Last week being the community minded, good natured folk that we here at RBMVibes are we offered up some juicy leads on job options in these rough economic times. One thing we failed to stress however is the fact that there is still hope for a bright economic future for all of us, but especially for our youth. Higher education is still a great choice and opportunity for young people in America. Colleges and universities exist on numerous levels-community, private, state, and professional to name a few. However, regardless of which type of school you choose to attend merely to join a fraterity or sororiety, there’s still the issue of TUITION. A dreaded word that for alumni evict nightmares of a girl they met in undergrad named Sallie Mae. Sallie Mae, a national provider of student loans, is only one funding option for higher education though. As school acceptances begin to roll in we decided to share some alternate funding options to get you into that cap and gown two to four years from now:

*Scholarships-now whether you were senior class valedictorian or just glad you made it out, there are numerous scholarship opportunites available. Most are rewarded based on academic criteria. However, some scholarships are rewarded for other reasons. Are you a star athlete, an excellent speaker, etc.? Scholarships based on your strengths are out there and if you are committed to do the research i’m sure you can find one that will reward one of your strengths. You can research various scholarships at www.fastweb.com. Just stay on top of those deadlines and getting back those letters of recommendations, etc. Also, be aware that you may have to maintain a certian G.P.A. or participate in a certain sport, etc. to maintain the scholarship or bye bye free money.

*Grants-individual schools as well as other organizations offer grants, free money for school that unlike scholarships are rewarded usually on a one time basis. Qualifications vary based on institution or awarding organization and do not usually cover as much as a loan or scholarship may. Check out schools you are interested in for individual grant opportunities, as well as scholarships, and also .

*Federal Work Study Programs-unlike scholarships and grants, which may have stipulations on what funding can be spent on, work study programs provide you with funding to be used at your discretion. Now while this may increase your responsibility, especially if you need the money for tuition, it also may teach you to budget your money. So while you’re treating yourself to a new designer bag that you can’t fit your biology textbook into, remember to budget for meals, other textbooks, transportation, oh you get the idea. The major benefit to this type of funding is that schools and the federal government tend to provide job opportunities that are professional in nature and may be linked to a career interest of yours. The downside is that the payscale is typically at or near minimum wage to slightly double for the highest paying positions.