Paying for College: The Aid is Available, But Save, Too (continued)

Other Forms of Aid Include:

• Federal aid administered by colleges including Perkins Loans and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs)?the U.S. Department of Education gives aid to colleges, who decide which of their students need it most.


• HOPE Scholarships, Lifetime Learning tax credits, and other tax benefits for higher education?The HOPE Scholarship tax credit provides a maximum of $1,500 (100 percent of the first $1,000 of tuition and required fees, and a 50 percent credit on the second $1,000) for each of the first two years of college. The Lifetime Learning tax credit provides a maximum $1,000 tax credit to help college juniors and seniors and graduate and professional degree students, as well as adults who want to go back to school. For detailed information on who is eligible for these and other tax benefits, it?s best to refer to your Internal Revenue Service (IRS) forms and publications which are available at www.irs.gov.


• Many states and colleges offer financial assistance directly to individual students based on need or merit. Merit-based aid, usually scholarships or grants, is given to students who meet requirements not related to financial needs?like doing well in high school or displaying artistic or athletic talent. A notable example of state aid is the Georgia HOPE Scholarship, which guarantees students free college as long as they have earned a B average and stayed off of drugs. Call or write your state?s higher education agency or college financial aid offices to request information about these opportunities.


• Other Assistance. Organizations, foundations and other groups offer scholarships to academically promising students, minorities, women and disabled students. To learn more about these scholarships, speak with your school guidance counselor or go to the reference section of the public library.


• Serve Your Country. Many opportunities exist for students to pay for all or part of a college education by serving their country during or after their college years. Service in Americorps, the Merchant Marine Academy, the country?s domestic Peace Corps or in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) entitles students to scholarships of varying amounts to cover educational expenses. The U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force each has its own military academy (a four-year college and a commission in the military after gradua-tion), where tuition is free, but only the most highly qualified students are admitted. Local armed forces recruiting offices can provide more information. Call 1-800-94-ACORPS for more information about Americorps?a way to serve your community and pay for college.

More Information on Federal Aid

For the most up-to-date information about student aid supplied by the U.S. Department of Education, call the Federal Student Financial Aid Information Center at the U.S. Department of Education toll-free at 1-800-4FED-AID. You can also get a copy of the federal financial aid form, which is required to apply for all federal financial aid, by calling this number. You can also obtain the guide to federal financial aid for students, called The Student Guide, which provides an extensive and annually updated discussion of all federal student aid programs. You can obtain the Guide by writing to the following address: