Financial Aid - Paying for Education

1. Federal Financial Aid- What are the different types of federal financial aid available to students?
How do you apply for federal financial aid? What benefits do students receive from this type of
financial aid?

Free application for Federal Student Aid is one option; each October a new FAFSA is available for the
next school year for students to apply. One benefit is a grant or work study job which is an opportunity
in which you won’t have to pay the money back. However, if you get a loan, you’ll have to pay it back.

2. State Financial Aid- What are the different types of state aid available to students? How do you
apply for state financial aid? What benefits do students receive from this type of financial aid?

The Cal Grant program is an aid program which doesn’t need to be paid back! To apply for this student
aid, you can fill out the CA Dream Act application or through FAFSA. There are other grant programs for
different types of categories and qualifications.

3. School Specific Financial Aid- Which schools did you research? Describe one grant or scholarship
that is offered at each school. What benefits do students receive from this type of financial aid?

At San Diego Mesa College, there are a variety of financial aid programs including California Dream Act,
Cal Grants and Student Success Completion Grant [SSCG], California College Promise Grant, Alternative
Loans. One financial aid program I am interested in doing is the California College Promise Grant, which
waives fees for qualified students for the entire school year!

4. Private Scholarships- Describe two scholarships that you found interesting during your research.
What are the benefits of using this type of aid to fund your education?

Scholarships are used to help reduce the student’s fees to attend the college. They are more likely given
to students with skills such as academic, athletic, or artistic.

5. Military Financial Aid- Do you or your family plan to or have served in the military? If so, describe at
least one military financial aid program that is available to you? What benefits do students receive
from this type of financial aid?

No.

6. Personal Financial Aid Plan- After reviewing the different types of financial aid available to
students, what plan do you have for covering the costs of post-secondary education? Write a
paragraph that summarizes the total cost you expect to pay for post-secondary education, the sources
of aid you plan to use to cover these costs, and when and how you plan to apply for each program.
You may also need to consider alternate sources of income such as a college fund or savings plan that
has already been set aside.

After overviewing the available programs of financial aid, I have decided to be using the CA Promise
program to help cover my first school year at Mesa college and I will likely pay for the second to receive
my associates degree. After that I may take a gap year and focus on what I may be interested in such as
trading or traveling. Overall if I get one school year covered, I would likely be only paying around
$15,000 for my classes if I wanted to get an associates. In order to afford the costs of college, I plan to
use money earned from my trading account.