Understanding Options for Financing College
While today's economy can make it challenging for families to fund higher education, studies show that a college degree is a solid investment and is considered to be a minimum requirement for most well-paying jobs.
For decades, Baldwin Wallace has earned praise for its commitment to helping families afford their student's college education.
The majority of students receive some form of financial aid. Understanding and assessing options can help you make the right choices.
Types of Student Aid
Scholarships
Scholarships can be based on academic merit, co-curricular involvement, leadership, talent and/or other factors. Scholarships do not require repayment.
Grants
While the criteria of each grant can differ, federal and state grants, as well as BW grants, are awarded to students based on need, residency and/or other factors. Grants do not require repayment.
Loans
Federally backed low interest loans can be subsidized or unsubsidized. Private education loans are available to students with a co-signer to help meet their cost of education. Loans require repayment.
Work-Study
Federal Work-Study provides students with the opportunity to work on campus, for which they can earn a paycheck to help with college expenses.
Parent Pointers
BW's Financial Aid is available to help. We recognize that the FAFSA may not always accurately reflect unexpected or extreme changes in your family’s current financial situation. If this is the case, additional financial information can be submitted to the Financial Aid Office through a special circumstance review. Information on this, along with other detailed information about financial aid and the various financial aid processes at BW, can be found on our website. If you have additional questions about your aid or the aid process, please reach out by email, phone or by stopping by the Bonds Hall administration building.
Do not assume your student will receive the same aid package every year. Need based aid is evaluated each year based on the annual submission of your family’s FAFSA. Because the FAFSA results may change due to shifts in income or number of dependents, a student's aid package must be reviewed annually as well. In addition to FAFSA changes, aid changes may be impacted by changes in your student’s housing (living on or off campus) or enrollment choices. You can access your renewal application online at studentaid.gov with the student FSA ID.
Changes to your student's enrollment status can impact a student's aid eligibility and loan repayment. Dropping below full-time enrollment (12 credits per term as an undergraduate) can impact a student's scholarship, grant and loan eligibility. If a student leaves college (even if he/she/they plan to return) or drops below half-time enrollment, the six-month grace period for student loan repayment begins. Before making any enrollment changes, a student should contact BW's Financial Aid Office.
Remind your student of the financial implications of grades. BW merit-based scholarships are renewable each year (for up to four years or eight semesters) if a student maintains good academic and social standing. A student who does not maintain this standing can lose scholarship funding. Likewise, other sources of BW financial aid, such as grants, can be lost or reduced because of low academic achievement.
If you need to borrow, highly consider a Federal Direct Student Loans first. These student loans (which are in the student's name and do not require a credit check) have a low interest rate and minimal fees.
Changes to your student's enrollment status can impact a student's aid. In addition to potentially changing a student's scholarship, grant and loan eligibility, shifts in enrollment determine when a loan goes into repayment. If a student leaves college (even if he/she/they plan to return) or drops below half-time enrollment, the six-month grace period for student loan repayment begins. Before making any enrollment changes, a student should contact BW's Financial Aid Office.
Be alert for scams relating to financial assistance and/or scholarships. According to the Federal Trade Commission, be wary of letters, emails or phone calls that:
- ask you to provide credit card or social security information
- have a scholarship guarantee or "your money back"
- claim to have privileged information that can help you
- say your student is a finalist in a contest your student never entered