FAP414: Financial aid info for graduate students, ACS, Peppercoin, Pew, Roanoke, FAFSA and EFC, Fitness Rocks, Twisted Sister

Student Financial Aid News
+ Americans are increasingly reaching for plastic when making small purchases at convenience stores, coffee shops, and subway stations, according to a survey released yesterday.
+ The survey — conducted jointly by market researcher Ipsos Insight and small payments tech firm Peppercoin Inc. — found that more than 67 million Americans have paid for purchases of less than $5 using a credit or debit card during the past 30 days.
+ Affiliated Computer Services Inc., a Dallas-based student loan processor, forced its chief executive and finance chief to resign after it was discovered they had backdated stock options to increase their value.
+ Today is the first National Methamphetamine Awareness Day, a brainchild of the Justice Department designed to further increase awareness of the drug’s toxic effects through events across the states, including some on campuses.
+ Pew Research indicates that podcasting is still a niche phenomenon. Well, duh! Podcasting today is where blogging was around 1999. Blogs had a major impact in the 2006 elections – 7 years after they started their climb upwards.
+ From NASFAA: “Students who graduate from high school in Wythe and Bland counties will be able to go to their local community college tuition-free under a program being finalized by the school and a charitable foundation,” The Roanoke Times reports. “The free tuition program would begin next fall. …The program envisioned by the Wythe-Bland Community Foundation would be the first of its kind in the state, according to the Virginia Community College System.”
+ The Department of Education has published the 2007-2008 EFC Formula Guide. It’s 35 pages of fun that will give you a headache or put you to sleep unless you really enjoy financial aid as a hobby. I’ll be reading it later today.
+ Check out our FAFSA resource site, FAFSAonline.com

Scholarship Update
+ Public relations scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students
+ $20,000 or more from the Public Relations Student Society of America
+ Variable deadlines
+ Detailed information at our free student scholarship search site
+ Search Term: “graduate student” scholarship “public relations” health

Mail Bag
+ Monte Ladner writes in: I met you at podcamp Boston. I do the Fitness Rocks Podcast. I have been thinking about going back to graduate school to get a Masters Degree in Health Communications. It is very expensive, and I already have two sons in college and a daughter who will be starting soon. What, if any, financial aid options do you know of that might be available for me?
+ Do your FAFSA form online!
+ Graduate Stafford Loan
+ Graduate PLUS Loan
+ Graduate Private Student Loan
+ Normally you’d call 800-926-2716 for the GradLoans.com Private Student Loan desk
+ No one was answering this morning, so I called our Act Education Loans Private Student Loan Desk at 866-229-8900 instead.

Podsafe Music
+ Twisted Sister, Oh Come All Ye Faithful
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/itunes/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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FAP413: Arizona State University Advantage, First Marblehead, graduation rates, John Jacob Penn memorial, David Spak

Student Financial Aid News
+ Boston-based student lender First Marblehead Corp. disclosed that will receive $89 million of “upfront structural advisory fees,” as part of a $1.025 billion securitization of private loans.
+ About 93% of the loans to be securitized were be made directly to consumers; the remaining portion were originated through schools. First Marblehead [ticker: FMB] has a market capitalization of about $897 million.
+ Disclosure: First Marblehead powers our Act Education Loans at ActEducationLoans.com and private student loans at AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ ASU is opening wide its doors to low-income Arizonans, announcing the “Sun Devil Promise” to provide full funding to all Arizona freshmen from families with incomes under $25,000. The new program will pay for tuition, fees, books, room and board, about $13,000 a year.
+ Forty-seven percent of Arizona children live in low-income homes, and about one-quarter are in households with incomes less than $25,000. ASU is among the first universities in the nation to offer this type of assistance.
+ Two years ago, ASU launched the ASU Advantage program to cover the full cost for students whose family income is at or below the federal poverty level of $18,850. More than 600 students have entered ASU under the program. The Sun Devil Promise is expected to make a university education accessible to hundreds more qualified low-income students.
+ College officials and tax experts said they were taken by surprise by the Internal Revenue Service’s announcement this month that one of its focuses for the 2007 fiscal year would be a new project examining how colleges and universities account for “unrelated business income” — revenue they take in from activities that are not deemed to be connected to their underlying educational mission, and that are therefore taxable. The announcement was included in an annual letter the IRS’s Exempt Organizations division releases with its guidelines for the coming year.
+ A new report released Monday from the National Conference of State Legislatures sounds the alarm: For every 100 ninth graders, only 18 will enter college and finish within six years.
+ The report lays much of the blame at the ballooning price of a bachelor’s degree, which is more than double the rate of inflation. For example, over the past five years, average tuition has climbed 35 percent, adjusted for inflation, at four-year public colleges, according to the College Board in New York. Inflation rose 13.8 percent over the same period.

