FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid is a form that must be filled out by current and upcoming university students. This is to determine the eligibility of the students for federal student financial aid. This includes loans, work-study programs and grants.

In order to avail of this program, you must first gather all the required documents. It would be better if you do this ahead of time to avoid delays. Then, you must determine your dependency status. Answer the FAFSA web worksheet, search for school codes, students and parents will then apply for a FAFSA PIN. After these steps you may now begin to apply for FAFSA.

One of the requirements needed for FAFSA is you should have federal school codes. This is to determine what university is qualified to disburse the assistance given by FAFSA. A federal school code is composed of six characters. The code usually begins with zero (0), G, B, and E and ends with a five digit number.

There are websites who give out federal school codes. All you have to do is search the internet.

Go to www.fafsaonline.com. There you will be taken to their homepage. The homepage of fafsaonline.com contains lots of information about FAFSA. On the left side of the screen, just below the “get started” button, you will see a list. Look up FAFSA school codes. When you click FAFSA school codes, you will be taken to a page that has a heading “FAFSA school code search – Find your college”. Right below that you will see two columns. The first column says “Top 10 FAFSA school code states” this column contains the name of the state. When you click the state, you will be taken to the name of the universities on that state. Click on the university and voila; you will see the federal school code of that certain university. The second column says “Top 10 visited FAFSA school codes”. Need I say more? Just click on the school and the federal school code will be there in front of your eyes.

Money Saving Basics

There are practical and creative ways to save money while attending college and, with a little self-control and perseverance, maximize those savings for life after school. Some of the ways to save money are free to get started, though some will require a minimal initial investment in order to maximize benefits. From banking to spending money on alcohol, college students should first and foremost be conscious of how much money they are spending.

Putting Money in the Bank Costs Money – Usually

One of the most basic ways to save money immediately upon enrolling at a college is to locate a free checking account at the nearest bank. Most banks have some kind of student checking account program that does not charge fees for a limited number of in-bank transactions, checks and ATM transactions. Also investigating the ability to make online bill payments and other bank transactions can save money as well.

Protecting a Checking Account

Automatic overdraft protection is a basic investment that most of the public fails to use, to their financial disadvantage. A debit card will not always protect a checking account from overdraft charges by letting the user know they are out of money by declining the transaction. Overdraft fees can range from $25.00 per transaction to upwards of $100.00, depending on banking policy. Keeping close track of balances can not only save a check account, it can keep money in a savings account as savings.

Do NOT Use that Credit Card

Credit cards have long gotten many a college student into serious financial distress, often in the course of their first thirty days in class. Credit card companies cater to students and often issue credit cards to the uninformed and the unwary. Investing in a single credit card with no fees, a low interest rate and a minimal limit is often the easiest way to stay out of the credit card debt death spiral. Students should avoid carrying their credit card everywhere, leaving it in a secure location until it is needed, preferably only in the event of an emergency.

What is the Total?!

One absolute way to find out how much money is being spent on what pastime is to save up all of the receipts for everything that is spent in the period of thirty days. Tallying the totals on rent, food, gas, insurance, gaming, utilities and, the worst expense of all, alcohol can shed a spotlight on spending that may be out of control. Maximizing a college students savings, and ability to save money, can be as easy as cutting down on excessive spending in unnecessary areas.

What is the Point?

Learning efficient money savings habits in college can lead to a life after college that has minimal debt and minimal necessary spending. An amazing amount of money can be saved simply by paying attention to where money goes every month, and deleting items from spending that are excessive or unnecessary. Beginning successful habits and maximizing savings in college prepares student for a life where deep debt is the norm and savings is a notion from a bygone era.

This guest article was contributed by Jane Sanders from Debt Management. Check out her site for more financial tips, like how to negotiate with your creditors.

The College Fair is the time when the college shows off to the possible students. They give stories of success from people who graduated in their school. This is to make the college more inviting to future college students. In a college fair, a student representative usually takes the questions of the interested students. But, as a potential student of the college, what should be your questions to the student representative to make an impact.

Here are a few questions that you should ask to the student representative.

