School School School

Oh boy, less than a week and a half before I start at UTEP. How exciting!!!

The thing I'm least excited about is buying my books. I know that it is going to be significantly more expensive than at community college and I'm not sure I want to go the route of buying too old of an edition online as it may not be beneficial to my GPA as much as it is to my wallet.

The first thing to do is find some one who has taken your classes before. Ask them about the overall book use in the class--did they even crack it open?!--what to expect from the course load and professor as well as what the overall role of the text was in the class.

If you receive any of the following answers, get the book!
-Homework that contributed to the course grade
-Open Book tests
-Extensive reading
-Quoting, paraphrasing for essays
-Book Check... my Cal II professor gave out extra credit on random days for everyone that had their book.
-Really particular/specific courses like Nanotechnology in the Sixteenth Dimension.

But while you've got that person talking to you, ask them what they did with their book. If they've sold it back, thats a deadend. If not tell them you'll give them $5-10 over the asking price at the college bookstore. And if they want to throw in any course notes, old tests, etc. that would really sweeten the deal. Not cheating, it's extensive social studying.

I was in Goodwill yesterday and saw a math book that I bought at the bookstore for $50.00 going for $5.00. While I don't suggest spending a full tanks worth of gas tracking textbooks down, I do recommend taking a look at Thrift stores or Goodwill before hand. For any interested parties it was the Algebra math book they currently use at EPCC possibly UTEP at the goodwill on the corner of Rushing and Fairbanks.

If you can't get a book locally, DON'T BUY AT THE BOOKSTORE!

Online is the next option you have available. Buying books online can save you a lot of money, particularly if you want new books. If you go to your favorite online bookstore, you will see that most of the bigger names offer not only discounts, but free shipping if you purchase $25 or more in their "free shipping category" of books. Lead time to get your books is going to vary according to the textbook's availability, but in general, you will have your books within about a week.

Now, if you are willing to buy used books, it is going to be a whole different ball game for you. Most of the major online bookstores offer used books. To get more comparisons, type the name of your book and the author. If its just called "Literature" or "Calculus" try typing in the publisher as well. You can do a recon mission at your college's bookstore to get all this information.

My ace in the whole as far as used books is Half.com, a business that is part of eBay. I generally find the least expensive books on this site whenever I want to buy a used book. However, finding a cheap textbook is not the only factor here. First off, you should consider how much damage
and highlighting that you are willing to accept, given the fact that you will not be able to actually see the book until after you have bought it. Second, you will have to pay shipping on used books. Most of the used books sellers on these sites are actually individuals or other businesses that pay a commission to the bookstores for listing their used books. Your books will be coming from different locations. Finally, unless you are willing to pay extra, your books will be shipped via media mail, the least expensive option. However, the least expensive option is takes the longest to arrive, sometimes as long as two weeks.

To give you an idea of how to figure out where to buy your books, I picked five online bookstores to compare, Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Valore.com, Ecampus.com, and Half.com. I checked the prices for "Principles of Marketing, 10th Edition," by Phillip Kotler and Gary Armstrong, with a list price of $136.67. Prices on these websites ranged from a high of $136.67 with free shipping (Amazon) for a new book to a low of $14.99 with a $3.25 shipping charge for a text in "acceptable" condition (Half). If you research each book that you need to buy, you stand to save yourself considerable money. Make sure that you consider packaging combinations of books through different sites to save yourself even more money.

UTEP Promise

I received a wonderful email this morning from a hardworking financial aid director at UTEP saying that I have been accepted to participate in the UTEP Promise. This is a lifealtering opportunity that will help ease the stress of paying for college for the duration that I am attending UTEP.

I. Could. Not. Be. Happier.

After I heard about the program I have done everything in my power to make sure that I was activated under its guidelines. The journey was easy, but like everything else college oriented, the hardest part was waiting.

Let me explain a little bit more about the UTEP Promise. Imagine yourself a freshman at UTEP next fall - with tuition and mandatory fees covered!

It's their promise that they'll help qualified students meet the financial challenges of attending the university.

How does it work?

* Covers all tuition and mandatory fees for 30 credit hours each year.
* Open to freshmen for the fall 2006 semester and beyond
* Does not cover incidental fees, course-related fees or individual major fees


Who is eligible for the UTEP Promise?

* New freshmen with family income of $25,000 or less
* Must be a Texas resident and qualify for Texas resident tuition


How do I apply for the UTEP Promise?

* Apply to UTEP for fall 2006 admission as a freshman
* Complete the FAFSA - Free Application for Federal Student Aid. See it online at www.fafsa.ed.gov
* You'll automatically be considered
* The Financial Aid Office will let you know if you qualify


You must:

* be registered for at least 12 hours each semester, 15 hours recommended
* complete 30 credit hours each year
* earn a GPA of 2.0 or higher

Note: Participation is limited to four consecutive years.


Questions?