Scholarship Update
+ Arizona State University Sun Devil Promise – ASU Advantage
+ Eligibility:
+ Arizona Resident.
+ Admission to ASU as a degree-seeking freshman beginning the fall semester (pursing first undergraduate degree).
+ Demonstration of total family income of $25,000 or less on the FAFSA for eligible students entering fall 2007.
+ Enter ASU beginning the fall semester immediately after Arizona high school graduation.
+ Native American high school seniors that meet the Arizona residency criteria for tuition purposes at ASU are eligible.
+ Full-time enrollment.
+ Program participation extends for eight full-time, consecutive semesters.
+ Details at our free scholarship web site

A Quick Personal Note
+ John Jacob Penn, 1912-2006
+ Man, do those little sailboats hurt.

Podsafe Music
+ David Spak, Amazing Grace
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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FAP412: What to do if you have been robbed, Nelnet, real estate, grace periods, the NSA, Adhan from Masjid Al Haram

Student Financial Aid News
+ Student lender Nelnet Inc. has approved a bonus plan for its top two executives that will pay them $500,000 each for every $1 per share the company earns in 2007, according to SEC filings last week.
+ Investors were uneasy after news that Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, suffered a 0.1 percent drop in same-store sales, those from stores open at least a year. Same-store sales are the industry standard for assessing a retailer’s strength, and while retail sales overall were strong last weekend, Wal-Mart’s deficit raised concerns about the strength of consumer spending during the holiday season.
+ Rates of foreclosures on houses in Massachusetts have tripled since the spring, according to Roger Stanford, an attorney in New Bedford
+ If you’ve graduated recently and are contemplating purchase of real estate in any of the formerly hot markets like Phoenix, Florida, Massachusetts, California, or pretty much anywhere there’s an interstate, the lesson so far is clear – wait. Wait, wait, wait. A lot of people bought houses with unsustainable mortgage plans that will +need+ to sell in the next 2 years, if not sooner. As those properties go on the market, they’ll be priced affordably – but you have to be patient and wait it out. Some less ethical realtors will try any tactic to get you to impulse buy, but don’t believe the hype – the market has a long way to fall, and opportunities in 2007 and 2008 will be much better and more affordable than anything on the market today
+ One realtor’s ad: buy now before interest rates start going up!
+ Math quiz: what’s a better deal – $300K @ 6% or $200K @ 8%
+ $1800/month vs $1500/month – the math is pretty obvious
+ Time is on your side!
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ Grace periods save an additional 0.6%
+ $20K @ 6.54% vs. $20K at 7.14%
+ $151/month vs $158/month
+ In lighter news, Dennis West, a professor of film and Spanish at the University of Idaho, asks students to sign a memo of understanding that they may be shown offensive material in class

Scholarship Update
+ National Security Agency (NSA) Analysis Training Program
+ Full tuition scholarship
+ Year-round salary
+ Job after graduation
+ Must be a major in:
+ Computer Science
+ Computer/Electrical Engineering
+ Foreign Language (Arabic, Korean, Chinese, Farsi, and others)
+ International Relations/Affairs/Cultures/Trade/Finance/Economics
+ Geography
+ Anthropology
+ Political Science (with an international focus)
+ And be going to:
+ California State University at Long Beach
+ Clark Atlanta University
+ Morehouse College
+ Spelman College
+ University of Florida, Gainesville
+ University of Maryland at College Park
+ Deadline November 30, 2006
+ Details at our free scholarship search site

