College: Financial Aid

Congrats on deciding to attain a higher education. If you haven’t done your research already, you probably found out that college can be quite affordable if you choose to fill out the financial aid form. Again, I want to give kudos to you for wanting to learn more about this financial aid.

As luck would have it, more than $238 billion in financial aid is available throughout the United States to help pay for college for those who truly need it. By filling out your financial aid application, also known as FAFSA, this is the first step in applying.

Nonetheless, here is all the information you need to know to fill out your FASFA correctly the first time. I know how important it is to have your FASFA done right the first time, so you can get the money you need to further pursue your education.

Source: Wikipedia

What is a FAFSA?

Unfortunately, all college students are expected to contribute to their college tuition. However, this all depends on how much you and your family financial situation, also known as Expected Family Contribution (EFC).

Basically, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, also known as FAFSA is a form from the U.S. Department of Education requirement to determine your family’s EFC. All in all, the government then will conduct a “need analysis” on the financial information you and your family provided, such as assets, income, and any other information deemed financial.

Then your application will be looked over by a federal processor, which then releases your results electronically to your school's financial aid office.

FAFSA helps colleges determine your eligibility for state, federal, grants, college sponsored financial aid, loans, and work study programs.

Eligibility

Just about every student is eligible for some kind of financial aid, whether it be a low-interest Federal Stafford, parent PLUSloans, or a federal grant. Doesn’t matter about income nor the circumstances, provided that you:

•       Is a U.S citizen, an eligible non-citizen, or a U.S. national
•         Provided a valid U.S. Social Security number
•          Attained a high school diploma and/or GED
•          If you are a male between 18 to 25, you are registered with the U.S. Selective Service
•          Filled out the FAFSA form
•          Do not owe any money on federal student grants
•          No student loans are in default
•         Also, you cannot be found guilty for possession or sale of illegal drugs during the time you are receiving financial aid.

Applying for aid

To be considered for financial aid, you need to complete your FAFSA before the deadline. However, you should know that different states, universities, and college's awards students with a variety type of aid, such as college and state sponsored grants, work study programs, and loans.

Also, some states and even some colleges will require you to file another form for aid, you will need to check with your college financial aid department for their requirements.

Deadlines

You can start filing your FASFA in the beginning of January. However, if you want to really get a head start on your FAFSA, you can use FAFSAFirst in the fall. FAFSAFirst will then submit your form to a federal processor when the filing begins in early January.

One thing you need to know is, federal aid is limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis, so the earlier you file better chance of you getting the most out of the aid.

Many states, colleges, and universities have filing deadlines as early as the first weeks in January.

Also, keep in mind that your college and/or universities have deadlines to file your FAFSA. You will want to pay close attention to the deadline. You don’t want to miss the deadline because you can lose any and all opportunities to receive financial aid for that school year.  All in all, if you are unsure, call up your college financial aid department.

Nonetheless, financial aid can definitely make paying for school much easier. Always keep in contact with your financial aid department, especially if you are not sure of their deadlines. 

Free Root Beer Float August 6th

Source: Joy/flickr

Love root beer floats? Live near an A&W? Well, August 6th will be your lucky day to get yourself a free root beer float at your local A&W between 2p.m. until closing. Yes, you heard that right, a free root beer float in honor of National root beer float day!

Also, if you so choose they will also be raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project the same day too. If you would like to donate, you can donate at your local A&W store, or if you aren't close to one, but still want to donate, you can donate here.

Freshman Year: Class 101

I want to say congrats to the entire college freshman class of 2015!! It will be a fun roller coaster ride, to say the least. I bet a lot of you are stressing over being the small fish in the pond again. Well, there is nothing to worry about as college will have a different vibe then high school had.

Honestly, going off to college will be a lot different. You will have a lot of different feelings that you didn’t have in high school. No fear about that either, the transition will be an easier one depending if you are going to a local college, or you are venturing off to a university.

For starters, the first few weeks you are on campus, will be pretty critical for you. During this time you will have to make some important decisions that will affect a good part of your life, if not all of your life. I have compiled a list of 14 tips to help you get through these first few weeks. Some of these tips will help you throughout your entire college career, while others will help you throughout the remainder of your life. No matter what, always be yourself. You will cherish these memories for a lifetime.

Orientations

Depending on if you are going away to college or going to your local community college, there will be tours, orientations, and freshmen events. It is vital to attend all of these tours, orientations, and events. You are probably asking yourself why you should. Well for starters, it will ease you into the campus/school, you will find hidden gems that you may not know about, plus it’s a great source of knowledge.

Roommates

Alright, if you are staying in a dorm, chances are you will have 1-3 roommates. Well, with all this technology you can “meet” your roommate on social media before even seeing them in person. Needless, to say add them on your Facebook, Twitter, Google +, because this will help the anxiety of all your roommates. You will be able to get a gist of what they are like, what do you have in common, etc. Not to mention, plan to meet your roommates on campus somewhere, so you all can hang out in the first few days before school officially starts for the semester.

