Holiday Tips From The Best

As we hit December and the big run up to the holidays - I am very honoured to have been asked to provide my 'Best Holiday Savings Tip' to the website GroceryAlerts.ca!

I invite you to CLICK HERE - or below - to see what some of the top personal finance bloggers in Canada say about ways to make the Holidays a little less financially stressful.

I will have more on the subject in a soon to come post of my own. Cheers!

Holiday Tips From the Best
on GroceryAlerts.ca

I'm a Guest Post Provider!

It's great when I meet people in the business of helping students as I spend time on the internet. One such person is John Carpenter. John has a website http://www.askjohnaboutcollege.com/, devoted to helping students, and their parents, with their questions about the college admissions process - and pretty much any other question they can come up with.

That's why I'm honored to have been asked by John to provide this week's guest post for his popular blog. I decided to talk to his readers about something I've talked about a time or two here - student finances. Here's the link to the full entry on John's blog. I hope you'll take a look.

Brian's Guest Post on Ask John About College.

Cheers!

Scholarship Season is Here! - with Special Guest Jodi Okun - part 2

In part two of my discussion with Financial Aid expert Jodi Okun – we're going to focus on scholarships. Jodi explains exactly what scholarships are all about.

Scholarships are a form of student financial aid that does not need to be repaid. Foundations, philanthropists, non-profit organizations, businesses and colleges help students pay for college award scholarships.

Some scholarships are awarded for academic merit, while others may focus on artistic or athletic talent or other personal characteristics. There are even a variety of unusual scholarships based on more obscure talents. A professional financial aid advisor can help you to determine if any of these are right for you.
The National Scholarship Providers Association (NSPA), the national professional organization for scholarship sponsors, supports national Scholarship Month. NSPA promotes student access to higher education through scholarships.

From my own personal experience (my son is involved) I know there are almost 200 scholarships which are only available to students who were members of their school's USFirst Robotics team. Look far and wide to find as many financial aid opportunities as you can.

But it's not just the money involved which makes the scholarship process important. Jodi explains that there are other benefits as well.

Scholarships not only make it possible for students to pursue a college education by improving access to higher education, but they also provide the recipients with greater flexibility. This allows students to choose the college that best meets their needs, without the demand for large student loans.

College scholarships also offer other benefits for students beyond the gift aid. The act of applying for a scholarship can help the student clarify his or her goals and decide upon a career path. Winning a scholarship can be a mark of excellence, opening doors for the student to new and exciting educational experiences.

Many scholarship sponsors provide their winners with long-term advocacy and support through mentorship and other services. Scholarship recipients often also get to interact with each other, building life-long friendships and creating a synergy that challenges and inspires them to strive for excellence.

If you take the time, do your research, and follow the process you never know how much free money you can find in the scholarship world.

My thanks to Jodi Okun of College Financial Aid Advisors for helping my readers with the important subject of scholarships and financial aid. If you are having difficulty with the financial aid world, or have any questions, you can contact Jodi through her website which is listed on the right.

An Expert's Take on Financial Aid - with Special Guest Jodi Okun - part 1

As students get back into the swing of their studies following the Christmas break - now is also the time for students to get into the swing of things in regards to financial aid for the 2012-13 school year. Whether you are a high school senior getting ready to head off to college, or a college student looking to cut down the cost of your next year, now is the time to be filling out forms - especially one in particular if you live in the United States.
I had the opportunity recently to ask Jodi Okun, the founder of College Financial Aid Advisors (see link on the side), some questions about financial aid. For U.S. students. the FAFSA form is a very important document. It sets you up for all kinds of federal, state and private funding. Jodi warns that errors or omissions on FAFSA could be costly.

A mistake on your FAFSA can delay processing of your application by up to three weeks. One in seven FAFSA forms are returned due to errors. It could happen to you!
To avoid errors, get started early. Use the Pre-Application Worksheet located on the FAFSA home page to insure you've gathered all the necessary information. Be sure to proofread your application before you submit it. Fill it out right the first time and you'll have your financial aid letter in no time.
As with all forms and applications, make sure you read the instructions and questions carefully.

Besides FAFSA, this is also the time of year when things really gear up in the scholarship world. Jodi gives some tips on how to be on top of your game when it comes to scholarship season.

