Funding Education Beyond High School: The Guide to Federal Student Aid 2007-08

A. What You Should Know Before You Apply

Our Federal Student Aid team is committed to making sure that all eligible students can benefit from financial assistance for education beyond high school. We allot billions of dollars for this purpose every year.

The amount and type of federal aid we provide depends almost entirely on financial need. Once students apply for aid, many are surprised by the amount of aid they receive. So a good rule of thumb is: Don’t assume you’re not eligible. Take the time to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid—the FAFSA (more on that later).

The U.S. Department of Education offers a variety of student financial aid programs, which are described in this guide along with other sources you can turn to for financial help in completing your education. Remember: the more you know about how to make your ambitions real, the closer you are to fulfilling them. It’s up to you to make it happen.

Education after High School

Education beyond high school is a big investment of time, money and effort. You’ll need to figure out how to pay for your education but all the effort you put into it will be worth it. Over a working life, a person with a bachelor’s degree will earn almost twice as much as someone with just a high school diploma. More education equates to higher earnings. This is most noticeable at higher education levels (see statistics below). The more education you have, the more you earn. So invest in your education; the payoff lasts a lifetime.

2003 Average Annual U.S. Income by Highest Level of Education Attained
Education Level	2003 Annual Income (U.S. dollars)
High School Diploma	$37,051
Associate Degree	$45,982
Bachelor’s Degree	$65,008
Master’s Degree	$77,436
Ph.D.	$103,831
Professional Degree	$134,106

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

The distinction between income levels becomes even more apparent in graph format.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Remember to carefully evaluate all relevant aspects of the schools you’re considering. Just because a school participates in our federal student aid programs doesn’t mean we’ve endorsed the quality of education the school offers. We don’t approve a school’s curricula, policies or administrative practices, except as they relate to how the school administers our federal student aid programs.

When we refer to “school” in this guide,
we mean a two-year or four-year public
or private college, university or career or
trade school.

What questions should I ask when considering a college or career school?

Does the school offer the courses and type of program I want?
Do I meet the admissions requirements?
Does the school offer a high quality education?
Does the school offer services I need and activities I'm interested in?

Where can I find this information?

Read the school's catalog or introductory materials.
Talk with students who currently attend or attended the school you're considering to get their opinion of the school.
Check the school's Web site.
Visit the reference section of your local library.
Talk to high school counselors and your state higher education agency. (See the section "State Higher Education Agencies" for a list of agencies and their phone numbers.)
Check to see if any complaints about the school have been filed with the local Better Business Bureau or the consumer protection division of the state attorney general's office. Search for Better Business Bureau offices at www.bbb.org.

You're paying for a high-quality education. Make sure you get it.

Take the next steps.
Before enrolling, make appointments to visit the colleges or career schools you're considering. Bring a list of questions to ask school representatives. Your education is a major investment, so find out as much information as you can before you enroll.

What kind of information should I get from a school?

Ask about the school's Accreditation,* licensing and campus security.
Find out the school's loan Default* rate (the percentage of students who attended the school, took out federal student loans and failed to repay their loans on time). You might not be able to get aid from some of our programs at a school that has a high Default* rate.
Find out the school's job placement rates (the percentage of students who are placed in jobs relevant to their courses of study).

If the school advertises its job placement rates, it must also publish:

the most recent employment statistics,
graduation statistics, and
any other information necessary to back up its claims.

This information must be made available at the time you apply for admission to the school.

Make sure you get the information you need and check out all of your options as you prepare for education after high school. It’s never too early to get started pursuing a career, so don’t wait until the last minute to get started! Know what to expect from the schools you’re considering.

Find out about financial aid at the school.
You have the right to receive the following information from the school:

The location, hours and counseling procedures for the school's financial aid office.
The financial aid assistance available, including federal, state, local, private and institutional financial aid programs.
The procedures and deadlines for submitting applications for each available financial aid program.
The school's criteria for selecting financial aid recipients.
The school's process for determining your financial need.
The school's process for determining the type and amount of assistance in your Financial Aid Package*.
The method and timing of financial aid payments to you.
The school's basis for determining whether you're making Satisfactory Academic Progress*, and what happens if you're not. (Whether you continue to receive federal financial aid depends, in part, on whether you make Satisfactory Academic Progress.*)
If you're offered a Federal Work-Study job, the nature of the job, the hours you must work, your duties, the pay and the method and timing of payment to you.

Find out the school's refund policy.
If you enroll but never begin classes, you should get most of your money back. If you begin attending classes but leave before completing your course work, you might be able to get some of your money back.

Find out the school's return-of-aid policy.
If you receive federal student aid from any program mentioned in this publication (except for Federal Work-Study), and you withdraw from school, some of that money might have to be returned by you or by your school. Even if you don't finish your course work, you'll have to repay the loan funds you received, minus any student loan funds your school has returned to your lender.

Find out the school's completion and transfer-out rates.
If many students withdraw from a school, it might indicate a problem with the school. A school is required to disclose to current and prospective students the percentage of its students who complete the school's programs and the percentage of students who transfer out.

DID YOU KNOW …
You can create a FREE, personalized student account folder at our Web site Student Aid on the Web (www.studentaid.ed.gov). Just click on the "MyFSA" icon at the left side of the page and follow the instructions. Your personal account will allow you to do online college and scholarship searches and populate your FAFSA with information you enter for your account. It's entirely free as well.

U.S. Department of Education | Federal Student Aid