My Home School News!

You see the ads wherever you go. They claim no less than President Obama himself encourages furthering their education, and that there’s a lot of “free” money out there to help you do it.
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The simple truth is there are thousands of programs offering millions of dollars in college grants. True, there are others professional grant writers will warn are frauds. So how can you get your hands on some of those legitimate grants for college?
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What it takes is patience, stamina and resourcefulness. If you have your share of all three qualities, there very well could be a a Bachelors, online degree or trade certificate in your future, without a debt that will haunt you for many years to come. Here are five tips that will help you considerably:
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Take A Hard Look At Yourself – Are you a single parent? Do you have a physical impediment? Were you the head chair of the first violin section of your high school orchestra? Are you an athlete who didn’t make the pros? Have you done your share of community service? Be extremely self-critical. List the positives and the negatives. Many negatives become positives when it comes to financial aid, particularly if the goal is self-improvement.
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Research. A good place to start is on the Internet. Get your hands on a computer, and access sites like Google, Bing and Yahoo. You’ll find over 14 million different listings on Google by just typing “college grants.” They range from full service academic institutions, online degrees to trade school assistance. A good place to start is with the Federal government itself. The U.S. Department of Education has a site devoted to this issue.
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Sift out the frauds. There are many organizations offering “free” money, and there are those who want to “free” the money out of you. A handy tip is if they want to be paid up front, get back on the net and double check. Type the individual/organization’s name and the word “scam.” If that search ends up with a lot of scam alerts, think twice.
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From there, you should talk to financial aid officers. Just about every institution of higher learning employ a number of them these days These people are paid to help you find the cash to study at their place of employment. The more students they help, the more money they bring to their school…and in these days of 10% national unemployment, that helps them keep their jobs. Cynical? Yes, but also true. Use them.
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Go for as many graduate school scholarships as you can. Not every institution is going to give you money. At the same time, the more college grants and scholarships you apply to, the better your chances of success. If you find ten different institutions that fit you, go for all ten, no matter how much paperwork it means filling out. The payoff could make all the difference in these difficult times, in attending online school, and you also wind up without that financial burden that will haunt you for decades to come.