Get organized

While you were in high school, some teachers probably babied you, am I right? College won’t be like that, they will not accept homework late, and they will definitely frown upon you not being organized. If you are one of those who stuffs papers in a binder or folder, you want to get a good organization system going, so you don’t fail the class because you forgot your paper in your dorm room.  Have no fear, we will talk about how you can get yourself organized to the fullest here.

Find a study place

Finding a place to study will be vital. As you will soon learn, your studying will soon overtake your social life, if you had one before. However, some people choose to study in their dorm, while others head on down to their campus library. Where ever you choose to study, make sure it is eliminate of all distractions, so you can get your work done and keep those grades up.

Go to class

This one seems pretty obvious, but you won’t believe how many kids do not attend class. I will admit I was one of those kids for a while, but you have to have discipline. Of course, staying up all night partying always sounds great until you realize you have to be up at 7a.m to attend your 8a.m. class. Pick and choose your battles wisely.

Know your syllabi

Your syllabi should be your bible for the next semester. I am not even kidding, your syllabi will have what is expected of you, what you will be learning, when items are due, and how you will be graded. Get to know it and learn to follow it.

Meet with your professors

Your professors are always ready to lend a helping hand. You need them for anything, look at your syllabi and see when they have office hours. Take advantage of those office hours because you can learn a lot just by stopping in and asking your questions.

Get to know your academic advisor

Just like in high school you will have an academic advisor, it is vital that you keep in contact with them after each semester of classes. They will be able to tell you what classes you still need, what classes they are offering this semester, and help you if you run into any academic issues. Don’t be afraid of going to them, if you truly need help.

Seek a balance

You will learn this is not high school anymore when your parents aren’t telling you, it’s not a good idea to go to the campus library at 2 in the morning. You will have to balance your life without anyone telling what you should and shouldn’t do. It will take some time getting used to, to say the least.

Get involved on campus

During your first year, it can be intimidating, but if you were active in high school; you should be just as active in college. However, college has a wide variety of clubs and organizations to join. You will see a lot of them looking for new members during the first few weeks of school.

Strive for good grades

Of course, that should be your main goal, but since you will have so much freedom that you are not use to, getting good grades can be a challenge. As long as you stick to a routine that includes studying and going to class, you will do just fine.

Study resources on campus

You’ll be surprised that your college may offer free tutoring, study groups, and much, much more. You need to take advantage of all study resources that your school offers. Besides you are paying good money anyway, so why don’t use it to its fullest?

Make time for you

Always make some time for you. You will be a better person, if you choose to take one day off a week and do what you want. It doesn’t matter if you want to lie in bed and binge watch Netflix, but do what you want and don’t let anyone make you feel bad for doing it.

Peer Pressure

Don’t fall into peer pressure. You may have friends that are changing their mind about their career choices while you are set on what you want to do. Don’t let them change your mind on what you want to do with your life. Remember you are going to college for what you want to do, not what your friends want to do.

All in all, just remember you got good grades to get where you are. Do not lose focus of why you are there. It may seem overwhelming, but we have all been there and done that. You will learn that college isn’t as bad as it seems. Just remember, to always take advantage of all the resources your school offers. 

Freelancing: Class 101

Okay, so if you have been keeping up with the updates, you probably read 5 Tips for Successfully Freelancing as a College Student. If you never freelanced before, you are probably curious about what is out there, what can you do, where can you go, how much can be made. Well, these are all good questions, especially when starting out.

With freelancing becoming more and more popular throughout the world, no one would blame you for asking those questions. Those are some very common questions many have when they are thinking about starting a freelance career. Luckily for you, having a successful freelancing career is easier than it really seems, just follow these steps below, and you will be on your way.

Source: Firmbee/pixababy

What do you want to do?

Now, that you know about freelancing the first question in mind is probably, what can you do? Well, most people that I talk to, assume that freelancing means writing. They could think that as I am a freelancer and I mainly write, but that isn’t everything to freelancing. When freelancing you will find people are looking for all sorts of things, such as virtual assistants, writing, editing, customer service, telemarketing, and much more.

Think of it this way, if someone needs it, I bet there is a market for it. So, sit back and think of what you are good at and what you want to work on.

Brand Yourself

In order to succeed in your freelancing career, you must brand yourself. Basically, if you are starting out, I recommend using Upwork, Elance, or Freelancer. These sites are free unless you want more applications, which they all have their own pricing. Nonetheless, you can create a name for yourself. These sites will allow you to create a portfolio, ratings, and work history.  These sites are great for dabbling into a few different fields that you are interested in.

Of course, it can be a little scary at first, but after a while, customers will know your name and will want to hire you on the spot. Other than that, you will want to work on making your profile making clients want to hire you because you are their best option.

Start Pitching

You got your profile all set up, but you don’t know what you should do next. Well, the next step is to start looking for jobs that you are interested in. You will need a great cover letter that goes over your experience, skills, and why they should hire you. With a great profile or even a portfolio to back it up can make the client make up their mind in no time.

