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The world of higher education has changed considerably since Lady Mowlson gave Harvard the first college grant ever. Just go to the wiki and one sees the federal government offers Pell Grant, Federal SEOG Grants, SMART Grants, Academic Competitiveness Grants, the Federal Work-Study Program, Federal Stafford Loans, Federal Perkins Loans, State Student Incentive Grants and Federal PLUS Loans just for starts.

Back in the pre-revolutionary days, education in any form was more privilege than right. The number of different education institutions has grown astronomically from the days when the North American continent offered Harvard and that was about it. For example, something like getting an online degree was absolutely unimaginable to the original New Englanders, much less the rest of the world.

As centers for higher education have grown geometrically, so have the sources for obtaining college grants. Yes, there’s the Pell Grant. Along with the Pell, the Department of Education has a special data base service where students can apply for everything from National Direct Student Loans to private institutions that also provide other grants such as TEACH which is a grant program for public teachers of the future.

A good place to start is with the Dept. of Ed’s FASFA4Caster. This tool is designed to help figure out the odds of a student getting aid. From there, the Department will even help you set up an account, MyFASFA, to manage your next step, which is getting the grants.

Because the simple truth is unless one’s last name is Gates, Buffet, or Bush or one does hit the Lotto an individual will need some sort of financial assistance. By that, we don’t mean hitting the Lotto, either. USA Today recently reported that the annual cost of higher education is over $15,000 a semester. The maximum the Pell currently delivers is $5,350.

Only schools like Harvard adjusts its tuition based on need. There’s still the matter of being one of the rare few who will get matriculated. At the same time, there isn’t a single educational institution–landbased, online or what have you—worth its salt that doesn’t come with financial aid officers. Yes, you should some homework on your own. That’s a great reason to go to the Department’s website.

On the other hand, where you have limited time to discover plans for being a single parent, Native American, war veteran or being over 25 years of age, which by the way is over 25% of the national student body these days, a competent financial aid officer should have this info at his/her fingertips. They also know how to best navigate the miles of paperwork you’ll go through.

So, the general overview is, times have changed considerably since Lady Mowlson. It costs a lot more than 100 pounds to go to Harvard. At the same time, there are a lot more Mowlsons out there in the world, and a number of fine institutions providing online education besides America’s first college. A little work and the help of graduate school scholarships and you will find them. There are a lot of choices in pell grants, all explained on the internet.