1. Welcome to Take Charge
Presented by EducationQuest Foundation
Your Journey to College Begins with Us
2. Let your journey begin…
EducationQuest Foundation will guide you
on your journey to college
We provide:
Free college planning services
Need-based scholarships
Grants that help high schools
increase the number of students
who go to college
Outreach services for
community agencies statewide
3. At our locations,
we offer FREE services
Computer-based services and resource
materials to help you:
• explore careers
• find scholarships
• select a college
One-on-one help with college planning*
Completion of the FAFSA*
*Appointment required
4. Follow us!
Keep up with college planning tips and
advice!
– Facebook.com/EducationQuest
– Twitter: @FreeCollegeHelp
5. We will cover…
The Cost of Education
The types of financial aid available
How to apply for financial aid
13. Types of financial aid
Scholarships Work-Study*
Loans*
$ $
Grants*
$
*Based on FAFSA Results
(Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
$
14. Scholarships
Common criteria
GPA Financial
Need
Ethnicity ACT/SAT
score
Field of
study
First-generation
student
Talents Community
Service
Employer
College
choice
Leadership Activities
Military
service
Disability
State of
residence Gender
$
15. $ Scholarships
Search tips
Begin research early
Colleges
School counselor
ScholarshipQuest at
EducationQuest.org
Private organizations
The Internet
16. Scholarship Tips
Get organized
Put in the time
Write a good essay
Check, double-check, triple-check
Think local and small-dollar
Meet deadlines
17. $ Scholarships
Common mistakes
following directions
meeting the deadline
typing – or turning in a sloppy
application
proofreading
including all necessary components
answering the essay question as asked
meeting the criteria
19. Financial Aid Program
Scholarship
!
Students who attend an EducationQuest
Financial Aid Program can register for a
$500 scholarship!
Will conduct a drawing to select three student
winners in February
See your packet for an info card
20. Susan Thompson Buffett Scholarship
www.buffettscholarships.org
Eligibility Financial need
2.5 GPA on a 4.0 scale
Attend a Nebraska public college (two- or four-year)
Amount Up to $4,250 per semester
Dates to
remember
Online application opens: November 1, 2014
Deadline: February 1, 2015
Student Aid Report due: March 15, 2015
!
21. Grants
Money you don’t repay
Based on financial need
Federal
Pell Grant (range $602-$5,730)
State
College-based
$
22. Tuition Assistance Programs
Collegebound Nebraska
– UNO, UNL, UNK, or UNMC
– NE resident, full-time student,
Pell eligible
– Must complete FAFSA by April1
Advantage
– Wayne, Peru, Chadron
– NE resident, full-time student,
Pell eligible
– Must complete FAFSA by June1
!
If you
meet the
criteria,
tuition is
COVERED!
!
23. Work-Study
$
Must show financial
need
Part-time job, typically
on campus
Flexible schedule
Money not available
up-front
26. Applying for Financial Aid
Scholarships Grants, Work-Study, Loans
Deadlines Priority dates
27. Financial aid process
FAFSA & PIN
Processor
SAR
College Student
Verification?
Award Letter
28. Applying for a
Department of Education PIN
A PIN serves as your signature on the
electronic FAFSA
The Department of Ed PIN process is changing
EducationQuest will provide updates on
Facebook and Twitter (@FreeCollegeHelp) –
so follow us!
29. About the FAFSA
Free Application for Federal Student Aid
Apply at fafsa.gov
Complete after January 1 of senior year
before college’s priority filing date
Use parent and student tax information
Renew yearly
30. Financial aid formula
Cost of
Education
Tuition & Fees
Room & Board
Books
Personal
Transportation
EFC Financial Need
Parent Income/Assets
Student Income/Assets
Parent’s Age
# in Household
# in College
The amount of
money the college
will try to give you
in financial aid
31. Junior Year
(SPRING)
Visit colleges
Start a
scholarship file
Prepare for and
take the ACT
and/or SAT
Update
Activities
Resume
Junior Year
(FALL)
Research
colleges
Set up an
Activities
Resume
Attend a
College Fair or
EPP
Take the PSAT
32.
33. Your Journey to College
Begins with Us
Kearney Lincoln Omaha
EducationQuest.org
402.475.5222
Call for an appointment
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@FreeCollegeHelp)
Notas do Editor
**This slide can be moved to a different point in the presentation (personal preference). Preparing for college might mean shifting expenses and making choices (ex: downgrade to a cheaper car, shift other bills). Be realistic with yourself and your student! Talk to your student about what you can afford! (Ask how many people have had a conversation with their student about what they can realistically afford to pay toward college.)
(Percentages roughly based on IFAP parent income protection allowance.)
[Animations – 3 clicks: 1=merit/need, 2=leadership/community service, 3=talents/athletics/drama/music]
Explain a little bit about the different types of scholarships. Many scholarships require a mix of all the above categories. Obviously these are some of the main types – there are others out there, ex: religion, ethnicity, military, etc.
My.EducationQuest.org is hyperlinked if during your presentation you have time to clink on the link. This is optional based on time allowed.
Beware of anything asking for money or very personal information (i.e. SSN, mother’s maiden name, bank account numbers, etc.). You should never pay for a scholarship.
Make sure not to say “free money.” (It’s not technically free, it’s someone’s tax dollars.) Instead, use “money you don’t repay,” or “gift money.”
[Animations – 1 click=Note]
Don’t need to explain difference between dependent & independent here (will do so later). Main point of this slide is to bring attention to the fact that there are limits on the federal Stafford loans, and students won’t be able to borrow as much as they may want in order to cover costs. Point out that as an independent student, they can borrow a bit more, but most high schools students will be considered dependent (click to bring up Note as explaining this).
[Animations – 2 clicks: 1=all scholarship application bubbles, 2=FAFSA screenshot]
This slide is meant to be a quick visual/explanation to point out that students will fill out multiple applications for scholarships, and just one application (FAFSA) for grants, work-study, and loans. May mention some colleges require other paperwork (ex: CSS profile) or other institutional forms.
(Obviously, to actually get loans disbursed they will have to complete MPN, but don’t need to discuss that here.)
[Animations – 5 clicks: 1=arrow/FAFSA, 2=arrow/Processor, 3=diagonal arrows/SAR/College/Student, 4=arrow pointing right/Award Letter, 5=arrow pointing left/Award Letter]
Give a general overview of each step here; most of them will be discussed in greater detail in the proceeding slides. However, this is the only slide that mentions the Central Processing System. Also, highlight the Student Aid Report (SAR) here. Talk about receiving it either in the postal mail or electronically, a confirmation summary for students, may need it for certain scholarships.
[Animation is automatic – no clicks necessary. (Red circle, underline, and arrows.)]
Both parent and student need one
This is just a brief overview of the FAFSA – don’t need to take more than a minute on this slide. Much of it will be discussed on the following slides.
[Animations – 2 clicks: 1=minus sign/EFC bubble/green arrow/green box, 2=equals sign/Financial Need bubble/orange arrow/orange box]
Main point of slide is to explain the formula. The boxes under each section are a description of that part of the formula. The COE part is mostly review since we already went over that earlier. The green box is some review and some new information, but not much more detail is needed to explain it. The orange box will probably need the most explanation.
[Animations – 5 clicks: 1=resources box, 2=calculators, 3=college funding estimator, 4=FAFSA checklist 2013-14**, 5=FAFSA tools]
Calculators: Award letter comparison
College Funding Estimator: estimate results of the FAFSA any time with current tax info
FAFSA tools: demo, tutorial, video, podcasts, steps to renew
**Once the checklist for the 2013-14 school year is available we will add that to the resource list and update this slide