College grants and scholarships are abounding today, and in fact, many of the available college grants actually are not awarded every year, for the simple reason that nobody applied for them! As crazy as that sounds, it is true. Businesses and corporations use the college grants and scholarships they offer as a tax writeoff, and if it is not awarded, then they lose out on that writeoff, so they are more anxious than ever to award these college grants and college scholarships.
One common myth which is held by many people is that you need to show a financial need before you will be awarded college grants and scholarships, or that you need to excel in a particular area.
Today, college grants or college scholarship is available to virtually any student who has the motivation and the incentive to fill out the application forms. In fact, many students get multiple scholarships and grants, simply because they sat down and took the time to fill out the applications. These are students who do not excel in sports, in music, in drama, or any other area – they simply want to go to college, they understand the importance of having a college education in today’s very competitive real world, and they made the time to go through the steps required.
While there are both college grants and scholarships available, college grants are more likely to be awarded based on financial need, whereas scholarships are not nearly as closely tied to whether or not there is a financial need. But then again, when you look at the cost of a college education these days, after considering living expenses in a dorm or a campus apartment, meals, books and other very basic necessities, the cost of that college education is going to run well into five figures, perhaps even six figures, so a financial need is not going to be hard to justify for virtually anyone.
College grants and scholarships differ greatly from the usual student loans like the FAFSA loan that is available through almost any college’s financial aid or admissions office. A student loan needs to be paid back. Although payments usually do not start until after the student has graduated and the interest rate is quite low, the fact that it needs to be paid back. College grants and scholarships are much more attractive option to pursue, since neither grants nor scholarships need to be paid back.
Take the time to search out the many resources available for a college grants or college scholarship. After graduation, it is much better for you if you start out by not being in a huge pile of debt, but can start clean with your new degree.
Provided by Jon Arnold
