FREE MONEY FOR COLLEGE?!?!
With the planned closure of the US Department of Education, uncertainty surrounds college financial aid and student loans.
Here is what College Help Squad is hearing and reading from our various professional college counseling associations:
– Each state will have their own Department of Education and less money to share;
– Colleges will need to use their State Dept of Education for financial aid;
– Private colleges will need to dip into their endowments to cover any scholarships;
– There will be no more financial aid appeals.
As all of these details are emerging – right on cue – all the college financial planning companies have started amplifying their advertising, both online and in our communities. So many free workshops to choose from! So many “money-saving secrets THEY don’t want you to know about” to learn!
Parents of high school students, you will be seeing a lot of companies out there hinting at ways to save big on college costs, showing you ways to find money previously unknown to you…just attend this such and such free workshop…then after that, meet with whatever guru is being touted as having the ultimate expertise in materializing money for college. Oh, and there’s some college planning and counseling in there, too…they say…
We encourage you to attend one of those free “save on college” workshops. Eat the free snack. Drink the free coffee. But at the very beginning, you should ask, “Will you be selling me life insurance?” It’s okay to leave right then and there.
If you’re looking for a Universal Life Index policy or an annuity – then great, stick around for the song and dance. If you’re looking for your student to find colleges that are best for them, and submit the best applications and essays possible to maximize the chances they’ll be accepted, you should probably question if an insurance salesperson is somebody who can make that happen.
When interviewing any company who says it will reduce your costs for college or find you money for college, ask tough questions. If the answers are vague or unclear, press for details. If it all sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
If you are seeking financial advice on affording college, we urge you to find a true financial planner or wealth management firm – entities with real financial expertise, appropriate certifications, and legally-bound fiduciary responsibility to their clients.
College Help Squad is not a company that focuses on financing college. We help students with finding their best-fit schools and sending in the best-possible applications and essays, and we help students and families understand all the little details that are part of the college journey. The extent of our financial-oriented help is helping you complete the FAFSA and CSS Profile accurately and legally. At one of our seminars, you’ll get some snacks and beverages like those other guys – but everything you’ll see and hear is about your student, not your finances.