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Case Study: Planning and Applying for College Note: There are multiple entry points to some of these resources but this is a convenient collection accessible from a single
starting place. Office for Postsecondary Education (OPE) http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/index.html From the home page (above) In the shaded box just beneath "OPE" there is a two column list of about ten topics beginning with
Home and ending with OPE Topics A-Z. Two of these topics, Education Planning and Student Resources (immediately below) are especially useful for planning and applying for college. Click on either or both for a list of links
to additional resources. →1. Education Planning COMPREHENSIVE PORTAL SITES Federal Student Aid (FSA), Students Portal Web Site http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp This resource provides information on academic planning and preparation, choosing a school, how to apply for college, information
on federal student aid, etc. Users can set up a My FSA account (accessible by username and password) and populate/update it
with relevant, personally chosen information about higher education institutions, student aid, college costs, and career planning. students.gov http://www.students.gov/STUGOVWebApp/index.jsp A student gateway to U.S. government and other information and sources on general preparation, finding the right college,
applying for federal student aid, learning about other educational benefits, etc. A list of topics under the Home title down the left hand side of the page links to resources including planning your education, paying for your education,
career development, campus life, online study help, military service and your government online (note: after clicking on any
of these links it might be necessary to scroll down on the page to see the beginning of the linked text). There is also a I Want To title just below the Home topics on the left side of the page with links to instructions for such tasks as learning about/applying
for student aid, accessing student loan records, locating state financial aid and scholarships, finding out about study abroad
and in the U.S., changing one’s address, getting a passport, requesting tax help, etc. Choose the desired topic and then click
Go for specifics. FINDING A SCHOOL Diploma Mills and Accreditation http://www.ed.gov/students/prep/college/diplomamills/index.html A useful tool for learning about the differences between accredited and unaccredited institutions, the pitfalls of enrolling
in a “diploma mill”, a list of schools accredited by accrediting agencies recognized by the Secretary of Education (see more
below), and links to additional resources on topics like foreign credential evaluation, scholarship scams, college credit
for life experience, characteristics and lists of known diploma mills, .edu Internet addresses, etc. Postsecondary Educational Institutions and Programs Accredited by Accrediting Agencies and State Approval Agencies Recognized
by the U.S. Secretary of Education http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ A list of 6,900 postsecondary educational institutions and programs searchable by name of educational institution, by institutional
accrediting agencies, specialized or programmatic accreditation agencies, geographic region, state or outlying area, address/city. Also includes links to FAQs about accreditation, FAQs about Institutional Accreditation system, and financial aid for postsecondary
students—accreditation and participation.
http://www.ed.gov/students/prep/college/consumerinfo/index.html Information for those thinking about postsecondary education or training for a specific career, trade, or profession. Includes
tips on how to choose an institution, accreditation agencies, and distance learning considerations. FINANCING AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION Federal Student Aid Another link to the FSA (Federal Student Aid Students Portal): http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp See entry above under COMPREHENSIVE PORTAL SITES for more details on content, including information on federal student aid programs. College Cost and Other Information College Navigator http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/ from the National Center for Education Statistics helps find colleges based on location, programs, tuition, distance learning,
evening courses, etc. Users can save their favorites and compare up to four colleges. Tax Benefits for Higher Education Links to information from the Internal Revenue Service: Tax credits for education at http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=121452,00.html IRS Publication 970 (Tax Benefits for Education) at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf IRS Web page for students at http://www.irs.gov/individuals/students/index.html Federal Trade Commission—Scholarship Scams Project http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/scholarship/index.shtml “Advice from the Federal Trade Commission for avoiding scholarship scams.” ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Saving for College—The College Savings Plan Network http://www.collegesavings.org/index.aspx A clearinghouse for comparative information about state tax-advantaged “529 investment plans” (named for Section 529 of the
Internal Revenue Code) which encourage savings for future higher educational expenses. Includes a useful college cost calculator: http://www.collegesavings.org/collegeCostCalculator.aspx for estimating likely college costs based on the student’s current age, type of institution, number of years of planned attendance,
and inflation rates. Mapping Your Future http://www.mapping-your-future.org/ A public service source with many links to career, college, financial aid, and related information for students (middle school
and higher), student loan borrowers, parents, middle and high school counselors, and financial aid professionals. →2. Student Resources This portion of the Web site includes links to: OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR UNDERGRADUATES (Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholarships, Fulbright-Hays Groups Projects Abroad, Institute for International Public Policy) OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS (Jacob K. Javits Fellowships, Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships, Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research
Abroad, Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad, Graduate Assistance and Areas of National Need) ADDITIONAL RESOURCES (some of which also linked to from the Education Planning section above) |
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