College costs are going up every year. You might wonder how you will be able to pay for college. Fortunately there are ways to help pay for your degree. They include scholarships, grants, and tuition forgiveness for in-demand majors, federal aid, private scholarships, employer-paid college assistance, and one that anyone can use, no matter what your grade point or athletic ability, credit-by-exam. Let’s take a brief look at a few of these options – followed by a link to our free guide which goes into these and more options in greater detail.
1. In-Demand Major Options
It’s hard to believe, but many colleges offer students free tuition, depending upon their major or their location. There are schools, for example, that give full scholarships to those in architecture, engineering, and science programs. Some schools pay the fees for those who agree to become teachers – often with the requirement that the graduate has to teach in that state for a set period.
Other schools that are located in an area may give free tuition to any student from that area. Examples of this include Tulsa Community College, which offers free tuition to anyone from Tulsa County, Oklahoma, and the University of Akron, which offers free tuition to any resident of Akron, Ohio.
2. Employer-Paid Assistance
Many employees may not even be aware that their employer could have programs to help pay for college. If you are working for a company, be sure to check with human resources to see what might be available. Often it depends on whether the education will help with the employee’s present position, or future position with the company. Some companies extend these benefits to dependents of employees, so one of your parents working for the company could qualify you for company-paid tuition.
There may be restrictions, such as a requirement for length of stay with the company after completing the degree, but it definitely is worth checking into to see if you qualify.
3. Credit-By-Exam
This is a way anyone, regardless of academic standing or athletic ability, can lower their cost of getting a degree – and save time as well. The most well-known of these programs is CLEP (College Level Examination Program). Within five different subject areas, 33 different tests can be taken to receive college credit. The benefits are that instead of sitting in a classroom for a semester and taking quizzes, doing homework, writing papers, and taking multiple tests, the student takes one exam. If the student passes, the same credit that would have been received for the semester’s work is received.
The exams aren’t easy, and some have difficulties passing them. That’s where credit-by-exam prep courses, such as those offered by Achieve Test Prep, come in. In just a few short weeks of prep class – which can be taken at one of the over 50 Achieve campuses nationwide, or through virtual online classes that give you the flexibility of taking the same instruction with the convenience of being home – you get credit that would take months in a traditional setting.
Download Your Free Guide on “How to Afford College”
For more tips and insights into the options available to you to help make college affordable, no matter who you are, click HERE to download our free guide “How to Afford College”
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