Federal Money Available For College!
So you’re a bright young high school student with ambitions to be a scientist or enter into some other technological profession. Your grades make you a top candidate. At the same time, you’ll be in over your head in student loans before graduating. You’ve heard about Pell grants and state aid, but may be wondering what other sources of financial aid are out there.
Over the few years, the federal government has joined forces with the National Science Foundation. The goal of this team-up is to increase the ranks of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians (also called STEM fields) for the foreseeable future. The reasoning behind this is simple. It’s been said the strength of a nation is based on how well it sustains technologists, and the U.S. is losing on this front. If you need more information about pell grant application, look on the internet.
Financial aid candidates looking for grants and scholarships should start by sitting down with a college’s financial aid officer. Whether it’s an online college or on campus, every school has a small army of them. It’s part of his/her job is to stay abreast of all these new programs. Not that it doesn’t hurt to also do one’s own research. A quick scan of Google or any other search engine will show there are a number of sources they might never have heard of. These sources include:
(1) Pell Grant – At the moment, this federal grant is capable of supplying up to $5,350, although that might be going up to $5,900 by 2011. All that is required is filling out a FASFA form, and then wait for response. Don’t forget the state you reside in. That’s what most state lotteries are supposed to finance.
(2) S-STEM Scholarship – This program was created by the Federal government specifically to help students get science degrees ranging from an Associates to even a Masters. In 2009, it awarded 100 scholarships ranging from $100,000 to $600,000, based on both academics and need. To find out more one should go to the National Science Foundation, who works with the Board of Education on this program. There is an abundance of information about grants for college on the web.
(3) Corporate Scholarships – When you think about it, it’s in their best interest to sponsor these programs. It’s a great way to recruit their future superstars. In this case, one should look up the SIC of the industry you’re interested in, and then look up the corporations they correspond to. From there, go on their web sites. You’ll be hard pressed to find a company that doesn’t have some program already in place.
(4) Professional Societies – No profession doesn’t come without its own society. In turn, it’s hard to find one that doesn’t have some sort of financial aid program. In engineering, some of the most prominent ones include the National Society of Professional Engineers and the American Society of Civil Engineers. The latter has a section of its web site devoted to continuing online education or as they call it, “distance learning”.
In total, with a little work, a student can find more than enough leads, such as Pell grants, for financial assistance. With a bit of patience and persistence, getting the needed financial aid is obtainable.
