College Student Loan News and Info

FAFSA: Then and now
By Olsen Digma, Student Loans.Net

When U.S. Senator Claiborne Pell introduced the Basic Educational Opportunity Grants in 1973 that opened a floodgate to more and more people attending college and trade programs. Yet this is one of the most prolific means for students to go to school and to make something of themselves.

The FAFSA has helped thousands of students to pay for school when they werent able to afford it themselves. Students found it easy to attend a junior college by applying to the FAFSA for funding towards a degree or trade school or vocational certificate. The criteria for FAFSA is essentially a student must have a financial need. Yet it’s obvious there is a huge need for the FAFSA since many parents arent able to afford the cost of college for their children in this day and age. However, they can apply to the FAFSA and not only qualify for the Pell Grant based on need, but can also qualify for other financial aid state and federal.

Having the FAFSA actually shaves down the cost of college and university tuition by mere thousands of dollars when students graduate with associates degrees and/or transfer to a four-year college and university.

FAFSA has since changed their criteria because past abuse has tightened how the money is allocated and meaning it’s for school and nothing else. This is somewhat why many students are often frustrated because they see people that go to their school and are wasting the FAFSA Federal Stafford Loans money not using it towards what it should be used for and not just taking up seats in classrooms and programs. This is stopping a lot of serious students who want their education to be able to have the means to pay for it.

FAFSA is considered a luxury in the United States in terms of education since they don’t have this in foreign countries since so many of them are poor they can’t even establish similar programs for their own people. FAFSA has now placed a requirement on the application asking if you are a convicted felon because they don’t want felons applying for federal funds.

This is understandable with most prison inmates having to get their degrees behind bars since they can’t apply to FAFSA due to the fact that they will run a background check on applicants to check for prison status since many are denied if found to have served in prison.

Other than the reason stated above, there are other reasons don’t qualify for much Federal student aid, and these reasons vary on a case by case basis. If you are on of the ones in need of additional financing, above and beyond Federal Aid, private student loans are often used to cover gap left between awarded Federal Aid and Loans and the total cost of attending college - which includes expenses like a computer, study abroad, school supplies and other college related expenses.