Begin reviewing your finances. Take an hour or two to get a sense of where you are and how your finances will be at the end of this year.
Take a look at college costs and try out some of the new cost calculators on each college website.
Start writing scholarship essays. Scholarships season really begins in earnest in January of each year, and the sooner you begin to hunt down scholarships and fill out applications the easier it will be to apply for the next one. Research which scholarships are a fit for you, go to the website and download their applications.
Set scholarship goals. Try to apply for one scholarship each weekend. Set up a calendar so you don't miss any deadlines.
Begin to get familiar with college deadline dates and identify what information colleges request.

In part two of my interview with Financial Aid expert Jodi Okun tomorrow – a look at the benefits, besides money, of scholarships and why financial aid is so important.

A Talk With The Founder of Wealth Watchers - part two!

Today I have the second part of my discussion with Alice Wood - author and founder of 'Wealth Watchers'. I love it when I find experts who agree with my take on various subjects related to students and money. I asked Alice her thoughts on student debt and her answer didn't surprise me.

"Students should be taught to avoid debt. In fact, they should be terrified of debt. The exception to the rule is that a reasonable amount of debt is ok if there is a likelihood of a return on the money borrowed. Eating out and buying clothes they don't need isn't good debt but it's unbelievable how much debt students rack up doing just that. A reasonable amount of debt for school is ok, but students should do everything they can to find a way to go to school without borrowing money. You can work two hours a day at a fast-food restaurant and cover your college costs if you're smart enough to go to a community college. Maybe one way to get a four year degree is to go to night school so a student can work during the day to cover the cost of their education. Even if it takes five years to get a degree, someone could save a fortune by not taking out student loans. Most employers would be in awe of the work ethic of a student who was willing to do that."

I couldn't agree with Alice more! The number of students graduating with tens of thousands of dollars in debt before taking a single step out into the real world is absolutely mind boggling. Do everything you can to have as little debt as possible - or no debt at all - once you get that diploma in your hands.
Finally I asked Alice for a little 'out of the ordinary' tip. Something she would say to students which many might think is a no-brainer but which makes a lot of sense.

Students should try to stay out of trouble. Legal problems can be very expensive and an arrest will most likely show up on a background check. It's not the end of the world to have that kind of setback, but it's a challenging job market and it helps to have every advantage possible when it comes to looking better than the next guy.

I would like to thank Alice Wood for taking the time to give my readers a little taste of her knowledge in the area of personal finance. I encourage you, the readers, to check out the Wealth Watchers website. Cheers!

A Talk With The Founder of Wealth Watchers!

Thanks to Twitter, and other sources online, I’ve been lucky to meet, at least in cyberspace, a lot of great people in the personal finance field.  One of those people is author and business founder Alice Wood. Long story – short, after a freak accident in an airplane left her with a brain injury, Alice had trouble making good decisions about some things, including her finances. It eventually led her to create “Wealth Watchers”. Wealth Watchers encourages a group format for support, and a tracking system so you know where every dollar goes. Sounds like another ‘Watchers” group doesn’t it? And that was the point. Please check out Alice’s website listed in our links on the right side of the page. It is a great resource for students and parents. The first chapter of Alice’s book is printed on her site and is a very interesting read as well.

I asked Alice if she would like to give some tips to my readers and she graciously accepted. In part one today, I asked Alice her thoughts on the need for students to get into the habit of saving their money at an early stage.

Alice wrote – “Students should develop a pattern of savings as soon as they have access to money, whether it's a gift of money, or money they've earned. Any amount is better than nothing but I like the idea of 50% of going into a savings account as long as their parents are paying for their day to day expenses. But the child needs to have some say in how much they will actually set aside, otherwise they will resent the whole process. No matter what the amount might be, the goal should be to make it a habit to save.  I also like the idea of putting money into an actual savings account as long as there are no fees. Many banks offer free savings accounts for students. Using a bank or credit union as opposed to a drawer at home forces someone to "think before they spend." I don't recommend having the savings account tied to a debit card. A savings account is just that, savings, not spending money.”

Then Alice touched on a subject which, I think, rings true throughout our society these days whether your children are getting ready for college or not.

What's the right age to begin the (money) conversation? As soon as they can spend money or encourage their parents to spend money. One of the greatest things we can tell our children is "No"..."It's not in our budget"..."Put it on your list." - If parents can teach their children (and themselves) to delay gratification they will be setting their kids up for success when it comes to money and school.

I’ll have another post with Alice Wood later this week. Meanwhile, please check out her website for Wealth Watchers. See you soon. Cheers!