The holidays put people in the gift-giving mood, but those who don't watch their spending will find themselves feeling less than jolly when credit card bills arrive in January. According to the Holiday 2018 Consumer Trends survey from the National Retail Federation, consumers say they will spend an average of $1,007 on gifts, food and other festive expenses this year, up by more than 4 percent compared to 2017. While there are plenty of money-saving opportunities to help you stretch your holiday shopping dollars further, poor purchasing decisions can wreak havoc on your budget. To avoid going broke this season, review these holiday shopping pitfalls and learn how to make better buying decisions.

To view the full article, visit https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/spending/slideshows/9-holiday-shopping-habits-that-will-make-you-go-broke?onepage

To learn about funding for your education, view Scholarships & Financial Aid's Financial Solutions for All Students presentation! Read about the services and resources available to students, financial opportunities, and more!

To see the presentation, visit Financial Solutions for All Students.

Ah, deadlines. The sworn enemy of students across the nation. When you’re busy with classes, extracurricular activities, and a social life in whatever time you’ve got left, it’s easy to lose track and let due dates start whooshing by. All of a sudden, your 10-page term paper is due in an hour, and you’re only on page 5 (with the help of 26-point type and triple line spacing). We get it.

Nevertheless, we’re here to point out a few critical deadlines that you really shouldn’t miss: those to do with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form. By submitting your FAFSA form late, you might be forfeiting big money that can help you pay for college.

To view the full article, visit https://blog.ed.gov/2018/09/3-types-of-fafsa-deadlines/

The University Scholarship Application is open for 2019-2020 scholarship consideration.

The application is available to all currently enrolled undergraduate, graduate and professional students. This single application is used to award many scholarships campus-wide.

Deadline: February 1, 2019

To access the application, visit http://uwide.tamu.edu/.

Did you submit a 2019–20 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form? Wondering what happens next? Here are a few things to look out for!

To view the full article, visit https://blog.ed.gov/2018/09/5-things-after-fafsa/

The 2019–20 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA^®) form is available—and with it, we’re making history. You can complete and submit the FAFSA by accessing the redesigned https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa or downloading the new myStudentAid mobile app.

Why does mobile matter? A mobile-ready FAFSA form means that you can apply for federal student aid from virtually anywhere, using nothing more than the phone in their pocket.

To fill out the FAFSA form, you can simply

• download the myStudentAid app (iOS or Android) and fill it out from a mobile device, or
• visit https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa and fill out the FAFSA using the device of their choice, including a smartphone, tablet, or laptop.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is notoriously difficult. With over 100 questions about detailed family financial history, it has consistently low completion rates. In fact, only three out of five high-school seniors complete the application and one out of seven students eligible for financial aid, who enroll in college, do not complete the application. Completion rates haven’t gotten much better with time either. In 2017, 60.6% of graduates completed the form and in 2018, 60.9% of graduates completed the form, a disappointingly low improvement percentage.

View the full article, Applying for College Financial Aid is Finally Going to be Easier.

Con artists love to take advantage of anyone who is stressed out during the days leading up to the next semester. So, the scams need to be discussed each and every year as the kids go off to college. 

To view the full article, visit https://www.freep.com/story/money/personal-finance/susan-tompor/2018/08/22/back-school-scams-financial-aid/1040177002/

Please allow 4-6 weeks for processing of documents submitted to us in late July and August.
All charges must be paid in full by 5pm on Friday, August 24th.

Options for covering tuition and fees include:

1. Add the installment plan to divide your bill in to four equal amounts, with the first installment payment due on Friday, August 24th. The charge to add the installment plan is $15. If you do not pay the first installment, a late fee will be added. More information at https://sbs.tamu.edu/accounts-billing/payment-refunds/installments/.
2. Apply for an Emergency Tuition and Fees Loan at https://sfaid.tamu.edu/stlapp/. This loan can cover 100% of your tuition and fees. It must be repaid within 90 days. After you apply, you will receive an approval email to your TAMU email account within one business day. The email will include instructions on signing the promissory note online. After the promissory note is signed, the ETFL will apply to your bill immediately and pay your tuition and fees.

FEDERAL STUDENT AID

The Department of Education will take another step this week toward making the federal student aid process fully accessible from mobile devices like your cellphone.

The department will launch a mobile-friendly version this week of fafsa.gov, the website that hosts the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Then it plans next month to roll out the beta version of a student aid mobile app that would let financial aid recipients complete the FAFSA application as well as make loan payments and complete other financial aid tasks.

To view the full press release, visit FAFSA for Your Phone.