News You Can Use
+ What to do if your stuff gets stolen
+ What to do beforehand – get insurance
+ Save your documents! Take photos and video!
+ Buy a decent, locking fire safe for valuable stuff
+ Make it inconvenient for robbers to take your stuff
+ ACV vs. RCC – which insurance is better?
+ Riders for some stuff like art, jewelry, etc.
+ Deductibles matter
+ After a robbery – you don’t want to stick around
+ Touch as little as possible
+ Call the police from outside your place
+ Once the police are done, start filing your insurance claims

Podsafe Music
+ Adhan from Masjid Al Haram
+ Not sure which version this is – if you’re Muslim, please let me know!
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Financial Aid Podcast #411: Your personal financial health checkup

FAP411: Your personal financial health checkup, PS3, College Republicans at BU, Jeopardy, Scholarship eBook, Tracey Saxby

Student Financial Aid News
+ Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano says she did not know that some of her closest political allies headed the Arizona Higher Education Loan Authority when she granted it the power to oversee state-authorized student loans two years ago.
+ Napolitano said she was also unaware they ran the agency four months later when she vetoed a bill that would have allowed competition from other local authorities.
+ Brown and Wesleyan are in a spam war
+ The financial companies that manage state college-savings plans for families are reducing their fees, in part because of increased regulatory scrutiny, USA Today reported. The article noted fee drops by American Century, Fidelity, TIAA-CREF, T. Rowe Price and Vanguard. Regulators have been scrutinizing 529 fees as assets in these plans have surged to $97.3 billion in September. The NASD has cautioned savers to compare different plans because, “Expenses vary greatly, even among plans offered within the same state.” College savings 529 plans, sponsored by individual states, allow parents to sock away up to $12,000 a year for their children’s college education and later withdraw this money — free of federal tax — for qualified expenses such as tuition and books. States may offer their own tax breaks to encourage residents to save for college. The plans are not limited to residents of that state, so savers can pick whichever state’s plan most appeals to them.
+ The College Republicans at Boston University are protesting minority scholarships by offering the $250 Caucasian Achievement and Recognition Scholarship, CBS4 reported. The scholarship, being criticized by some on campus as insensitive, is restricted to those who are at least one-fourth white and who write two essays — one on their background and one on “what it means to you to be a Caucasian-American today.”
+ Secretary of Education Margarent Spellings appeared on celebrity Jeopardy on Tuesday, and finished second, behind actor Michael McKean.
+ Time is running out to consolidate your federal student loans! Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com or 877-328-1565
+ When Cure(at)PLAYSTATION 3 is launched, PS3 owners can register their machines with Stanford, download specially designed software and leave their machines online to process data when they’re not playing.

Scholarship Update
+ Scholarship Search Secrets 3.0 released
+ Kenneth Jernigan Scholarship – Given by the American Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults
+ Kenneth Jernigan is viewed by our field as the most important figure in the 20th century in the lives of blind people. The Action Fund wishes to keep fresh and current in the 21st century the understandings he brought to the field and thus has endowed this scholarship dedicated to his memory and to the continuation of the work he began.
+ All applicants for these scholarships must be (1) legally blind and (2) pursuing or planning to pursue a full-time, postsecondary course of study in a degree program at a United States’ institution in the fall of 2007
+ Deadline March 31, 2007
+ Details at our free scholarship search web site

Financial Hacks
+ The personal finance checkup, via About.com
+ Identify Your Goals
+ Evaluate Changes in Your Personal Situation
+ Protect Your Assets
+ Prepare for the Unexpected
+ Evaluate Your Investment Performance
+ Evaluate Your Debts
+ Reduce Your Income Taxes
+ Review Your Retirement Plans
+ Key tips: figure out whether you should itemize or not
+ Having financial goals will help guide your decisions – otherwise, you risk just drifting through life
+ If you should, the IRS may be getting rid of the $500 undocumented charitable deductions
+ The time to donate is now, before the end of the tax year
+ Offload bad investments if you have any
+ Student loan interest is deductible – even if you consolidated your student loans, your previous lenders may send IRS forms next year – don’t throw them out! You’ll need them to take a student loan interest deduction on your taxes

