The Must Read Chart for all Parents Thinking about Paying for College

student studying must read efc chart

For the past few years, Troy Onink has had a Guide To FAFSA, CSS Profile, College Financial Aid And Expected Family Contribution at Forbes Magazine. It’s a great article that explains critical elements of the college financial aid process. I think the most valuable part of the guide is the Federal EFC Quick Reference Table. … Read more

7 Things You Need to Know When Looking for College Scholarships 2

With all of the college scholarship search websites available, it would seem that getting a scholarship to pay for school has never been easier. Unigo’s scholarship match offers to match students to 3.6 million college scholarships worth over $14 billion. And Scholarships.com tells you that there are over 3.7 million scholarships worth $19 billion just … Read more

Looking for a list of colleges that…?

Woman looking for college lists on compuster

If you’re planning to create a college list, take a look at some existing lists before starting. It’s possible that you’ll find a couple that can save you a lot of time. If nothing else, a quick perusal might generate some new ideas or bring up some issues you hadn’t considered. Best of all-most of the lists are free.

Must Reads about the Odds of Playing College Sports and Receiving Athletic Scholarships

football with money representing college athletic scholarships

Just a casual browsing of my blog would reveal that I’m not anti-athlete. When my son wanted to play baseball in college, I spent a lot of time educating myself about the college baseball recruiting process and shared the information here. However, there’s a big difference between playing college sports and receiving an athletic scholarship.

College Baseball Recruiting Timeline

Planner representing college baseball recruiting timeline

When looking at this recruiting timeline, keep in mind this is geared for baseball players. In many ways, your senior high school baseball season will not count. The majority of coaches (not all) will have already filled their recruit classes for the following year (your college freshman year). Depending on the division and conference (think … Read more

Why Your Most Affordable College May Be Outside the United States

A laptop, passport, airplane tickets, notebook, and pencil on a desk, with a cup of coffee and text suggesting going to college abroad for affordability.

When creating a list of colleges to apply to, smart families make sure the list includes several “financial safeties.” These are colleges that the students are likely to be admitted and the family is certain to afford. However, given the need to apply for financial aid, it’s increasingly difficult to identify financial safeties. After all, … Read more