Financial Aid and Scholarships

All Career Schools helps people at various stages in their life to find programs and schools that match their needs and passions. The tuition costs for any type of education after high school can add up, but you shouldn't let that stand in the way of following your passions or prevent you from studying what you're interested in. There are many loans and scholarships available to hard-working students—you just need to know where to find them.

Search for Scholarships

A scholarship is money gifted to a student to pursue various types of post-secondary education such as vocational programs, career school and 2- and 4-year colleges—no repayment necessary. While scholarships are awarded for many reasons, the most common are for student merit, financial need, athleticism, ethnicity and field of study.

Because there are over 1.3 million scholarships available to students, in an effort to provide you with the most up-to-date information, All Career Schools has partnered with FastWeb!, the nation's largest, most accurate and most frequently updated scholarship database online.

FastWeb! is free to use and allows you to create a personal profile to receive a list of those scholarships exactly matching your skills and interests. Related scholarships can be organized by type, deadline, dollar amount and more. To help manage your results, you can mark opportunities as favorites and discards.

Student Loans

Student loans are an investment in your future because the investment you make now will pay big dividends later in higher income, better career opportunities and job satisfaction.

Student loans have lower interest because the federal government regulates the maximum interest that lenders can charge on federally guaranteed student loans. This helps make the loans easier to pay back, which encourages more people to attend school. In addition, loan repayment does not begin until six months after graduation (or when enrollment in school is less than half time). Types of student loans include the Stafford loan, PLUS loan, Grad PLUS loan and the Act Education loan.

Stafford Loans

Stafford loans are federal student loans made directly to college and university students. They are intended to supplement personal and family resources, scholarships, grants and work-study. They may be subsidized or unsubsidized by the US Government, depending on a student's financial need. Students may apply for a Stafford loan if they are an undergraduate or graduate student.

Undergraduate students can borrow amounts that vary by class year, and graduate students can borrow up to $18,500 per year. A Stafford loan has low fixed interest rates and repayment is not required until after graduation.

PLUS Loans

The PLUS loan (Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students) is a federal loan that is available to parents of dependent students enrolled at least half-time in a program that is offered by participating post-secondary institutions.

It takes parents applying for the PLUS loan little more than having an acceptable credit history to be approved. The yearly borrowing limit on a PLUS loan is equal to the student's career school costs minus other financial aid amounts received. For example, if the cost is $10,000 and the student collects $7,000 in other assistance, the parents can borrow up to $3,000.

Grad PLUS Loans

The new Grad PLUS loan program is a low interest federally subsidized student loan, guaranteed by the US government. Like its undergraduate counterpart, the Grad PLUS loan can be used to pay for the total cost of education less any aid you may have already been awarded. Also, like the PLUS loan, eligibility for the Grad PLUS loan is largely dependent on the borrower's credit rating and history.

A federal Grad PLUS loan allows graduate students to borrow the total cost of graduate education including tuition, room and board, supplies, lab expenses and travel. Grad PLUS loans can be deferred while in school.

Act Education Loans

If all federal aid can't meet your education finance needs, or you just need a little extra to make ends meet, a private loan may be the answer. Private loans, such as the Act Education loan, can help you finance additional expenses that you did not anticipate, such as computers, tutors, books, last-minute tuition hikes or transportation.

The Act Education loan can be preliminarily approved in as little as 15 minutes and can take as little as five business days to fund. These loans are credit-based and do not require you to go through the typical financial aid qualification process.

Repayment of this type of loan can be deferred until after graduation. (Repayment of graduate loans is deferred until six months after graduation or ceasing to be enrolled at least half-time. Repayment of continuing education loans varies with enrollment status and program type.)

Federal Financial Student Aid (FAFSA)

If you haven't already, you first must complete the Free Application for Federal Financial Student Aid (FAFSA) or Renewal FAFSA (for returning students). After the FAFSA is processed, your school will review the results and inform you of your loan eligibility by sending you an award letter. Once your award letter is received, you will then be able to apply for the Stafford loan, as well as look at other federal student loans. If you aren't eligible for federal loans, you can then apply for private student loans, such as the Act Education loan.

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