Student Aid and Scholarships

After a constituent called me seeking college scholarship resources, I decided to create a page highlighting many of the great resources available. Whether you’re about to enter college or already a college student, the resources below can help you find the scholarships that best match your personal and educational background.

These days, you can apply for so many unique scholarships based on a wide variety of characteristics – from being left-handed to being a video game savant – that it can be hard to know where to begin! I recommend looking through our General Scholarship Resources section below to see the different types of scholarships available. To help narrow it down, I’ve also provided some great resources for a few different categories of scholarships.

General Scholarship Resources

Scholarships for Students with Disabilities

Scholarships for Minority Students

Scholarships by Ethnicity

Scholarships for Religious Students

Scholarships by Major

Scholarships for Students Athletes

Scholarships for Foster Care Youth

Scholarships for Veterans

Pennsylvania Scholarships

General Scholarship Resources

Scholarships for Students with Disabilities

Scholarships for Minority Students

Scholarships by Ethnicity

Scholarships for Religious Students

Scholarships by Major

Scholarships for Students Athletes

Scholarships for Foster Care Youth

Scholarships for Veterans

Pennsylvania Scholarships

I often receive calls regarding financial aid for students. Fortunately, there are many options available to Pennsylanians pursuing higher education. Please see below for information on both federal and state assistance programs available to students.
 

Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency

PHEAAPHEAA helps students access loans, grants, and scholarships.  While PHEAA is currently not lending from its own funds, it maintains its commitment to assisting students find loans.  Visit their website to learn more, www.pheaa.org.

FAFSAFederal Student Aid

There are many programs for Federal Student Aid available which can be found at www.Studentaid.ed.gov or by contacting the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243.  To learn the amount and the type of Federal Student Aid you qualify for, you should fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which can be found at www.fafsa.ed.gov.
Here are examples of common Federal student aid programs:

  • Stafford Loans:  This includes Federal Direct Loans, as well as Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL), which may be subsidized or unsubsidized by the Federal Government. In a Federal Direct loan, the funds come directly from the Federal Government, where in the FFEL program, the funds will come through a private bank, credit union, or other lending agency.  On a subsidized loan, you do not have to pay any interest while you are enrolled at least half time, and your principal will be deferred.  Unsubsidized loans will accrue interest as would a typical loan.
  • Federal PLUS loans: Also part of the Stafford Loan program, these are unsubsidized loans available to parents of dependent undergraduate students, or to graduate students and are available through the Federal Family Education Loan Program and the Federal Direct Loan Program.
  • Pell Grants:  Need-based grants that do not have to be repaid.
  • Work-Study:  Wage-Subsidized positions at the school which will allow you to earn money to pay for your education while you study.   The Student Educational Employment program offers positions with the Federal Government to qualifying students.  This can be accessed at www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in-government/unique-hiring-paths/students/.

Also search the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance for other grants, scholarships, and fellowships.
After applying, you should keep copies of all forms and correspondence as you must reapply each year. Not every school participates in each program. You should contact your school’s financial aid department to learn about the program in which they participate.

Financial Aid Department at Your College

The school you have chosen may have its own student aid programs including merit and need-based scholarships.  You should contact your Financial Aid Department to determine what aid they can offer.

Private Scholarships

There exist an incredible number of privately sponsored scholarships, for some of which you may be eligible.  Often these may be difficult to find.  If you go to www.pheaa.com, they can help you find some of the scholarships for which you may be eligible.  You should speak with local community groups and religious institutions, as well as your high school guidance counselor, to learn of other scholarships that may be available.

Repaying Loans

Help is available for repaying your loans.
Loan Consolidation: 
Federal loans can be consolidated once, with some exceptions.  While simplifying the management of your loans, loan consolidation in general can lead to a significantly lower, fixed interest rate, decreasing your overall expenses.  To learn more about this, please visit http://loanconsolidation.ed.gov/.
Private loans often are able to be consolidated, depending on your individual loan agreement.  You should consult your lender to be sure this option is available to you.
There are programs to help individuals pay off their loans, examples:

If you are having problems with your loan and all other approaches fail, contact the Department of Education’s Office of the Ombudsman.

Other Information Sources

For information regarding targeted aid for special groups, I would suggest these options:

There is often assistance available for those who engage in public service, here are some of those options:

If you have any further questions or require and assistance in these matters, please contact my district office at (610) 768-4200.