Don't Let High School Guidance Counselors Or College Financial Aid Officers Give You A False Sense Of Security?

This may be another tough one to swallow, especially if you have a good relationship with your guidance counselor or financial aid officer. If you want to get the maximum amount of money from each school, you've got to roll up your sleeves and get to work. That means you must set up your finances properly, fill out the forms accurately and on-time, and negotiate with colleges and universities to get the best possible financial aid package.

Unfortunately, guidance counselors don't have the time or the training to do these things - so you can't rely on them to help you maximize your eligibility for college funding. They're typically overwhelmed with more pressing problems facing today's teens - pregnancies, drugs, alcohol and other issues experienced by today's teens.

On the other hand, college aid officers may offer to help you apply for financial aid. But going to a financial aid officer and asking them to help you get more money from their school is kind of like going to the IRS and asking them to help you save money on your taxes!

Understand the major conflict here. It's not in a school's best interest to teach you how to get more money from their school.

They have a limited number of funds to give out to a large number of people.
So think twice before you let a guidance counselor or college aid officer "help" you apply for college funding - it may turn out to be a very expensive mistake!