Podsafe Music
+ Tracey Saxby, Life is Beautiful
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Financial Aid Podcast #410: Top 5 Financial Concepts You MUST Understand

FAP410: Black Friday special, Workforce Investment Act Grants, Top 5 Financial Concepts You MUST Understand, Natalie Gelman

Student Financial Aid News

+ A few tips on Black Friday.
+ Find out if that deal is really a deal – use SMS and your cell phone!
+ FruCall: http://www.frucall.com/
+ TicTap: http://www.tictap.com/
+ MobSaver: http://www.mobsaver.com/
+ Find coupons for online shopping!
+ http://www.retailmenot.com/
+ The Consumerist lists top bargains!
+ http://www.consumerist.com/consumer/exclusive/best-black-friday-deals-215004.php

Scholarship Update

Matthew Ebel calls in with a question about the Workforce Investment Act.

+ The Workforce Investment Act isn’t one grant but a large series of programs.
+ Directory of programs
+ Most WIA programs are focused on employers, not necessarily employees
+ Most colleges, especially community colleges, have a vital role in these programs
+ Contact your college’s financial aid offices and career centers to see what resources are available to you
+ Continuing education loans at AlternativeStudentLoan.com or 866-229-8900
+ There are lots of government resources administered by other parts of the government for specific fields and requests
+ SBIR from the DoD for seed capital
+ NEA grants for artists and musicians
+ Individual states also have resources for small businesses and entrepreneurs

Eye on the Economy: Five concepts you MUST understand.

+ Supply and demand. An item in demand without sufficient suppply has a price which has no relation to its real value. Cases in point – PS3, Elmo TMX, and the real estate bubble. If you can predict demand, you can acquire supply early enough to make a return.
+ Arbitrage. Arbitrage is unequal pricing for equal things. For example, in Second Life, different currency exchanges have different rates and fees. If you can find Lindens for sale cheaper than you can sell them on a different exchange, you can make some money.
+ The power of compounding interest. The time value of money is important, but compounding interest is the time value of money squared. Put a dollar away today at 10% APR and you’ll have $1.10 next year. Just by leaving that alone, the next year you won’t have $1.20 – you’ll have $1.21. The following year, $1.33. As each period of time passes, the gains of compounding interest are greater than the simple interest.
+ Business cycles. Supply and demand go in cycles. This is the fundamental predictor of demand – if you can understand the timing of markets, you’ll know when to act and when to sit it out.
+ Cash flow. I’ve saved the best for last. No matter what, cash is king, and cash flow is the lifeblood of the kingdom. The day that income outpaces expenses in a repeatable, sustainable way is the day you have truly set foot on the path to being financially successful.

Podsafe Music
+ Natalie Gelman, Leave
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Financial Aid Podcast #409: Student Loan Radio Holidays 2006

FAP409: Student Loan Radio Holidays 2006

Podsafe Music
+ Original
+ Matthew Ebel, Walk a Thousand Miles
+ Candy Butchers, Give me a Second Chance for Christmas
+ Beatrice Ericsson, Christmas Without You
+ Gidgets Ga Ga, Christmas Wish
+ Mashups
+ Doug Boldt, Deck the Halls/Wish You A Merry Christmas
+ Charlie Crowe, Little Drum Machine Boy
+ Classics
+ Allison Crowe, What Child Is this
+ Natalie Brown, Jingle Bells
+ Jill Parr, Oh Come All Ye Faithful
+ Jill Parr, Do You Hear What I Hear
+ Finale
+ Podsafe for Peace, If Every Day Were Christmas
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Financial Aid Podcast #408: Student Loan Radio: UCLA thoughts

FAP408: Student Loan Radio: UCLA thoughts

1. People can get engaged in a story very quickly and easily if the story is perceived to be important enough.

2. A six minute video contains so much more emotional impact than tons of text.

3. Lots of people on both sides can be very passionate.

4. Lots of people on both sides have nearly zero information about the other side’s views.

What role does new media play? Connecting the two. In traditional media, you spin up the story, you show the sound clips, you sell ad space, and you go to the bank – and everyone else loses. My view on new media is that it can extend the conversation, let people vent their opinions, and then learn from each other, teach each other, and ultimately run counter to what old media’s goals are, which is to hook you in, sell you stuff, and then move onto the next big thing. Days after this story broke, I’m still approving comments on the podcast blog, and I wholeheartedly encourage the conversation to continue.

