While most students apply to college with an “undeclared” major—keeping their future prospects open—some students are confident that they know exactly what—as the saying goes–they want to be when they grow up.  If these career plans require graduate-level education, such as a medical, law, or business degree, students would be wise to keep their grad school prospects in mind as they choose their undergraduate college.  Check out our own Shannon Vasconcelos’ article on the Edmit blog, where she details the questions you need ask when determining what college will best ease your future path into graduate school.

With college application season just wrapping up, many families’ thoughts are turning to financial aid. College Coach’s finance experts are flooded this time of year with some variation of the question, “Do I need to complete a FASFA if I’m not going to qualify for financial aid?” The short answer to that question is “no.” The FAFSA is a financial aid application, and no student is required to apply for financial aid. Believe me, colleges will be more than happy to admit your child without providing you any financial assistance. Still, there are many reasons why you may want to complete an aid application even if you don’t expect to qualify for need-based assistance:

Many high school seniors wait until they’ve been accepted to a college to worry about how to pay for it. Unfortunately, however, by the time you receive a college acceptance, you have likely already missed the school’s financial aid application deadline, and may have missed out on thousands of dollars of assistance. When, then, should you be applying for financial aid? Find out on the Edmit blog, where former Boston University and Tufts University financial aid officer, Shannon Vasconcelos answers the most common questions about timing that financial aid application.

For high school seniors who are finalizing their college lists—or juniors who are just starting to get serious about their college search—one feature you may be looking for in a college is generosity.  Specifically, how generous is a college with their need-based financial aid programs?

There is a scholarship (or many scholarships) out there for everyone.  Every student has some skill, interest, experience, or characteristic that may make them an attractive candidate for one scholarship or another.  And while we often refer to scholarships as “free money,” scholarships don’t actually come for free.  It takes work to thoughtfully consider your strengths and research the scholarships that might be most appropriate for you.  While the effort that goes into finding and winning scholarships may be akin to a part-time job, we at College Coach want to make your job a little easier.  This on-going scholarship series highlights a new scholarship each week.  Check out the below, along with the other posts in the series, and you may discover a funding resource that will make covering that college bill a little (or a lot!) easier.

Colleges tend to be more relaxed environments over the summer. Without the typical school-year pressure on students, professors, and administrators, these campus community-members are often more available to answer questions from prospective students and their parents. What questions, however, are best to ask? Find out on the Edmit blog, where former Boston University and Tufts University financial aid officer, Shannon Vasconcelos, advises you to dig deeper than the information that can be easily accessed on a college’s website and ask the questions that get to the heart of whether a particular college will be a good financial fit for your family.

There is a scholarship (or many scholarships) out there for everyone.  Every student has some skill, interest, experience, or characteristic that may make them an attractive candidate for one scholarship or another.  And while we often refer to scholarships as “free money,” scholarships don’t actually come for free.  It takes work to thoughtfully consider your strengths and research the scholarships that might be most appropriate for you.  While the effort that goes into finding and winning scholarships may be akin to a part-time job, we at College Coach want to make your job a little easier.  This on-going scholarship series highlights a new scholarship each week.  Check out the below, along with the other posts in the series, and you may discover a funding resource that will make covering that college bill a little (or a lot!) easier.

Each spring, College Coach surveys the high school seniors that we’ve worked with through our private college counseling service to garner their insights on the college application process. We’ve just synthesized the results of our 2019 Senior Survey, and wanted to share the good news with our readers.

If you or your child plan to borrow federal student loans for the upcoming school year, we have some important news for you. We now know what student loan interest rates will be for the 2019/20 academic year.

If you ask about costs while visiting a college campus, you will likely be told something to the effect of, “Don’t worry about it—you can get financial aid!” And while that statement holds true for many students, not everyone is eligible for financial aid. How can you determine whether your family will qualify for financial aid? Check out the latest installment of our video series, We Can Explain.