Is Federal Student Financial Aid Enough?

Federal student financial aid consists of grants, scholarships, work study programs, and loans. Sometimes, it's substantial and enough to cover college costs, and sometimes it's not. There are limits to how much money the Federal government will lend students, and grants are tough to come by.

According to an article published by the College Board, more than half of undergraduates attending a public four year university can expect costs of around $9,000 per year.

That said, the same article touts the cost of attending a private university at more than $35,000 per year in tuition and fees.

According to statistics presented by the National Center for Education Statistics, the total average financial aid package of students receiving any financial aid for the 2007-2008 school year was $9,100.

For students attending public university, that's cutting it pretty close. For students attending private university, that number is a little scarier.

Going to college should under no circumstances break the bank. I had to learn that lesson the hard way. If you cannot afford college, you cannot afford it, and it's something that has to be dealt with.

A college degree is not a promise of or ticket to financial freedom . That is where many students and families make disastrous mistakes and end up borrowing way too much money in loans to cover the cost of college, with absolutely no good plan in mind for paying it back after graduation.

Students and their families should look at going to college and paying for it realistically. This is the first real grown-up decision some students make. It's an important one to get right.

There are several solutions ranging from very low impact to very high impact. Each one's impact on a student or family will depend completely on the individual situation.

Advice For Families on Tight Budgets

• Strongly consider attending part-time. If you apply for financial aid with full-time status and it is simply not enough, consider attending school part-time. It may take you twice as long, but you will graduate with half (or none) of the debt that you would if you attend full-time. If you can, live with family so that you do not have to pay living expenses. Work when you are not in school, and use your earnings to pay for college as you go. Your goal should be to graduate with 0 debt from college.
• Bridge the gap with a small private student loan. If you have good credit, and the difference between your Federal student financial aid package and the cost to attend your school is small , apply for a low-interest rate private student loan from a reputable lender. Be careful, because this loan, like any others, needs to be paid back. If you go this route, use it to make up for only small gaps, not large ones.
• Work hard at getting scholarships. One of the biggest complaints from companies offering student scholarships is that not enough students apply for them. FastWeb has literally thousands of scholarships ready for students. Spend the time to get this free money now; otherwise, you will spend a large portion of your adult life paying off debt that could have been avoided altogether.
• Pay loans back while attending school. While the interest on student loans is usually not incredibly high, it does add up. Many students choose to work while attending school. Students who must take out student loans in order to attend college should plan to make payments on their loans throughout the year. This will dramatically reduce monthly payments upon graduation.
• Delay enrollment. This is a tough decision, but one that sometimes has to be made. A hard-working student could push back starting college for a year and earn enough money working full-time to pay for college the next year. During that time, seek out every possible scholarship you can in an effort to reduce the costs and save money. And then, if the gap is much smaller after working and getting scholarships, you can take out a small private loan as I discussed above to secure the money you need.