As far as this specific story goes, the facts are still being discovered, and the ultimate outcome is unknown, but the lesson is cleaer – media is ubiquitous, and everyone needs to be cognizant of the power of new media. Had I been one of the arresting officers in this case, based on the information I know about so far, I don’t necessarily know that using a Taser would have been my first choice. Assuming there were no other calls pending and that the person in question, the student, wasn’t armed and dangerous, I think I might have resorted to annoying him out of the library, rather than deploy a weapon. But again, that’s based solely on the little information I have.

Podsafe Music
+ Matthew Ebel, Every Color
+ Matthew’s blog post on iPhone
+ Digg his post!
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Scholarship Search Secrets eBook Third Edition released for free!

I’ve got some fantastic news from the office here. The Third Edition of our free Scholarship Search Secrets eBook is now available, completely and totally free of charge. It’s 17 pages on how to use Google, RSS, and other Internet tools to locate scholarships, grants, and other ways of paying for college.

You can get it here:

http://www.StudentScholarshipSearch.com

If you like it, if it’s useful, please give me feedback by emailing me at financialaidpodcast at gmail dot com or leaving me a voicemail at 206-350-1208. Even better, if it’s REALLY good, please tell a friend or two about it and my podcast!

Thanks!

Christopher S. Penn, The Financial Aid Podcast
A Publication of the Student Loan Network
On-demand financial aid internet radio, no iPod required
http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com

Financial Aid Podcast #407 : Earning beer money with student loan consolidation

FAP407: Earning beer money with student loan consolidation, Kudos to Baker College, Scholarship Search Secrets, Laura Smith

Student Financial Aid News
+ Someone asked yesterday when student loan rates will change now that the Democrats control Congress
+ The soonest would be July 1, 2007
+ From BankNet 360: The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Authority violated the state’s Right-to-Know law in withholding spending information, a state court ruled last week. The court ordered the agency to disclose a variety of records and pay a portion of legal fees incurred by the Associated Press, the Harrisburg Patriot News, and a Pittsburgh television station in seeking detailed spending reports. For months, the three media outlets have been seeking information on travel and credit card expenses related to training and board meetings held at resorts in several states.
+ The Project on Student Debt points to the following factors:
+ Skyrocketing tuition. The average price of college has risen much faster than the rate of inflation. Average annual tuition at public four-year colleges and universities is $5,836 this year, up 268 percent from 1976-77, according to the U.S. Education Department and the National Center for Education Statistics. Private college tuition is up 248 percent, to $22,218 a year.
+ Soaring student-loan debt. Students have generally made up the gap between what colleges charge and what they can afford by borrowing.
+ Flat wages. Once students graduate, jobs don’t pay what they used to. Thirty years ago, a male college graduate could make the equivalent of $51,223 a year in 2004 inflation-adjusted dollars. In 2004, he earned less: $50,700, according to the NCES. Wages for women, though, have risen.
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Alternative student loans at AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Baker College of Flint is giving students with good grades a scholarship in the form of free and discounted rent in its dorms, hoping the incentive will boost the Baker system’s graduation rate, which is among the lowest in Michigan.
+ Thought to be the first of its kind, the bonus allows students to stay in the residence halls at the private, four-year school for free if their grade point average is 3.5 or higher.
+ Those with at least a 3.0 average get half of their residence hall costs paid. Even students with just a 2.7 average qualify for a 25 percent discount on their residence hall costs. The school charges $2,550 a year to live in the dorms.
+ If I ran a college, this is exactly the kind of thing I’d do – incentives for the results you want to achieve – brilliant!

