Options available if you cannot afford college due to insufficient financial aid

What can you do if you can’t afford college? Maybe the financial aid award isn’t enough, or you just want to go to a certain school and the price is a little higher than you want…the answer is duct tape.

What? Duct tape has many practical uses, such as strengthening book covers, patching holes in backpacks, removing lint and catching insects.

But what does duct tape have to do with paying for college? Duck Brand Duct Tape is sponsoring a $10,000 scholarship to make a concert costume out of duct tape. Visit Stuckatprom.com Website for more information.

If this scholarship doesn’t help you get out of your sticky situation, search for scholarships on free scholarship search sites, such as Fastweb.com and College Board’s Big Future. Just beware of scholarship scams, which charge a fee to apply for a scholarship.

Here are ten other options to help pay for school when you don’t have enough financial aid.

College costs vary depending on the type of college. Often, an in-state public college costs one-quarter to one-third the cost of a private college, even with less financial aid.

The other option is one of the six or so colleges that have “no loan” financial aid policies. These colleges replace loans with grants in their financial aid package. These include all Ivy League colleges, MIT, Stanford, Caltech, UC Berkeley, Johns Hopkins, Amherst, Williams, Wellesley, Northwestern, University of Chicago, Swarthmore, Rice, UVA, Vanderbilt, Vassar and other selective colleges.

Community colleges are much less expensive. But if your goal is to earn a bachelor’s degree, detouring through a community college could cause you to miss your destination. Only one-fifth of students who start at a community college graduate with a bachelor’s degree within six years, compared to two-thirds of students who start at a 4-year college.

Enrolling part-time may reduce college costs by spreading them out over a longer period of time. But students must be enrolled at least half-time to qualify for student loans and in-school deferrals. Other forms of financial assistance may be prorated based on enrollment status.

Yes, I realize that the whole point of this article is to provide ideas on how to pay for school if you don’t have enough financial aid. But this point is still worth mentioning as some students assume that they will not qualify for much financial aid based on their family income or other reasons.

Based on these assumptions, some students fail to apply for financial aid by submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), believing that it will be a waste of time anyway. However, the FAFSA is a gateway to financial aid not only from the federal government, but also from state governments and most colleges and universities.

Fewer than 200 private colleges mostly use a supplemental form called the CSS Profile to award their financial aid funds. But most still use the FAFSA to get federal and state aid. So, even if you don’t qualify for enough state aid to pay for school in full, filing the FAFSA can help you qualify for additional merit aid from your academic institution.

File the FAFSA as soon as possible on or after the October 1 start date. Students who file the FAFSA sooner qualify for more scholarships than students who wait to submit the form. Some scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until funds run out. Other scholarships have early or preferred deadlines.

If you need more money to pay for school due to special circumstances, contact your college financial aid office to ask how to do this. Appeal for more financial aid.

Special circumstances are financial circumstances that affect your ability to pay for college. They include changes in circumstances since the previous year, such as job losses and pay cuts. (The FAFSA is based on income information from two years ago.)

It also includes circumstances that distinguish the family from a typical family, such as high unpaid medical expenses, K-12 tuition for siblings, costs of caring for dependents of a child with special needs or an elderly parent, and disability-related expenses.

You can claim more financial aid even in the middle of the academic year. Many colleges also have emergency aid funds available through the financial aid office.

Military Student Aid may be an option to pay for school if you want to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces. Examples available from the federal government include ROTC grants and the GI Bill. Eligible students may receive a one-year ROTC scholarship before being required to commit to service.

There are also scholarships for military service members, veterans and their families from private organizations, e.g Amfitsthe American Legion, Paralyzed Veterans of America and Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Part-time positions are available on and near campus. Some employers offer tuition assistance and student loan repayment assistance programs. (Up to $5,250 of this assistance annually is tax deductible.)

Even if you already have a job, you may be able to work a second job in the evenings or on weekends. Also consider asking your employer for a salary increase or switching to a better-paying job.

But be careful about working too much while pursuing a college education. Students who work a full-time job are half as likely to graduate with a bachelor’s degree than students who work 12 hours or fewer per week.

Aside from choosing a college that charges lower tuition and fees, students can also economize on other college costs. Nearly half of the cost of a public college education is due to living expenses, such as housing, food, textbooks, transportation, and miscellaneous personal expenses.

Here are some tips on ways to reduce these costs:

Related to: Top 50 Ways to Save Money in College

Sell ​​your stuff on Facebook Market, Leave it, an offeror other platforms are a quick way to raise money to pay for school. Start selling anything you haven’t used in over a year.

Related to: 10 places to sell your used clothes online for cash

It is better to beg than to borrow. Ask your friends and family to help you pay for school. Ask parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to give the gift of college on your birthday and holiday. (You can also sell the gifts they give you to get money to pay your college bills.)

It doesn’t hurt to ask for help. The worst that could happen is that they say no. Try asking them to cover something specific, like textbooks or tuition. College crowdfunding may also be an option for students who have a compelling story and require a small amount of money.

Get paid by the IRS when you file your federal income tax return by claiming verification Education tax benefits. The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) provides a partially refundable tax credit of up to $2,500 based on amounts paid for tuition, fees and textbooks. Limited to four years. But then there’s the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit (LLTC) which is worth up to $2,000.

The student loan interest deduction provides a tax deduction for up to $2,500 in interest paid on federal student loans and most private student loans. It’s a clear exclusion from income, so you can claim it even if you don’t segregate.

Two-thirds of states offer an income tax deduction or tax credit based on contributions to a state 529 plan. Seven states allow a state income tax deduction for contributions to any state’s 529 plan. Most states allow the tax break even if you withdraw the money immediately.

In effect, this provides a discount on college costs based on your marginal tax rate. Four states limit the state income tax exemption to contributions net of distributions. In this case, you will need to make contributions and take distributions in different years.

The least preferred option is to borrow money, as student loans must be repaid, usually with interest. Before you borrow, ask the cashier if they offer a tuition installment plan. Tuition installment plans spread college bills into equal monthly payments over the course of the academic year. Tuition installment plans do not charge interest, but may charge a small upfront fee.

If you must borrow, borrow federal funds first. Federal student loans offer low fixed interest rates, don’t require co-signers and have flexible repayment options. Federal student loans offer longer deferrals and forbearances, income-driven repayment plans, and loan forgiveness and repayment options. You must file the FAFSA before you can get a federal student or parent loan.

Private student loans and private parent loans are available from many lenders, including banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions. Most students will need a parent or other relative to co-sign the loans. Even if you can qualify without a co-signer, a creditworthy cosigner can help you qualify for a lower interest rate.

Shop around for the best interest rate, since the advertised rate may not be the rate you get. If you want to compare multiple lenders in minutes, consider using Credible because it makes shopping for loans easy. Check authenticity here >>>