College Goal Sunday is the ticket to getting help filling in the FAFSA forms. These forms lead to scholarships, loans and grants for postsecondary education. Volunteers and financial aid professionals will be available at the event to walk you through the process and answer any questions you might have. There are also 25+ scholarships worth in excess of $20,000 to be awarded at each site (one each per site) and cool prizes that you can enter to win just by attending!
This year the event is taking place on February 12, 2006 between 2:00-4:00 p.m. New sites have been added, for a total of 25+ locations across Arizona! Find the closest site near you.
Why is it important to go to college? Individuals with a college degree have a higher earning potential then those with just a high school diploma. According to the College Board a college degree results in up to 80% more earnings over a high school diploma- and the number rises to 112% within the state of Arizona.
We know that college can be expensive. With the average cost of tuition approximately $12,841 per year for a four-year public college and $27,677 per year for a four-year private college, it may be difficult to find a way to pay for it all. That is where financial aid comes in. It is monetary assistance that is given or lent to students or their parents to pay for the customary expenses of attending a postsecondary institution. With various sources providing financial aid, completing FAFSA is the first step to acessing these funds. Check out the Financial Aid page to find out more information.
Wondering what the future holds? Take a look at some success stories of students that attended College Goal Sunday and where they are now.
Here are some materials that you can download with information on College Goal Sunday:
Poster - full
size
Central Region Flyer - color
Central Region Flyer - b/w
Northern Region Flyer -
color
Northern Region Flyer - b/w
Southern Region Flyer -
color
Southern Region Flyer - b/w
Below are some important links that might be helpful in planning for college and financial aid:
Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education
Free College Scholarship Search
Free Scholarship Search and Information
National Association for College Admission Counseling
National Center for Educational Statistics
Find answers to questions you may have here:
What is the deadline to complete FAFSA?
Guillen now works as an academic advisor for the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Arizona, assisting other college students in pursuit of their educational goals. Guillen uses her first-hand experience to help explain the benefits of filling out the FAFSA form. In particular, she highlights how students can list all schools they are considering so those institutions can obtain the student's information and begin developing financial aid packages. She believes that by making students aware they can use financial aid at any university - even a dream college - will motivate students to move on to higher education.
"When I was in high school, I didn't understand the true costs of going to college," said Guillen. "I was scared that that I would not be able to afford college without making a lot of sacrifices, but financial aid made things easier, and that is what I tell my students."
Guillen also plans to complete her master's degree in the next year at the University and continue on toward obtaining her doctorate. Guillen's experience with higher education has been an exciting and stimulating ride and one that she hopes will lead her to a college setting in some capacity as she finishes graduate school.
"It was only a couple of years ago I was in high school starting to think about college and its benefits," Guillen said. "I knew that obtaining a college education was a very real possibility. Programs like College Goal Sunday provide a priceless gift to college-bound students."���
