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September 2, 2010

Financial Aid Mistakes

Category: Applying to College, College, Edifi, Financial Aid, Ready Set College, Tuition — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:16 am

Families unfamiliar with the financial aid process make some common mistakes. It’s to be expected. Financial aid paperwork can be long and confusing, and federal, state, and college forms need to be completed accurately and on time. Mistakes and delays can cost families thousands, greatly adding to the pressure they feel to get it right.

Edifi’s List of Common Financial Aid Mistakes

  1. Not filling out the FAFSA.  Approximately 41% of students don’t apply for financial aid. We’re absolutely shocked by this number. Filling out the FAFSA is one of Edifi’s primary functions. We have an entire department devoted to filling out these and other forms. None of our clients miss this opportunity to receive federal aid.
  2. Not updating the SAR. Another key Edifi service. We review your Student Aid Report, correct any mistakes, and update your financial information. Sometimes families receive more financial aid after our review.
  3. Not appealing for more aid. Many families accept government and college decisions as final. They don’t know they can appeal for more aid. Edifi, however, uses several different methods to help our students appeal low offers. What often appears to be the final word is just the first salvo in the bargaining process.
  4. Choosing an unaffordable college. Our college-cost estimates let families know what they can afford. These estimates even include costs some schools don’t want you to know.
  5. Taking out private loans unnecessarily. Edifi never recommends private loans unless absolutely necessary. Seek grant money and subsidized government loans before turning to more expensive private loans.

Edifi’s program systematically eliminates these errors by completing your paperwork and advising our students on the appropriate steps to take. We let you know what we need and when so that everything is done on time. In fact, we try to work weeks ahead so that you can submit your FAFSA and other forms as early as possible, putting you near the front of the line in the first-come, first-serve world of financial aid.

Avoiding the most costly financial aid mistakes is at the heart of Edifi’s service and philosophy.

As you can see, working with Edifi can reduce your out-of-pocket expenses while improving your financial aid. We want college to be a positive experience for you, not a stress-filled four years spent fearing your final cost. After all, we’re familiar with financial aid. We know mistakes happen. Edifi just doesn’t want them to happen to you.

August 31, 2010

Edifi Investigates: Rating the BBB

Category: Edifi, News — Tags: , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:59 am

Occasionally Edifi hears from clients or prospective clients about our rating with the Better Business Bureau. We admit it’s not as good as we’d like, but also think people shouldn’t put too much stock in the BBB. We can’t figure out how they rate anything.

Take Disney World. The Magic Kingdom. The Happiest Place on Earth. The House the Mouse Built. What did the BBB give them? A D-. And why did the BBB give Disney World a D-? Because they received 107 complaints over the past three years. Now that may sound like a lot, but 51 million people visited Disney World in those three years. So, let’s see: 51 million customers, 107 complaints and you get a D- ! Our F doesn’t look so bad.

Consider these stories: The American Red Cross, which runs blood banks, gathers food and clothing for refugees, and aids the needy around the globe, got a C-. Simon and Schuster, the company that brings you books from Stephen King, John Grisham, Eric Carle – even Laura Bush – the company behind Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and Olivia – got an F. Nickelodeon, the cable company that delights audiences with Dora the Explorer, Blue’s Clues, Spongebob, Jimmy Neutron, iCarly, and Nick at Nite – also got an F.

So did they all receive 107 complaints like Disney? No. Nickelodeon’s had four and Simon & Schuster two. Two! The BBB even states on its website that they don’t have “sufficient background information on this business,” but that didn’t stop them from handing out that F. The Better Business Bureau calls its grading system a Reliability Report, but they sound entirely unreliable. They hand down their verdict with the gravitas of Solomon but make their decisions with the whim of Judge Judy.

It doesn’t end there. Pepsi Cola garnered a D-. The posh Hilton Hotels landed an F. Search engine giant Google earned a C-. Yet McDonald’s, Microsoft, and Wal-mart all have A+ ratings. Yes, they are large companies with good records for charity work, but they are not without their detractors. Plenty of people worry about the quality of their products and integrity of their business practices. Still, they each received an A+.

By all appearances, the BBB is more arbitrary than arbiter. They may claim to be impartial, but they look illogical, ill-informed and inconsistent.

Would you like to guess our rating for the Better Business Bureau?

We’re not indifferent to complaints, and we make every effort to resolve them. In fact, the BBB says so. Their site shows that Edifi has resolved most complaints or “made every reasonable effort to resolve” them. You can’t do much more than make “every reasonable effort.”