1. What are the virtues that the student body adheres to? This is for you to learn what the personality of the student body is. Knowing the personality of the student body helps you assess the total personality of the school. Even though not everyone is really represented by the student body it would still represent the majority.
2. What makes this school different from the others? Every school has its own story to tell. Here you will know how unique the school is. You may learn here about a new curriculum that is more student focused.
3. How many students transfer after their first year of studying here? This is for you to know the satisfaction rating of the students. If the curriculum that the college implements actually works. A high rate of transfer could mean that the students did not get what they expected to get from the school.
4. What sets your school above the rest? You’re going to want to know why you should join, and what makes them unique.
5. Who are some famous people that graduated from here? This is a fun one to ask, and shows you what kind of education these people were given, in order to get where they are today.

Many questions can still be asked from the student representative that would reflect the school’s status or excellence. You, as a potential student should be critical in choosing the perfect college for you. At the end of the day it is still not the school who will spell your success but you. Still, it would be a great help if you are comfortable with the school you choose.

Credit: Flickr

After a grueling examination, after a hard won battle at the football field, after your girlfriend breaks up with you, it would be really nice to have a drink; a drink to celebrate, a drink to forget all the pain. Yes, college life is full of ups and downs and the ones that are always with us together with our friends are the drinks.

These drinks are designed for those that are over the age of 21, of course!  While it may not be your favorite, the ones listed below are widely enjoyed by those all across the United States, if not the whole world.

Here are the top 5 drinks that college students love:

1. Steel reserve. Steel Reserve is an American lager owned and produced by Steel Brewing Company. It has two varieties “black” or “Triple Export Malt liquor” and “Silver” or “High Gravity Lager”. College students love this because of its high alcohol content (8.1%) and a very low price. It sells 99cents for a 24ounce can.
2. Popov and Energy Drinks. Popov is vodka produced by British drinks giant. The energy drink masks the taste of the vodka.
3. Brass Monkey. This drink is a mixture of three parts malt liquor like Colt45, Steel Reserve and King Cobra, plus one part Orange juice. Brass monkey is a good drink for ladies who don’t like to drink pure malt liquors.
4. Seven and Seven. Since most college students are low on budget, instead of buying a bottle of good whiskey a bottle of Seagram’s 7 will do. Mix it up with Seven up or a Sprite and you are good to go. That is where it got its name.
5. Jungle juice. This drink is a mixture of rum or vodka, juice, (flavor of your choice) and some fruits. Just put it in a large bowl like a punch and you may now get the party started.

Whatever the drink is, no matter how you mix it, whoever you drink it with; always keep in mind to drink in moderation.

Credit: Flickr

Every month, or few weeks, I’m going to try give out a recipe that you can use, when you want to create some easy to make meals in  your home / dorm room.  These take next to nothing, and you will find that they are rather easy!

College students have very hectic schedules. They are always on the run, taking classes, others work part time, others spend their time making projects, researches and all the other stuffs college students do. College students, especially those who are very serious about almost have no time for themselves. Even eating must be fast paced for them. You can never always rely on fast food. To be healthy you must learn to eat cheap, fast, home cooked meals. The following is an example of a home cooked meal made cheap and fast.

Spaghetti with sausage

Ingredients

Oil, Onions, black pepper, tomatoes, Garlic, basil, red pepper flakes, salt, one pack sausage, 1 pack dried noodles or pasta of your choice, 1 can spaghetti sauce, vegetables of your choice (optional)

Procedure

Sauce

1. Slice sausages evenly according to the size of your choice. Then heat a frying pan and put a little oil. Cook the sausages until it is golden brown in color.
2. Add the garlic, onion, pepper, and tomatoes.
3. Add the veggies and stir fry.
4. Transfer this in a pot then add the spaghetti sauce. Set the fire to medium or med-high. Add the black pepper, basil, salt and the red pepper flakes. Let it simmer for a few minutes then stir occasionally.

Spaghetti

1. Fill a large pot with water then heat it in a low flame. Just a bit lower than the flame you used for the sauce. When the water boils, add a little oil and a pinch of salt. This is to prevent the noodles from sticking with each other.
2. Add the noodles. Let it simmer until it is aldente or soft and firm. While the noodles are not yet cooked stir them once in a while so it will get cooked evenly.
3. When done, strain it and serve with the sauce.