Scholarship Update
+ Starting work on version 3 of Scholarship Search Secrets
+ What do YOU want to know more about?
+ Michigan Competitive Scholarship
+ Awards may pay a maximum of $1,300 per academic year at a Michigan public university, or $2,100 per academic year at a Michigan independent college or university.
+ Demonstrate financial need
+ Achieve a qualifying score on the ACT prior to entering college
+ Enroll at least half time at an approved Michigan postsecondary institution
+ Possess a high school diploma or GED certificate or meet the institution’s Ability to Benefit Standards
+ Be a legal Michigan resident since July 1 of the previous calendar year
+ Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
+ For renewal, maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0
+ Meet institution’s satisfactory academic progress (SAP) policy
+ Not be incarcerated
+ Details at our free scholarship search site
+ Search term: baker college scholarship

Voting Results
+ How would you rate the Student Loan Network’s service?
+ Awesome!: 38% (8)
+ Good: 19% (4)
+ Okay: 10% (2)
+ Bad: 0% (0)
+ Hideous!: 33% (7)
+ For everyone that didn’t rate us awesome – tell me why so we can make it better
+ New poll – audience demographics

Beer Money Cast
+ Student ATM
+ $100 per completed student loan consolidation application
+ Sign up and get a referral link
+ http://www.StudentLoanConsolidator.com/refer.php?affil=7
+ Get online reporting to see how you’re doing

Podsafe Music
+ Laura Smith, Every Breath
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

Direct MP3 file download: MP3 file

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Financial Aid Podcast #406: Do It Yourself in the Mail Bag

FAP406: Do It Yourself in the Mail Bag, UCLA Followup, News from around the country, Jill Parr

Student Financial Aid News
+ The discussion of the UCLA YouTube incident exploded last week
+ 112 comments on the Web site
+ No matter how you feel, thanks for participating
+ Incoming Missouri Auditor Susan Montee said this week that one of her first acts of 2007 will be an audit of the state’s student loan authority. The Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority has been embroiled in controversy this year, ever since Gov. Matt Blunt proposed the sale of a portion of the agency’s student loan portfolio to fund campus construction projects. The plan ultimately failed in the General Assembly. Lawmakers are expected to consider the sale again next year. Critics of the agency have also claims it conducted secret meetings and gave preferential treatment to certain vendors.
+ From Inside Higher Ed: Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), who will head the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in the 110th Congress, laid out his priorities for higher education and other areas under the committee’s domain Thursday. In addition to proposals other Democrats have put forward for increasing spending on Pell Grants and cutting interest rates on student loans, Kennedy also reiterated his plans to increase oversight of lenders, particularly providers of private loans, focused on deals they strike to appear on colleges’ preferred lists of alternatives for students.
+ Alternative student loans at AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ An investigation by The Boston Globe found that some colleges are getting increasingly tough on collecting the debts owed by students or former students. The newspaper’s review of court records found that Boston and Northeastern Universities file an average of 200 lawsuits a year against former students.
+ The average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased eight basis points to 6.24% as of Nov. 15 — an 11-month low — according to a weekly survey of financial institutions conducted by Bankrate.com. The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped four basis points to 5.98%, while the average rate on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages was three basis points lower at 6.13%.
+ Means it’s a pretty good time to refinance a variable rate mortgage to a fixed rate one
+ Also a good time to refinance those student loans with StudentLoanConsolidator.com or call 877-328-1565

Scholarship Update
+ UCLA Regents Scholarship Program
+ 100 awards worth full tuition, $5,500 honorarium, free parking
+ Must maintain a 3.0 GPA and 12 units
+ Top 1.5% of high school class are invited to compete
+ You’ll know if you’re eligible in a letter in February
+ Details at our free scholarship web site

Mail Bag
+ Hi, my name is Stephen and I am a new listener to your program. I was recently listening to your September 6th, 2006 broadcast regarding starting up my own private scholarship search and building your own database and network of people. I am a junior in high school, trying to get an early start on this process, but feel powerless and intimidated by large pools of students applying to large scholarships. I heard you talking about emailing companies local to my city and was wondering if you were referring to emailing companies that already offer scholarships, or ones that don’t have any yet. If you could help me out in any way during this difficult time, I would appreciate any knowledge you have regarding financial aid, especially grants and scholarships.
+ Scholarship search secrets e-book – automatically included when you subscribe to the podcast – check your iTunes
+ Collaboration!

Podsafe Music
+ Jill Parr, Do You Hear What I Hear
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time – visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

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