So take the accuracy of the Better Business Bureau’s rating straight from the horse’s mouth: the BBB itself. The Better Business Bureau states its rating system “is not a guarantee of a business’ reliability or performance.”

We couldn’t agree more.

***Apparently we’re not alone in our condemnation of the BBB. Here’s some great reporting from Consumer Affairs.***

August 30, 2010

Your Personal Data Is a College’s Prerogative

Category: Applying to College, College Boards, Edifi, High School, Ready Set College — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:22 am

When Edifi first began helping students investigate colleges, colleges didn’t require much information on students. Just your basics: grades, classes, academic standing, and activities. They reviewed your application and read your essay. Now, it’s a whole new ballgame, and Edifi is prepared to help you learn the rules. 

Colleges have intensified their efforts to find top students, and students, in turn, are applying to more colleges than ever. Students hope to stand out in a sea of applicants, and colleges are looking for the one thing that makes a student exceptional. And while grades and activities remain important, they often aren’t the final factor. 

Edifi’s List of What Colleges Want: 

  1. First Choice. A college wants to know it’s your first choice. But be truthful! You can only have one first choice.
  2. Legacy Admissions. It helps if dad and granddad went there.
  3. First-Generation College Student. Conversely, colleges also like it if you’re the first one in your family ever to go to college.
  4. Intended Major. Seek out colleges who specialize in what you want to study.
  5. Hobbies and Interests. Maybe a college has a good chess team or a campus in a country you’ve always wanted to visit. If so, let them know. These may not be part of your “official” record, but could easily catch a recruiter’s eye. 

College admissions officers call it the funnel factor or admissions funnel, pouring all those applications into a large opening until only a few trickle out. They narrow the list of candidates by grade point average and academic rigor, then board scores, extracurricular activities, and in some cases, financial need. As the list of potential freshmen gets smaller and smaller, the choice of whom to accept gets tougher and tougher. For you, that means research. You need to know what particular colleges want. 

Edifi’s services are designed to help you do that. Use our student website to research more than 4,000 colleges using 25 criteria, understand the education you’ll need for certain careers, and prepare for the SATs and ACTs. Our grade-specific handbooks offer plenty of additional tips on matching your interests to specific colleges to improve your post-secondary position. 

Yes, colleges are collecting more personal data on you than we once thought possible, but using Edifi’s program allows you to collect a great deal of  information on them, too!

August 26, 2010

Ranking All Those College Rankings

Category: Applying to College, College, Edifi, Financial Aid, News, Ready Set College — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:14 am

There are a lot of college rankings: March Madness in the Spring, the BCS come January, and America’s Best Colleges every August. And just about everybody has a list of top schools: U.S. News & World Report, Princeton Review, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and many more. They rank classes, teachers, majors, and tuition. They rank everything – everything except what you want. 

These lists reduce college and the college experience to mere numbers. The difference between 1 & 2, or 40 & 50, is miniscule. It is the splitting of hairs and the judgment of critics. And it always includes the usual suspects: Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Duke, MIT. Fantastic schools. 

Fantastic schools that may not be right for you. 

So do your homework when it comes to picking a college. Those “Best College” lists may be a good starting point, but you need to know more than any list can provide. Visit a school’s website and campus, review available literature, and ask current and former students their opinions. Your research will prove more valuable than any of these rankings. 

Colleges, of course, rely heavily on these lists, and why shouldn’t they? Top colleges always see an uptick in applications without having to increase the number of students they admit. This makes them look more selective, which allows them to increase tuition. Other schools quickly follow, contributing to steep prices. College rankings, it seems, aren’t just for bragging rights, they’re a free pass to justify tuition hikes. 

Fortunately, parents, teachers, and students are starting to catch on. Just because a college costs more doesn’t make it more valuable to you. Our Ready, Set, College program repeatedly stresses this to our students. Edifi helps you find affordable colleges by examining your income and likely financial aid from as many colleges as you choose. Combine that with college and career searches on our student website, and you start to get a pretty good idea what colleges are right for you. Edifi’s Junior and Senior Handbooks assist you further in narrowing your choices. 

The right college for you is one where you get a good education at an affordable price from a school where you are likely to graduate. Don’t live by the college rankings. Make your own list. Add Reach schools and Safety schools – just make sure you’re happy with your choices. Don’t dismiss a college out of hand because U.S. News put it too far down on its list.

Remember these simple words – the best college is the college that’s best for you!

August 23, 2010

Beating the Higher Education Bubble

Category: Careers, College, Edifi, Financial Aid, News, Ready Set College, Student Debt, Tuition — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:16 am

There’s been a lot of talk about a higher education “bubble” on Edifi’s blog and elsewhere. This bubble looks a bit like the housing or credit card bubbles, where prices outstrip reward. The system teeters close to the edge and people wonder if it’s worth the investment. 

