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Focus on Financial Aid for College

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JobMonkey.com
Volume VIII, Issue #35
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With the recession still in full swing, many would-be job seekers are turning their sights toward retraining and advancing their education. Last week we discussed how distance learning can help you jumpstart your career. Whether you go back to school online or in person, there is no doubt that education is a great way to wait out the recession while strengthening your resume and making you a more competitive job candidate. For many would-be students, however, the cost of tuition is a major deterrent. If you would like to go back to college, but don't think you can afford it, then this week's spotlight article on Financial Aid for Returning Students is for you!

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IN THIS NEWSLETTER:

1) Career Advisor: Using Community Papers for Job Search
2) Spotlight: Financial Aid for Going Back to School
3) Around the Monkey: Financial Aid for Students
4) JobMonkey Job Center: Jobs for College Grads

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CAREER ADVISOR: Community Newspaper Help Wanted Sections
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by Amy Lindgren

We've all seen the obituary for print newspapers. The fact that you're reading job search tips online adds just one more death knell to the tolling bell. There's no point in even picking up a piece of newsprint anymore, right?

Well...no, that's not true. Tough as it is to imagine, for some types of information your best source is still the newspaper. For information about a particular community, the paper may be your only source. Not everything makes it online, after all.

Imagine that you wanted to work in Erskine, Minnesota, a town of about 200 that I just happen to have some experience with. You may be surprised to learn that this town supports a weekly paper; you may not be as surprised to learn that the paper is not online. Why would it be, when everyone gets it delivered to their doorstep every Thursday?

And why should you care? Well, believe it or not, Erskine is home to two companies of a respectable size. People in northwest Minnesota actually commute to work in Erskine. If you wanted to join their ranks, you could use the Internet to apply online. But how would you know which managers were coaching the Little League teams and which ones volunteered at the VFW last week?

And again, why would you care? Short and sweet: If you want to work in a specific community, or even the specific neighborhood of a larger city, ignore the community paper at your own peril. By staying online you'll miss all the networking opportunities that would introduce you to the people who'd be interviewing you next week. Why would you do that?

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SPOTLIGHT: Financial Aid for Going Back to School
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Have you recently decided to go back to school? Maybe you are returning to school after years of professional experience. Perhaps you are a military vet, planning to use college as a way to advance your career path. Whatever your story, college can be an extremely positive -- and expensive -- proposition.

The average four-year state school education costs over $50,000, including tuition, books, fees and expenses. Over the past decade, the rate of tuition inflation has topped 7% -- significantly higher than the national rate of inflation. As students struggle to cover the skyrocketing costs, universities are also hitting hard times. With the financial markets crumbling over the last year, colleges have had to cope with plummeting endowment plans. Their resources diminished, colleges are less and less able to offer assistance to incoming students.

The good news is that the federal government has increased the number of student loans it will be offering for the 2009-2010 school year. And financial aid under Obama may include expansion of the federal grant program for low-income students, known as the Pell Grant.

Want to learn more? JobMonkey has a special section on College Financial Aid with the returning student in mind. The section covers everything from federal student loans and grants, to aid for military veterans, to state grants and private scholarships.

If you don't know where to being, here is a quick primer with all the basic information you need to know about financial aid:

The federal government provides a range of financial assistance to college students, including grants, loans for students and their parents, and work-study assignments.

The most common federal grant is the Pell Grant, received by one in four American college students. Families earning less than $50,000 annually are eligible for the grant, which currently covers just under $5,000 a year of your college expenses. There are other federal grants as well, primarily for juniors and seniors in college, such as the Academic Competitiveness Grant and the SMART Grant.

The federal government also offers low-interest loans for eligible college students. The Stafford Loan is the most common student loan, although lower income families may also qualify for the Perkins Loan. Federal loans offer better terms and lower interest rates than private loans. And, they don't require a credit check, so you can qualify for a Stafford or Perkins loan even if you have poor credit history.

If your parents still claim you as a dependent on their income tax return, they may qualify for the federally-backed PLUS Parent Loan. These loans have fixed interest rates and repayment can be frozen until you have graduated from college.

Eligible students may also qualify for the federal work-study program. This program lets you earn money to help cover your living expenses while still allowing plenty of time to devote to your studies.

In addition to federal financial aid, you might also qualify for assistance from your state.

If you are a soldier or veteran, you are eligible for a range of military education benefits, including the Montgomery GI Bill.

If you have exhausted federal, state and military assistance and still can't cover your education costs, it's time to turn to scholarships. Check out the JobMonkey for information on where to find scholarships and how to ace the application process.

The single most important piece of paper for you to fill out if you want to qualify for federal student aid is the FAFSA. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the key to the treasure chest of government student assistance.

The FAFSA requires you to input data about your income, assets and other financial factors. Your college will use the data you input on your FAFSA to determine your "Estimated Family Contribution" (EFC) -- i.e. how much you and your family should be able to pay for college. Your financial aid award will (ideally) cover the gap between your EFC and the total cost of attending your college. Your college will also use that data to make decisions about how to distribute their own private scholarships.

The federal deadline for the FAFSA is June 1, however each state has its own deadline as well, typically ranging between January 1 and March 31. If you are applying to apply to college for the fall of 2010, make sure that you file your federal tax return on time!

For more on government assistance for the returning college student, check out JobMonkey's special section on College Financial Aid.

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AROUND THE MONKEY: Financial Aid to Go Back to School
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Are you thinking about going back to college? Check out these two posts from the JobMonkey blog on financing your education:

Applying for Financial Aid to go back to school

Financial Aid for Distance Learners

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JOB CENTER REPORT: Jobs for College Grads
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Thinking about going back to school? You're making a wise investment in your future. College grads earn more than four times their peers without a degree. Want further proof that a degree is in your best interest? Check out the JobMonkey Job Center. This free service features thousands of jobs from around the country -- and the world, including a number of exciting opportunities available only to those of you with a college degree.

 

 

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