Five Powerful Student Aid Websites

Navigating the waters of financial aid can be tricky. Do you qualify for grants or fellowships? Are you going to need a loan? How much should you set aside in a college tuition account? What scholarships are available in your state?

What you need is comprehensive student aid information at your fingertips and, fortunately, here are five websites that round up all the details for you whether you’re planning for college, or looking to supplement the aid you’re currently receiving for your education:

Federal Student Aid  Produced by the U.S. Department of Education, this comprehensive aid portal provides a bank of tools, including a Financial Aid and Scholarship Wizard, College Savings Calculator, and Financial Aid Estimator. Along with information on grants, campus-based aid, Stafford Loans, Plus Loans, and more, the portal has an electronic Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that you can submit digitally.

Students.gov  Students.gov is the official U.S. government website designed to help students and families plan for financial aid. You’ll find comprehensive incformation on financial aid, federal scholarships and grants, private scholarships, fellowships and research funding, and links to financial aid calculators. Each state financial aid program is available in an alphabetical index.

The College Board  The College Board a non-profit association composed of more than 5,400 colleges and universities (The board created the SAT test). Their student aid section offers a financial aid planner, scholarship search, and informational articles on loans, credit, and borrowing.

Student Aid Alliance  The Student Aid Alliance provides details about the Federal Pell Grant Program, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG) , Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program, Federal Perkins Loan Program , Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnerships Grants (LEAP), TRIO Programs, Federal Subsidized Loan Program, GEAR UP programs, Graduate Programs including The Javits Fellowship program, Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need, and The Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program.

FinAid  Established in 1994 as a public service, FinAid provides detals on scholarships (search by profile), loans, savings plans, aid for military members or vets, and how to file financial aid paperwork. There are links to college loan calculators.

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