We're Starting!

Financial Aid "Loopholes" and "Landmines" 

November 29, 2023 6:45pm EST

We just started but you can still stop by!  We're talking about how to get F.R.E.E. cash for college: grants and scholarships, the new rules changes pending New Year's Eve and how they could affect you, more!  Here's where to join us:

See you in class!

-Pearl and Andy Lockwood

Lockwood College Prep

Tutoring | Webinar

In the wee small hours of this morning, Pearl and I were talking about what to talk about, tonight on our webinar.  Which is kinda funny, since we tend to talk about the same stuff over and over:  financial aid "loopholes," mistakes to avoid, how the whole thing works, when to apply, etc. etc. etc. 

Then she mentioned that she herself has been surprised this year, having seen  a couple of colleges that now require different financial aid applications compared to last year. 

Meaning, it's even hard for to keep track of everything in these crazy times!

Tonight, the agenda is to give you up to date information on the "seismic" changes to the FAFSA (the federal financial aid application required by all colleges) due out at the end of December, based on Pearl's in-the-trenches reporting.  She's already prepared and filed a bunch of CSS Profiles for our class of 2024 clients, and will tackle the FAFSA after its release.  She'll top out at 400+...

Tutoring | Webinar

Whenever I'm speaking to a group of parents, their collective ears perk up if I mention how to "shelter" their savings from the financial aid formulas, in order to qualify for more grants, scholarships and other financial aid.

But here's the thing...

These shelters work for only SOME families.  I'd guess 20%, maybe a little more.

They're fun to talk about, but how useful is it to discuss if you're in the other 80% of families, who may not see a way to qualify for need-based aid?

Tomorrow night, I'll cover that. Specifically, how ANY family can qualify for discounts of 56% off tuition, even if they make "too much" money, or their child didn't cure a deadly disease or single-handedly build a small village on last summer's "service trip" to the Dominican Republic last summer.

This free class is called "Financial Aid Loopholes and Landmines."  I named it all by myself!  (Hey, this guy's good!:)

On this live webinar, you will discover:

Tutoring | Webinar

We're in the thick of financial aid "season" for our Class of 2024 clients, and the confusion and stress is snowballing.

Over the weekend, the good folks behind the CSS Profile financial aid application did us all the courtesy of blasting out an email that noted that "your CSS Profile application is incomplete."  The email went to everybody registered for this service, including those who already completed and submitted a CSS Profile.    Helpful.

But these cortisol-raising bits of "fake financial aid news" are par for the course. And sadly, just the tip of the iceberg of mistakes and problems you need to avoid if you're looking for financial aid or scholarships to help you pay tuition for your kiddo(s).

That's why we're running a brand new webinar this Wednesday night, "Financial Aid Loopholes and Landmines."  On this live class, you will discover:

• Four legal and ethical "loopholes" on the FAFSA (the financial aid application required...

Good morning,

This reminder is for parents who need help paying for college next year, but are overwhelmed by the process of applying for financial aid and don't want to screw things up...

...AND, also for parents who have already borrowed tens of thousands for their kids' tuition, and are now looking at ludicrous monthly debt payments that just re-started last month, and don't know where to turn.

We're running a 10% off Black Friday promo to help you with either scenario (expires Sunday, midnight).  

Here are the discounted pages for our financial aid consulting and applications prep service, with the 10% off coupon baked in:

1-pay option (best deal)

5-pay option

And here's the info for our new service, Yesterday's Debt, to help you slash your student debt payments. 

Coupon code NOIRE gets you 10% off the Strategic Consultation fee. (wait for the shopping cart to update before checking out)

This train leaves the station Sunday at midnight, no ifs a...

A big story around here is that New York is getting set to abolish its Regents exams, designed to ensure students' proficiency in high school, and replace them with yet-to-be determined, "holistic" exams.

There are smart people on both sides of this issue.  And then there's me. 

I'm against abolishing the Regents exams for a few reasons, almost all of which were relegated to the cutting room floor for yesterday's report on New York Fox 5.  Here are the highlights/lowlights, depending on your perspective:

• If you don't have a means to demonstrate proficiency, how can you measure whether students and teachers  accomplished desired educational goals?  What will a high school diploma mean other than a participation trophy and evidence that you showed up?
• If you can't measure and track success, nobody wins.  I want to lose weight but it's hard. I guess I'll just throw out my scale so I don't feel badly.
• There's a strong argument that this policy is actually r...

Today's the day I'm officially launching my latest (ahem, 1-star) book, The Pocket Guide to Surviving Your Guidance Counselor's (Lack Of) Advice.

The price is 99 cents and it's available on Amazon (you don't need a Kindle to read it) and I'm donating the gross proceeds to charity.

Although already reviled by guidance counselors, I think you'll find this book to be an extremely valuable resource, because I didn't write it.

Kinda sorta. The bones of the book are based on actual examples provided by other parents, submitted to me before a webinar in 2022. 

Some will blow you away, some will enrage you, but I swear, I didn't make anything up, or exaggerate any of them one teensy weensy bit.

I did organize them and provide commentary as needed.

If you have a 9th, 10th or even 11th grader, the examples in this book will serve as a warning to you, to help you avoid suffering the consequences that other families endured, including: crushing your child's hopes an