Single Parent College Grants – Fake or Fiction?

Yes, there are scholarships and college grants for single parents available but you will have to dig down to find some of these opportunities.   If you have ever wanted to know more about single parent college grants then this article will help clear up some of the mystery.COLLEGE GRANTS FOR SINGLE PARENTS ARE REALLY AVAILABLE To tell the truth, you will not find any college grants that are actually entitled, “Single Parent College Grants”. But what you will find is an interwoven network of grants and financial aid packages that are targeted towards certain groups of students. And of course a good number of these packages will overlap to cover the needs of many single parents.The first step any single parent wanting to return school, needs to do is to apply for a Pell Grant. Pell grants are completely needs based and don’t have to be repaid. Since 1965 the Pell program has been the top choice for many single parent college grants.  Designed for financially troubled and low-income college students, this type of college grant for single parents will not only help pay for tuition and books, but also some basic living expenses.Since these grants are based on your income, you must provide the college a very detailed statement of your current finances and proof of your being a head of household. These single parent college grants not only cover single mothers, but any adult parent who has been divorced, abandoned or left as a sole parent by the disability, death or imprisonment of the other parent. You must fill out a fairly standard form called the FAFSA or Free Application for Federal Student Aid. All colleges and universities use this same form, so if you can use if to apply for more than one college grant for single parents at different schools if you need to.Once you have applied and been awarded a Pell Grant, the world of scholarships and single parent college grants, is wide open for you. Almost all private and public college grant organizations use the FAFSA and the Pell Grant as the first stepping stone to giving way other college grants for single parents.There are other “needs-based” grants such as the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG). While not designed especially as a single parent college grant, the FSEOG is made to help students with exceptional financial needs.But because this grant is awarded to the applicant with the lowest expected family contributions, it is quite often given to a single parent as a college grant. EFC (expected family contributions) are the amount of money that a family can afford to put in towards a single parent’s education. And like a Pell grant, this program doesn’t have to be paid back.  Now that you know the truth about single parent college grants, you will in a better position to learn more about these excellent ways to pay for a college education.