Low Income Families and Educational Help

It is a common perception that only the most gifted students are eligible for grants and scholarships to get them through the final phases of their education, and this then gives rise to the popular thought that those residing in low income homes cannot afford to further their education to that level, that high school is their limit. This could not be further from the truth. Anybody that is capable of managing the college workload and completing a degree of some sort should go to college or university, even if it is the local community college. There are provisions out there to help the people who cannot afford it because their parents cannot afford it.

Parents have the instinct to do what is best for their children built into their makeup right from the time the fist offspring is born. Everything they do tends to be aimed at providing a good home and life for their children to ensure that they do not experience the same struggle and strife. Although there are bound to be a few parents out there who denounce college as a waste of time, even in this day and age, the majority would be unbelievably hurt if they thought for one minute that they could not give their children the promise of a better life. They will no doubt do all they can to help out, but some will still not be able to help their children though college. If this is the case, then there is financial aid out there just waiting for you to apply

Certain scholarships focus on those students that cannot afford to go to college because their parents are classed as low income. They are few and far between but they do exist. You just have to take the time to find them! A scholarship search may be able to identify them for you. A list of the possible scholarships will be provided after a quick search and would be composed of full scholarships, those intended to help with housing, those designed to cover tuition and a whole host of other smaller scholarships. You would also be eligible to apply for funding not aimed at low income families. Obviously the full scholarships would be far better for your personal circumstances than a half scholarship, but anything less than a full one could be supplemented with several of the grants available to you.

Grants can be a great way of topping a scholarship up or indeed providing funding on their own. A grant is a type of loan that does not need to be paid back and there is both government and independent funding available for grants. Many local governments will offer a grant to help with the cost of sending a child to university or college. However, federal grants for hardship are usually far more comprehensive and can actually be higher in terms of the help that they are willing to give. If you fall into a family 200% below the poverty line then the help is more comprehensive than if you were only slightly below it. This grant is perfect for offspring from a single parent family.

There will also be school awards to consider too. The college or university that you have been accepted to may offer something in terms of a hardship grant or loan. They are designed to enable individuals from low income families to continue with their studies, and there is usually no closing date on these grants because students may need to apply all year round.

If you do need a little guidance as to where you can actually apply for scholarships, grants and financial aid then a guidance counsellor is the best person to make an appointment with. He or she should be able to tell you exactly where to apply, who to go to and when you would have to apply by. You can visit the one at your high school or communicate with the one located at your college. Both would be glad to help an individual displaying such determination to get ahead in life!