For college, it means high tuition, student loans, and a sour job market. But just as you need a place to live and good credit to buy big things, a good education remains the best way to get a good job. 

So how does a student beat the higher education bubble?

Edifi’s Advice on Making College Work For You: 

  1. Target Your Education Toward a Career. Pick your classes carefully, focusing on what you want to do for a living. You can still take those liberal arts classes as required or as electives, but know what you want to do when you arrive.
  2. Take Advanced Placement Courses. AP courses can eliminate the need for some general education classes in college, allowing you to spend more time on your major.
  3. Examine Your Total Loans Over Four Years. Take your first semester’s worth of loans and multiply by four, and then keep in mind that tuition is likely to go up. You’ll have a ballpark figure on what a bachelor’s degree will cost, and can start planning early to earn more money and pay it off.
  4. Consider Your Reasons for Going to College. If you know why you’re going, you’ll be more likely to finish. Edifi strongly suggests this.
  5. Cut Costs Any Way You Can. From saving on basic expenses to finding ways to mix and match traditional classes with online courses, there’s a way to save money at even the most expensive four-year colleges.
  6. Find Schools With Good Financial Aid. Some colleges simply have more money to give away, and others are likely to help students with your particular interests, talents, and knowledge.
  7. Fill Out the Right Financial Aid Forms at the Right Time. There are federal, state, and college forms, each with their own deadlines and requirements. Mistakes can prove costly, whether it’s a missed deadline or incorrect data. Be accurate!

Edifi’s program considers all these factors. Our Sophomore Handbook places great emphasis on understanding why you want to go to college, and our student website lets you research the educational requirements for thousands of jobs (not to mention colleges that specialize in those fields). We also publish two books, one for East Coast colleges and one for West, that list schools with the best financial aid. And at the core of our program is filling out your financial aid paperwork accurately and on time to help you get the most grant money possible. We’re not just talking about your FAFSA, but your state and college forms, too. 

Despite what you may have heard, Edifi isn’t just about filling out forms: we’re about helping our students get College Ready!

August 19, 2010

Saving Money at College

Category: College, Edifi — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:18 am

Back to School sales are everywhere, and are a good reminder that paying for college isn’t just about having money, it’s about saving money, too. Edifi reminds you that as your prepare for college, whether this year or a few years from now, there are things to leave home and things you can buy at a bargain: 

Edifi’s List of College Bargains: 

  1. Textbooks. Used textbooks are all the rage right now, and when new books run anywhere from $300-1000, it’s easy to see why. Keep in mind, this doesn’t just mean buying used textbooks, it means selling yours, too.
  2. Car. If you don’t need a car to get around campus, leave it home. You may have to pay for parking, not to mention gas, maintenance, and the cost of transporting friends who didn’t bring cars.
  3. Credit Cards. Might be good for emergencies, but too tempting to use on everyday items. Annual fees, high interest rates and unnecessary purchases can cost you a fortune.
  4. Clothes. Bring what you need. Wearing a new sweatshirt with the college logo may look good, but buying clothes, bumper stickers, pennants, and other swag at the campus store can really add up. Why do you think colleges want you to have a credit card?
  5. Toiletries. You’re more likely to find bargains near home when there’s time to shop.
  6. Furniture. Bring what you can, but check the dorm list on what’s allowed. If you know students who are graduating, transferring, or not returning, you might pick up some good bargains.
  7. Computer gear. You may need your laptop, but try to use campus accessories, particularly printers. Pick up a cheap flash drive to save and print from the computer lab. You’ll save on paper and ink, plus free up a little desk space in the process.

 Edifi places our focus on helping you get grant money and finding colleges you can afford. We’ve presented the benefits of government loans over private loans, touted work-study programs and the proper use of part-time income, but we recognize that you can help yourself on the back end, too. Given the cost of college these days, every penny counts, particularly if it adds up to hundreds, and even thousands, of dollars. 

Good luck as you pack for school. Just remember: pack light! 

*For more good ideas, Edifi suggests you read this article from Kiplinger.

August 16, 2010

The Truth About College Prep

Category: Applying to College, College, Edifi, High School, News, Ready Set College — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:14 am

We at Edifi are sometimes shocked at how often guidance counselors are called to account. Now, the Independent Educational Consultants Association, which represents private counselors, is accusing some of its own members of deception. 