I do want to say this, do not get discourage if you don’t hear back from your first few pitches to clients. This is completely normal, but keep on going because starting out can be a little difficult for those who never worked from home. As long as you have the skills, mindset, and patience, you will be on your way to landing your first freelance gig.

That’s it. Yup, that is how to become a freelancer. It is a pretty decent gig if you play your cards right. However, I cannot stress enough, if you want to be successful at this, you will also need to treat this like a real job. If not, you will not see the success that most people see.

Question: Are you ready to start a freelancing career?

5 Tips for Successfully Freelancing as a College Student

As you will soon learn, I am very passionate about freelancing. If you were to Google my name, you will see I am a freelance writer, I dabbled in transcription, and so on. However, what I loved and still love about freelancing is as a college student, you have more than enough work with your classes. However, with freelancing you can set your own schedule, you can work when you want to, not when the company you work for needs you.

Markus Spiske / raumrot.com

Instead of having to juggle a “real” job as most people like to refer to it as, you can freelance to help jump start your career, if you choose to; or gain some very important skills for a better job after graduation. From experience, it is pretty easy to start and well rewarding, if you stick to it.

Now, that you are probably Googling how to become this great freelancer, I do want to warn you that it is not as easy, not as simple as it sounds. I know how hard it is to keep up with school, and how hard it is to keep up with your clients. If you fall into this never ending hole, you may never be able to get out; you will compromise your school and professional work. Therefore, in a blink of an eye, you will fail both school and work at the same exact time.

This is why I will let you in on five secrets that have helped me keep school and work life from failing.

Prioritize Your Classes

This tip is a no-brainer, but you don’t know how easy it is to put your classes on the back burner for a few days. You think, oh, it is just a few days, I can easily catch up, but that is how it starts. A few days will turn into a week, then the next time you realize it, you are so far behind that it is almost impossible to catch up.

Now, let me tell you this, I failed a few classes due to this. You are getting ready to start on some homework and your client Skypes you, and they need you to complete a few articles for them by tomorrow. Well, you decide to not do your homework that is also due tomorrow and do the articles. Now tell me, is this the right thing to do? No, it is not. You won’t believe how many times, I have done this because I thought money was more important than my education. If you have homework, do your homework. Do not take your focus off of school over a few dollars. Keep that your number one priority no matter what.

Let Your Client Know you are a Student

Now, this one, I do depending on the client, and their needs. If a client wants me to be available 24/7, I will tell them that I am a full-time student and not available during this time, on these days. This will let the client know that you have other obligations, and most of the time they will respect that.

Most clients will not mind that you are a college student; some of them may even be impressed and ask what you are studying. As a client, they know you will have times where you cannot work, or answer your emails, and messages quickly, but this should not be your excuse why you cannot make a deadline either. For instance, your client will need 5 articles by next Thursday and it is Saturday. You should not tell your client on Thursday that you cannot deliver them because of school. There is more than enough time for you to complete those articles and still focus on school.

Choose Your Activities Wisely

If you’re a social butterfly, you might be a member of many clubs and organizations at your college. Joining the right groups can be a huge benefit for your academic and professional careers, but as a student, freelancer, you’ve got to choose which ones will be best.

College doesn’t have to be about parties every night. There are a lot of different clubs and organizations that can help your freelance career, as well as your academic career. For instance, some colleges offer an entrepreneurship club, this club will help you create and maintain connections that you may need later in life.

Personally, I do choose to not join any clubs or organizations. However, that doesn’t mean it is not a good choice because it is. It all depends on what kind of club you are choosing to be a part of.

Don’t Spread Yourself Too Thin

This happens to the best of us; even the veterans have an issue with this. You need to know your limits and respect them at all times. If you feel overwhelmed, you may need to take a break. However, do not plan a good work load when it is finals week either. You should always plan for times when you know studying will be heavier too.

For instance, during finals week, I may only write a few pieces rather than during a week when I barely have any school work, I can write much, much more. It all really depends on my school work. Personally, I plan my weeks using my school syllabus and go from there. Sometimes, the load changes, while other times it doesn’t. However, it is a great tool to use.

Make Your Own Rules

Needless to say, what I love about being a freelancer, you are your own boss. Yes, that is the best perk about this job. You get to choose what you want to do, when you want to do, without having someone breathing down your neck.

Therefore, what you need to do before you contract with anyone, you need to make sure you and your client are both on the same page about the terms of the position. Since your client is choosing to work with you, they are accepting your work conditions. Basically, all that means, is they cannot complain about your work schedule. However, sometimes, clients will say they need articles by this time, or by this day. If you can do it, tell them, if you cannot try and compromise a time. Don’t tell the customer how you are the boss and you will work when you want because quite frankly, you won’t have many clients.

So, please do not let this, you’re the boss thing get to your head. You may be the boss, but treating your customers with respect, and allowing them to have some say when they need their work by can help you and your business. Your clients will more likely recommend you to their colleagues.

Question: Did you freelance when you were in college? If so, share your tips in the comment section!