Jeff Mictabor asked:


Hopefully by now your child has decided which college to attend this fall, and you are beginning to formulate your financial strategy for how you will fund the college experience. An excellent option is the PLUS Loan or Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students, recommended by NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company.

As long as your child is enrolled in school at least half-time, this federally backed student loan allows parents to borrow funds to cover such things as tuition, housing and meals and even books and supplies, up to the total cost of the student’s education, minus any other aid.

In order to be eligible for the PLUS Loan, both students and their parents must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). According to NextStudent, parents cannot be turned down for the PLUS Loan based on too high or too low an income, because the student loan is not based on financial need or how much money parents earn. However, parents can be turned down for an adverse credit history. Once the FAFSA is submitted and reviewed by the government, parents will receive a Student Aid Report, which will allow them to apply for the PLUS loan. Applying for a NextStudent PLUS Loan is simple and easy and may be done either over the phone in as few as five minutes, or it may be done online using E-Signature.

Availability after Tuition is Paid Makes PLUS Loans Convenient

A welcome feature of the PLUS Loan is that it is available even when parents already have paid for their child’s tuition and other related educational expenses. Although the maximum interest rate on the PLUS Loan is set by the federal government, NextStudent offers many opportunities for parents to save money through incentives.

For instance, when borrowers fund their PLUS Loan through NextStudent and pay via auto-debit, they will receive a .25 percent reduction on their interest rate. In addition, after making 12 consecutive on-time payments, borrowers will receive a 3 percent cash rebate on their remaining principal balance, and a 2 percent rate reduction after 48 consecutive on-time payments.

Grad PLUS Loans Offered by NextStudent

A similar federal student loan product called the Grad PLUS Loan is available for those individuals who decide to pursue graduate or further professional studies and enables students to fund their education themselves. Again, students may finance the entire cost of their graduate work (minus federal aid) and use the funds to pay for any associated costs such as supplies, books and other materials. While the Grad PLUS Loan Program’s maximum interest rates are set by the federal government, just like with the PLUS loan Program, NextStudent offers many money-saving competitive benefits for those pursuing postsecondary education. An additional incentive is that students have the option of postponing repayment until after graduation. Additionally, like PLUS Loan borrowers Grad PLUS borrowers may be eligible for a federal student loan consolidation.

NextStudent believes that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and it is dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding simple. Learn more about Student Loans, Private Student Loans, and Student Loan Consolidation.

Jeff Mictabor asked:


Due to recent increases in college tuition, the rising costs of textbooks and other general expenses, accurately planning how much money is needed for the school year can prove to be a challenge. The second semester or term is usually the time of year when many college students and their parents review the remaining funds available for the current school year.

According to NextStudent, the Phoenix-based premier education funding company, oftentimes, if expenses are greater than original projections borrowers can meet the shortfall with a private student loan.

Qualifying For Private Student Loans Is Simple

Whether a student needs more funds right away, wants money for summer school, or if the student is involved in a distance learning program or enrolled in a private or state institution, NextStudent can help.

Since there is no application deadline as with federal student loans, no fees are involved, the funds are unsecured, and many times may not require a co-signer, there are many benefits of retaining a private student loan from NextStudent. Another advantage is that students receive their student loan directly. This allows borrowers to retain control of their money and avoid the long wait times often associated with channeling the funds through the institution.

To be eligible for private student loans, borrowers may be either an undergraduate or graduate student enrolled at least half-time in a TERI-approved program, pursuing a degree or certificate-based coursework. Students may borrow the cost of their annual attendance or up to $40,000, whichever is less.

It is easy for borrowers to apply for NextStudent private student loans, either online at www.nextstudent.com or by calling 877.690.9879. Approvals can be generated in as few as 15 minutes with a personally-assigned Education Finance Advisor.

Generous Repayment Terms For Private Student Loans

Students are not required to start repaying their private student loans unless they become enrolled less than half-time or until six months after graduation. Borrowers can start paying with as little as $25, have many repayment options, up to 20 years to repay and may qualify for tax-deductible interest payments. Those with accumulated total student loan balances that exceed $40,000 may opt to extend the repayment term to 25 years.

In order to optimize their college educational experience, many students are taking advantage of NextStudent’s private student loans. These funds often stand in the gap, enabling borrowers to achieve their dreams of a higher education and cover where federal student loans leave off.

NextStudent believes that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and it is dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding as easy as possible. Learn more about Student loans at NextStudent.com.

Ian Koch asked:


HOPE stands for “helping outstanding pupils educationally”. The HOPE scholarship program is a high valued, famous and unique scholarship program of the state of Georgia. As the name indicates, it’s purpose is to help the outstanding students who study in the public as well as in the private colleges. The scholarship was created in 1993 and Georgia has since been followed by numerous of other states, as these have implemented scholarships with the similar

purpose. Statistics reveal that around one million students have been awarded this scholarship for their study. Diploma, Certificate, and Degree programs also receive this scholarship, which is available for those students who enroll for the half-time and the full-time programs of the institutions.

“The program is entirely merit-based, meaning that a student’s ability to pay for his/her own education is not a factor in determining if he/she receives it.

The basic requirements are:

The student is a resident of the state of Georgia The student graduated high school with a 3.0 (GPA ‘B average’) The student maintains a 3.0 GPA throughout college”

(Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Students who enroll for the half-time program, if taxpayer, can get tax credit for up to $1500 during the first two years of the education. During the first year they can get up to $1000 tax credit for the tuition fees paid and $500 for the second year. This amounts to a total of $1500 in tax credit. Hence the credit has to be got in two years time. Many students who enroll for the half-time program have benefited out of this student scholarship. The credit is made available on per-student basis.

For the full-time students the HOPE scholarship offers full tuition fees and other fees that are applicable during the admission to the college. A book allowance for about $300 is also available. Expenses such as room and board are not covered in this.

A full-time student can get $3000 in scholarship amount per year. They can also get a Georgia Tuition Equalization Grant for $900 per year. The requirement for this scholarship is that the student should be enrolled in either a full-time or half-time course in a public or private institution respectively.

This scholarship ends once they complete the degree or when they have attempted 127 semester or 190 quarter hours. If the degree program that the student has joined is more than 127 semester then they can receive grant for up to a maximum of 150 semesters only. For more details on the HOPE program check out their website.