Studies show that most people avoid going back for a college degree because of money worries. Fortunately, Stafford Loans, recently beefed up by President Obama’s stimulus bill, allow students to cover all their school and living expenses with minimal interest.  

With a combination of Stafford Loans and Pell Grants, degree-seekers are finding it easier to cover their living expenses and return to school. Currently, the Stafford Loan program offers two different options for students to choose from: subsidized and unsubsidized. These loans offer the following 3 benefits:

• They are low-interest. Currently at 6 percent, Stafford Loans feature the lowest interest rates around because they are insured by the government. Unlike home and auto loans or credit cards, you will pay only the smallest amount possible with no future inflation of the interest rate.
• You don’t have to pay while in school. Both subsidized and unsubsidized loans do not have to be repaid while you are in school. On subsidized loans, the government pays your interest for you while in school.
• You get as much as you need. Stafford Loans are designed to cover all of your expenses after whatever you get for Pell Grants, including cost of housing, food, utilities, and more. This means, even if you leave your job, you will still have enough to pay for your needs and the needs of any dependents you may have while you are in school. Some students qualify for as much as $138,500.

To receive low-interest Stafford Loans, you need to enroll in and register at an accredited university. Once admitted, you can fill out a Federal Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to find out how much Stafford Loan money you will receive.

Are you ready to return to school and get low-interest Stafford Loans? Visit our form to find an accredited school and get enrolled. A financial aid counselor will help you fill out a FAFSA and get money you need to go back to school.

On the SAT college entrance exam, average scores fell for the class of 2009. The average fell by one point from last year’s critical reading and writing sections, while math remained the same. Although one point may not seem like that big of a deal, it is.  When American students are only getting between 495 and 505 as an average out of 800 on each section, something’s got to give.  

Now think about this slowly.  If you have a score of 500 divided by 800 total, what is the result? Times up! It’s 62%, which means students are barely passing.  Sorry, I just wanted to make sure that you were following, since, by the looks of it, students need to go back to remedial math, writing, and reading.  

There were about 1.5 million students that took the SAT this year, and they received even lower scores than last year’s class of 2008. That means some students may have done really well, but most did poorly.  Now, instead of parents and colleges congratulating students for their high grades, they will have to settle by giving prizes and slots to "American Idiots."  In order to accommodate this difference, the "C" average on the bell curve will need to be adjusted to a "D".

These results show that students are not ready for college, and public education is failing.  Since the government can’t seem to fix this problem, maybe they should make another grade that serves as a prep year for college. Oh wait, that’s what the previous 12 years are supposed to do. Okay, strike that- it was a bad idea. 

Here’s another idea: instead of trying to raise the standards, they could just lower them and make the test easier. Maybe then students could show how smart they are by getting questions correct, although the government would have to be careful because the knowledge of these students is limited and that would be exceptionally embarrassing if they made the test easier to show students were ready for college, and they ended up with worse results. 

The whole purpose behind the SAT is to show that high school graduates are ready for college.    On the other hand, we don’t want the government in charge of anything else. They can’t seem to manage the U.S. Postal Service, public education, or Social Security.  At any rate, students are not prepared for the basic skills that are required in order to be ready for college.

Many students, despite the fact that they do poorly on this test, go to college anyways. Many work hard despite the shortfall and succeed in earning a college degree. In this case, the American Dream does exist. On the other hand, many end up dropping out of school because of personal, financial, social, and academic problems. Or many even say that they don’t fit in and they feel like a little fish in a big pond. Get over it, that’s how life is. You can’t always be the center of attention, plus that’s not why you went to  anyway.  It was to learn.

Kids in Asia go to learn and to better their economic situation. That is also why most Americans go. Except there is one difference: Asian countries keep squashing us when it comes to education and the amount of college graduates. Many Americans lack the skills and drive that are involved with earning a degree. They would rather go down to the local bar, get wasted, and pick up on the opposite sex than finish their midterm project.

Despite all of the negative, but truthful, things that have surfaced in this blog, Americans are very intelligent and hardworking. They just aren’t motivated academically, like many Asians are.  So, needless to say, President Obama’s goal of having the most college graduates out of the top developed countries is nearly impossible. 
Hopefully, President Obama has a trick up his sleeve because many things need to change if America is going to keep up in the global economy.  The U.S. needs massive numbers of educated and qualified workers.  College degrees not only help you in your personal life, but they also help the country.

Many parents don’t know quite how to handle the fact that their children are going to college away from home.  They understand that they will have much less of a presence in their college students life.  On the other hand, college students understand the change and are ready to make it.  They get to be responsible for themselves and get to make their own decisions without getting permission from their parents.

As thousands of students are being dropped off at colleges by their parents, many parents are struggling with the change.  They realize that they have to let go but it might be easier to picture letting them grow up.  Parenting for college students changes, it’s not like parenting a high schooler.  Parenting is no longer an active and daily thing; it’s an "I’m here if you need advice, but I won’t be pushing it on you" type of role.

While parents are dealing with the stress of letting go of their children, they are also worrying about finances.  In this economic recession, families are trying to cope with lost wages and how to send their kids to college.  Last December, a poll done by the Chronicle for Higher Education said that 53 percent of freshmen at four-year-colleges said their parents had concerns about financing their education.

I know that many parents including mine were worried about financing a college education even before the recession and now those worries have been compounded.  Luckily though, many parents had a college nest egg saved up.  For parents that didn’t, their students will be grateful for any help that their parents can give them. 

This is a stressful time for parents, but students can help them get through this difficult time particularly when it comes to letting go.  Students should try to help their parents out by talking to them on the phone, blogging, emailing, and physically visiting them if it is possible.  While students want to live their own lives, it makes the situation easier for everyone if they gradually change the relationship over time.  Students can’t expect their parents to be okay with a once a week brief conversation.  Students need to make time for their parents; otherwise the relationship will wither up over time.