The IECA’s Consumer Warning: 

  1. Shoddy credentials. Investigate a counselor’s experience. For the record: Edifi has been in business since 1991 and has helped tens of thousands of high school students go on to college. Our in-depth handbooks were developed by David Peterson, a guidance counselor for 30 years and former adviser to the College Board.
  2. Too much help. By this we mean a counselor who bundles your application for you, writes or rewrites your essay, and makes it obvious that you’ve had professional help. Colleges are interested in you; the counselor has already been to college. Edifi offers you advice on how to put together an impressive résumé and application, and our Junior Handbook details ways to write a good entrance essay, but the work is up to you. We suggest you seek help from your English teacher or other college graduate, but remember, they aren’t going to college with you. You only benefit when you do the work.
  3. Scholarship search services. Edifi is not a scholarship search service because scholarships rarely benefit students. Edifi puts this in writing so you know we’re not deceiving you.
  4. Hiding your guidance counselor’s role. Plenty of independent counselors will never tell you other sources of college information. We tell you in your agreement with us that you can get help elsewhere. We only suggest that you be careful. Yes, your high school guidance counselor can help, but according to the IECA, counselors should not advise more than 50 or 60 students. Most guidance counselors have hundreds. They may be overworked, have noncounselor duties, or be prohibited from inquiring about your financial needs. As a private and professional company, Edifi is not bound by such restrictions. Our attention is fully on you.
  5. No campus knowledge. Some counselors tell you how great a college is without ever having been there. We tell you campus visits are up to you, and that as your list of colleges narrow, you should go more than once. The college has to feel right to you. Our student website has listings and information on more than 4,000 colleges, updated annually, and our handbooks tell you what to look for and what to ask on your visits. Use that information to supplement your search, but YOU must visit the campus.
  6. Impossible promises. Never listen to counselors who promise you admission to a certain college. The college of your dreams. Harvard. MIT. Stanford. Only the college determines who gets in. There are ways to improve your chances, but guarantees are impossible. 

We agree with the IECA. Keep independent counselors honest. We appreciate their efforts, and thank you for checking up on them with Edifi and the IECA. 

*For more on these deceptive practices, see Complaints Against Counselors.

August 12, 2010

Connecting Classes and Careers

Category: Careers, College, Edifi, For-Profit Colleges, High School, News, Ready Set College — Tags: , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:17 am

Educators are starting Melissa,Project Coordinator by lululemon athleticato notice that connecting classes to careers – including college prep classes – keeps students motivated. Edifi is not surprised. It’s been part of our approach for years. 

Schools are designing whole programs around getting students ready for the working world. This doesn’t just mean shop students who plan to enter the workforce right after graduation, but those with four-year degrees and grad school in mind. Teachers link basic courses required by all students to classes targeting traditional profession – anything from elementary school teacher to architect to doctor. They also add work-related experiences, like field trips and guest speakers. Educators find that students are motivated when pursuing their goals.

From the day our students sign up, we do the same thing. We try to get you Career Ready and College Ready through our Ready, Set, College program. 

Edifi’s Keys to Career Education: 

  1. You can research hundreds of jobs on our website, learning what education you need, what salary you can expect, and how likely job prospects are in the near future. This guides you in taking classes in high school and college to prepare for that career. You can also discover what colleges specialize in those fields, further narrowing your higher education choices.
  2. Take the right classes. Don’t just match career goals to what your high school offers – look into community college and learning centers, too.
  3. Find work in your field. This could be an internship, a volunteer position, or after-school and summer work.
  4. Don’t attend for-profit schools unless you have no choice. They may claim to specialize in a career you want, but so do many colleges. Consider them first! 

What you want to do for a living may change, but one way to find out is to work in that field. Sometimes a particular job may seem better for you in theory than reality. Research makes you ready, experience makes you sure. 

We’re happy that high schools finally realize that combining your career goals and coursework shapes your future, because Edifi has been telling our students that for a very long time.

August 9, 2010

Edifi News: How Cost Affects College Graduation

Category: Applying to College, College, Edifi, For-Profit Colleges, News, Ready Set College, Student Debt, Tuition — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:14 am

Edifi applauds the renewed drive to make America number one in college graduates, but we can’t believe how few groups are focused on the tremendous cost of tuition. 

The Commission on Access, Admissions and Success in Higher Education, which is run by the College Board (the same company that brings you the SAT), has joined President Obama in this quest. The only difference? The Commission gives students 5 more years, until 2025, to reach their goal.

The Hard Numbers: 

  1. America is now 12th in the percentage of college graduates between the ages of 25-34, following decades of finishing first.
  2. The number of young Americans holding an associate’s degree or better has risen three points since 2000, but is still more than 14 points behind Canada.
  3. When factoring in adults over 34, America jumps to 6th place. 

