agreed to in a writing signed by both of us.

Any amendments will become effective 30 days after being posted on the website, unless circumstances require that achange be immediately implemented. As a condition for this Agreement you agree to periodically check this Agreementposted at this page.

You agree that your continued use of our product or service after that date will constitute your consent and acceptance of the amendment.

Date of this Agreement: September 1, 2009



a guide to free colleges

Documents