Maryland Higher Education Commission

December 2006 Press Release

 

 

 

JUNIORS SHOULD RESEARCH COLLEGES OVER WINTER BREAK

 

MHEC urges high school juniors to check out colleges and financial aid

 

 

Annapolis, MD (December 14, 2006) – For high school juniors wondering what to do over the winter break, the Maryland Higher Education Commission has a couple of suggestions: research colleges and financial aid.

“The holiday break is a perfect time for students to search for colleges,” said Dr. Calvin W. Burnett, Secretary of Higher Education. “It is also a good time to become familiar with scholarships and other types of financial aid that are available. As much as possible, students should be prepared before senior year to avoid delays. The earlier you apply, the greater the chance you have of gaining entrance to college and receiving aid.”

Following are useful resources and websites for students seeking higher education information:

Recommended resources and websites:

• The Maryland Higher Education Commission provides a comprehensive list of Maryland colleges, universities, and private career schools, along with financial aid sources and how-to’s at www.mhec.state.md.us. From the website students and parents may download the 2006-2007 edition of the “Student Guide to Higher Education and Financial Aid in Maryland,” which offers thumbnail sketches of every college and university in Maryland, a list of academic programs offered in the state and details about state financial aid programs.

• The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators provides information about financial aid and related information at www.nasfaa.org.

• The U.S. Department of Education is a great starting point for information on education after high school and how to pay for it – www.studentaid.ed.gov

• www.finaid.org is a one-stop-shop for all types of financial aid information.

• Sallie Mae is helpful for student loan borrowers. It features calculators that determine how much it costs to repay loans – www.salliemae.com.

• College Scholarship Financial Aid Profile – The College Board has downloadable applications for the form required by certain colleges – www.collegeboard.org.

• UNCF/The College Fund – Lists scholarships available to students attending historically black colleges that are members of the Fund – www.uncf.org/scholarships/index.asp.

• FastWEB – list thousands of private scholarships available. This site boasts one of the largest free scholarship databases with over 1.3 million listings – www.fastweb.com.

• Scholarship Resource Network or SRN Express – features a database with mostly private, non-needs based scholarships – www.srnexpress.com/index.cfm.

• CollegeNet Mach25 Scholarship Database – offers over 500,000 scholarships from sponsor organizations. Website will allow students to save listings and create letters requesting information – www.collegenet.com/mach25.

• Sallie Mae’s Online Scholarship Service provides access to a College Aid Sources for Higher Education database, one of the oldest scholarship databases – www.salliemae.com/plan/freemoney/search.html.

• The Coalition of America's Colleges and Universities has developed resources to help parents and students who are looking for answers. The Coalition’s website is www.CollegeIsPossible.org.  It is a one-stop-shop with links and information on books, websites, and brochures recommended by admissions and financial aid professionals.

• College Goal Sunday is a resource to help families apply for financial aid using the FAFSA. The website is http://www.go2goal.org.

The Office of Student Financial Assistance at the Maryland Higher Education Commission administers almost $110 million in financial aid annually. For more information about scholarship programs, contact MHEC at 410-260-4565 or 1-800-974-1024. Visit MHEC’s website at www.mhec.state.md.us.