Edifi has noted this trend before: older Americans went to college in smaller numbers, but were far more likely to graduate. And it may have simply been because college was cheaper. After all, there was a time California residents could go to state universities for free, many other state schools were affordable to working families, and elite private schools weren’t twice the average salary. It was hardly a bed of roses, but it wasn’t a system of banks and colleges counting on student loans to cover soaring tuition. 

The Commission’s 10-Part Plan Includes: 

  1. Making college prep classes the standard high-school curriculum. Even for those not going to college?
  2. Aligning high school graduation and college entrance standards. This has been suggested for years, and is part of the current push for national standards.
  3. Simplifying college admissions. This, too, has been going on for years, through the Common Application, the SAT Optional Movement and other efforts.
  4. Simplifying the college transfer process. Also not new, though there’s been a new push by four-year colleges to achieve this. 

The Commission makes many other recommendations, including improving pre-school education and high-school counseling, but it doesn’t address tuition until its 7th point, and that is the very generic, Make College Affordable. And yet, the cost of college is probably the biggest roadblock to graduating. 

All of the Commission’s points are valid; it’s the order that troubles us. Today’s students may need academic help (which Edifi offers through its Ready, Set, College program), and the college application maze and financial aid process can be extremely difficult (which is why Edifi places it at the core of its services), but they don’t place enough emphasis on cost. Students want to go to college, and they want to graduate, until the day comes when some of them suddenly realize they can’t afford higher education. 

Edifi hopes the Commission, the Department of Education, and others can reform the system to make everyone a bit richer, as opposed to dumping money into loans that make banks more robust and guarantee colleges a payday. Edifi knows that the best way to ensure graduation is to make college affordable, first with reasonable tuition and then through gift aid. That’s why we help our students seek out colleges they can afford based on their income, assets, and a college’s typical grant and scholarship amounts. It’s also why we help them fill out their financial aid paperwork accurately and on-time, so they stand a better chance of qualifying for gift aid. 

We agree with the Commission’s goal; we just think they may be doing an end-around to reach the goal line. Edifi believes in the direct approach: proper motivation, proper education, and proper financial planning. That’s why Edifi helps.

August 5, 2010

Edifi News: Finding Colleges That Make Good Loans

Category: Edifi, Financial Aid, For-Profit Colleges, News, Ready Set College, Student Debt — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , — John Briggs @ 9:12 am

The Chronicle of Higher Education confirms what banks, colleges and the U.S. government don’t want you to know: student loan default rates are higher than they’ve been telling us. 

The Department of Education routinely publicizes two- and three-year default rates, which, while they sound bad, are dwarfed by 15-year default rates. Only 6.7% of students default on their student loans after three years, but as many as 40% (at certain universities) default after 15 years. 

The reason for the sharp increase is simple: most students try to pay off their loans. Students really do take out loans on good faith. They make an effort to pay them back, can’t find a job that pays enough to cover sometimes staggering debts, fall behind, and eventually stop paying. 

Not surprisingly, for-profit colleges account for the majority of defaults. While only 10% of students attend these schools, they account for 44% of all non-payments. Students who attend four-year for-profit schools do slightly better. Only 30% of those students default, but that is still double the failure rate at four-year private and public colleges. This is yet another reason why Edifi does not recommend for-profit colleges to our students. 

Colleges With the Highest Default Rates: 

  1. Jarvis Christian College
  2. College of Office Technology
  3. Texas College
  4. College America (Flagstaff, Arizona location)
  5. Angley College 

See the Top Ten. 

One of the great difficulties in defaulting after 15 years is that many former students are, by then, in their late 30’s, looking to buy a home and raise a family, only to have bad credit and sky-high loans come back to hurt them. Even new federal laws designed to help students stop paying exorbitant loans only work if the borrower is in good standing after 20 years. Many people will find their credit in poor standing by then. As student loan companies sweat this new legislation and other proposed changes, it’s ironic that your credit can be hurt by banks operating on shaky credit themselves. 

Edifi’s Tips for Your College Search: 

Look for colleges with good default rates and good job placement. Ask colleges for hard numbers. Not just the two-year default rates they want you to see, but 10-year and 15-year rates, as well. If a college can’t or won’t provide them, look elsewhere. As a student, you have options. Use them. 

Also, try to get all the grant money for which you are eligible. Getting the right package can save you thousands of dollars. We know, because that’s our specialty. Perhaps Edifi, by filling out and reviewing your financial aid paperwork properly, can get you a little more of that gift aid you deserve.

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