Paying for College

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What current college students need to know about scholarships

College preparation, Latest, Mapping Your Future features, Paying for College / By

By Marlene Seeklander Scholarships are not just for incoming freshmen. Current college students should also be seeking scholarships, looking for funding opportunities throughout their entire college career. Current students are often eligible for scholarships, which may be based on their field of study and may be contingent on maintaining a minimum GPA or demonstrating financial need. […]

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Updated 2026-27 Federal School Code List now available

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By Marlene Seeklander The Department of Education recently released an updated 2026-27 Federal School Code List, which plays a key role in the FAFSA. The Department announced the availability of the updated 2026–27 Federal School Code (FSC) List of Participating Schools.  Although it’s usually not necessary, students can enter these codes on the FAFSA in order

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What current college students need to know about the FAFSA

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By Marlene Seeklander Completing the FAFSA isn’t a “one and done” deal for college students. Although students may hear a lot about financial aid when they are just beginning to pursue college, it’s an important factor throughout their education beyond high school.  Because eligibility for federal financial aid (and other types of financial aid) is determined

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Pell Grant award amounts remain flat for 2026-27 academic year

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By Catherine Mueller The maximum amount a student could receive in Federal Pell Grant funding for college will remain unchanged for the 2026-27 academic year – at least for now. On January 30, the Department of Education announced the Pell Grant maximum and minimum award amounts for the 2026–27 award year (July 1, 2026, through June

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FAFSA Specifications Guides

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By Marlene Seeklander Because the FAFSA Specifications Guides are such a useful tool, financial aid professionals will want to make note of several recent updates to both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 guides. The Department of Education recently announced updates to several important volumes of the guides, such as Volume 5 – Edits and Rejects and Volume 6

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Direct vs. indirect costs for college

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By Marlene Seeklander When planning to pay for college, students and parents need to consider both direct and indirect costs. Direct and indirect costs are an important part of the estimated cost of attendance. And while financial aid can cover both types of college expenses, indirect costs is an area where students and parents can save

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Historic milestone reached in FAFSA completions

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By Marlene Seeklander More students completed the 2026-27 FAFSA as of late December – at a rate more than double the previous year, according to the Department of Education. In a recent press release, the Department announced that more than 5 million 2026-27 FAFSA forms have been successfully submitted by students and families, an increase of

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Five steps to obtain proof of federal tax return non-filing         

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By Marlene Seeklander At first the request seems like a paradox – you didn’t file a tax return, and the college financial aid office is asking you to prove something you didn’t do. While it may seem unusual to prove that you didn’t file a tax return, you may need to do just that and depending

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POET offers “Never Satisfied Scholarships”

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By Marlene Seeklander POET is offering scholarships to help students take that big step to pursuing their aspirations. POET, a South Dakota based company that has expanded across the Midwest, is awarding up to $75,000 in scholarships to students who are never satisfied with “good enough” and share POET’s mission to create a brighter future. The

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Scholarship opportunities to help students pay for college

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By Marlene Seeklander Scholarships are a wise investment in a student’s educational career – both for the organization granting the scholarship and the student applying for funds. For students, not only does a scholarship award look great on a resume, it can also reduce the amount of money a student has to borrow to pay for

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