College Countdown — One Year Left!

High school seniors are returning to school this year with mixed feelings: on the one hand they’ll really enjoy being at the top of the academic heap for the whole year, but on the other hand they’ll be getting themselves prepared to apply for college and say good-bye to their friends. A lifetime of memories will be made, good thoughts, which can carry students through for the rest of their lives.

Let’s take a look at what you can do now to make heading off to college as worry free as possible.

College Planning And Your Family

Preparing for college isn’t a solitary endeavor. Parents get involved as they are the ones providing the bulk of the financing while offering guidance on which schools to visit, what scholarships are being offered, and which financing options are applicable. Yes, even your siblings cannot be left out as whatever family decisions are made will affect them.

College Tracking Tools To Help You Stay Organized

As you will soon find out, your last year of high school won’t be as carefree as you may think that it will be. High school seniors still must finish up course work, complete college entrance exams, and deal with constant change. The thought of planning the next four years of life while handling today’s problems can seem overwhelming which is why we have developed free tracking tools to help take the edge off of college preparation.

Four tracking tools for college planning:

1. Student aid tracking worksheet — a worksheet to record and track your financial aid information (excel file).
2. College budgeting worksheet — an automated file to plan and budget college aid and costs (excel file).
3. College cost comparison worksheet — compare colleges by cost and amount of aid awarded (excel file).
4. College spending sheets — use these spending sheets to track daily - weekly - monthly spend (PDF).

Please visit this page to find the four tracking sheets and related planning tools.

Starting Your College Search

At the same time you are taking a look at your financial condition, you’ll want to begin your college search. Chances are you spent some time last summer visiting some college campuses, but narrowing that list down to a manageable three or four schools will make college planning a whole lot easier.

Use a financial aid checklist to balance college search with student financial aid options for a clearer picture of your schooling options. Parents need to remember that Stafford loans and private student loans are two forms of student aid that have opened up educational opportunities for millions of students.

Almost Done, But Not Quite!

With the tracking tools at your disposal, college planning becomes less of a stress and much more of an enjoyable experience. You still need to consider your college major and meet with your guidance counselor, so plan wisely now to take the edge off the coming crunch time!

Tags: 529 college savings, College Financial Aid, college freshmen, college planning steps, college planning tools, college search, financial aid, high school, high school senior, private student loans, Student Loans

This article isn’t an endorsement of Andrew Jackson University, rather it is our way of shining the light on the various happenings across academia.

Probably the most important concern for students and their parents when it comes to college is how to pay for it. Indeed, even when scholarships and grant money is offered tuition bills can run into the tens of thousands of dollars. Thus, when we learned that a school based in Alabama has a program in place that charges no tuition, our interest was naturally piqued.

As a backgrounder, Andrew Jackson University or AJU is a for-profit, online or distance learning school. AJU offers Associate’s, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees in Business and Criminal Justice, with Communication, Public Administration, Health Care Management, and Psychology among the other degrees offered. Formed in 1994, the university has been accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC).

Sponsored Tuition Program Now Available

In a novel way of helping students cover the cost of their tuition, AJU has developed a sponsored tuition program where private companies cover tuition costs in exchange for enrollment in their programs. Three companies are currently acting as sponsors; I chose one of them when I signed up which involved me sharing minimal personal information about myself (email, phone, address). You are required to pay a $75 application fee to enroll and, if accepted into the program you’re responsible for covering the cost of your books and certain fees.

AJU President Don Kassner explained the university’s zero tuition program in a recently released press release by saying, “Most universities spend a tremendous amount of money to recruit students. Many spend as much as thirty-five percent of their revenue on marketing and advertising. They have to keep their tuition high to recover these costs. We eliminated these costs by structuring relationships with strategic partners that refer potential students to us. Therefore, we can operate a quality, degree granting institution without the escalating tuition and excessive fees deemed necessary by many schools.”

AJU’s sponsored tuition program is currently limited to one hundred students per month, but the university has plans to increase that number gradually over time.

(Source: Andrew Jackson University)

Related Information

College Scholarships For Every Type of Student

Free Tuition Colleges Really Exist!

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Adv. — Is your family experiencing a financial shortfall this academic year? Scholarships, grants, 529 money, and part time work may not be enough. Learn about private student loans by visiting SayStudent.com, your portal for college financial assistance. We have free tools for your download and updated information about current college financing requirements.

Tags: Alabama, Andrew Jackson University, associates degree, Bachelor's Degree, Birmingham, distance learning, internet, masters degree