Contact the Financial Aid Office at 915/747-5204

or visit us in the:

Financial Aid Office
Academic Services Building
Schuster Drive and Hawthorne Street
Monday – Friday 8 am – 6 pm
E-mail: payingforcollege@utep.edu



GOOOOOOO MINERS!!!!!

Colossus College Expenses

As a parent, it weighs on your mind what will happen when free education calls it quits. What will you do to pay for your child’s college tuition? It is stressful and worrisome for just about any parent that has dreams of their child going off to college to become a doctor…a lawyer or something else. Saving for college is a big decision and it is something that we must take into consideration.

My Child Will Get A Scholarship

Many parents think that a scholarship is the best way for them to pay for their child’s education. Today, there are all types of scholarships available ranging from local scholarships to the school’s themselves taking on the child without any cost to you. The problem is that although this number of programs has gotten higher, so has the number of students that are now enrolled in college. That means that there is still only a small portion of students getting a “free ride” through school. Even if your child does get a scholarship, it probably will not cover the total cost of their education and needs.

The next thing to consider, then, is the cost of sending them to school. There is no doubt that this price tag will continue to grow and that means an increased number of students that need to find the funds somewhere. Most students that do not have funding for their education through their parents will get student loans and grants to help subsidize their costs. While this is a choice for most students, it is one that comes with a finance charge at the same time. That means that your child’s graduation always comes with a price tag that puts them in debt right off the bat.

If it sounds frustrating and stressful, you are not alone. The process of sending your student to school is one that is likely to cost you a decent amount of money. Yet, funding it is something that all parents have to think about in some way. Saving for college may be something that you have to do. If it is, there are programs and services that can help you to make that happen. The longer that you wait, though, the more costly it will become to you.

Saving for college presents a wide variety of saving vehicles that you can use. You don't need to be told how costly college will be, and unfortunately it will keep getting more expensive. In the next years, college education just continues to become more and more expensive. Starting to save today is the best way for you to possibly have the funds needed to make sure he or she gets the education that they need.

Crunching the numbers can be very difficult,but, you have to do it. For your child’s sake, make your first step figuring out the overall cost of the child’s educations. There are easy to use financial calculators available to help you. What you want to do is to insure that the college savings is enough. All you need to do is enter your child’s age, the type of school he will likely attending and the various factors that play a role. Out comes a large number, the cost of college that you need to save for.

What You Need To Consider

Now that you have an idea of the cost, you can begin to figure out just how you will save for it. There are several things to consider when it comes to college savings vehicles. Obviously, you want the best and safest method to saving for college available to you. Here are some things to consider about the type of savings you plan to use.

• How much time before your child starts college.
• The growth of the savings vehicle. How much does this type of savings plan grow per year? What potential does it have for you?
• Who owns and controls the funds? How are your investment dollars invested?
• What are the fees and costs of using this savings vehicle to you?
• What about taxes? Are the funds taxable prior to investing, while earning money or when the funds are withdrawn?
• What is your risk level? How likely is it that you will lose it all?
• Is the plan easy to manage? Can you make changes to it as you see fit when you see fit?

Take the time to consider several methods to saving for college. Which methods are the best choices for you and for your child? The safety of your funds is important. Getting the most that you can for your investment dollars is also important. Although it is stressful to find the right solution, once you do make a choice, you will know that it is the right one if you have completed this research. Remember the sooner you START the easier it will be!

Upromise
I just signed up for Upromise. They have devised a way of linking your Upromise account to your club cards at major supermarkets, debit cards and credit cards. When you spend money at their partners or just use your cards, you earn money for college. It doesn't matter if you have already been. You can register your student loans and use the rewards you earn to pay off student loans. They also offer a Citibank credit card which also helps you save.

You can even earn money when you eat if you eat at affiliated restaurants. Why not? You have to eat to live. It's been a nice suprize when I have been out to eat to see a surprise bonus on my Upromise account.

Looking to purchase a home in the near future? If you use their affiliated realtors, they contribute $3000 back to you! What? Buy a condo and pay off your loans in part? Fantastic!!

You can invite other family to register their credit cards online--aunts, uncles, older brothers and sisters, family friends...the list goes on.

Don't miss out! Visit Upromise today!

529 Plan
A fabulous way of saving for college! Don't have student loans yet? Upromise can also link to a 529 plan. Pre-tax contributions can also be made from a paycheck--just like a retirement account. This includes parent contributions or a student's jobs before or even during college. A 529 Plan has another benefit over a regular savings account. The government does not tax the interest you earn in a 529! This means even more money for college!


Fidelity.com offers a College Rewards American Express credit cards that links directly to a 529 account if you have one with them. They give 1.5% cash back rewards straight into your account!

Vanguard.com offers a 529 account through Upromise. It makes the application process easier because all of your information is in their system.


The best thing is to find a 529 administered by your state. You can also search 529 and your state. What are you waiting for?? Start saving today!

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