Related Resources

While Occidental's Financial Aid Office may be your first contact regarding college costs, the financial aid community extends far beyond our office. Your financial aid award is coordinated here at Occidental with the federal government, your home state, banks and lending institutions, and private, non-profit professional organizations. Many of these organizations have websites that can assist you in understanding how each player fits into the financial aid process as well as provide you with additional information. 

The U.S. Department of Education website describes all the basic functions and services that govern federal educational programs. The Student Financial Assistance page can help explain the different programs offered by the federal government to help pay for  education.

The California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) is best known at Occidental for administering the Cal Grant program. In addition, the commission offers materials to students to help prepare, apply, and pay for higher education. The CSAC homepage also describes their many other programs designed to provide access to educational opportunities in California.

The CollegeBoard is a national professional organization of schools and colleges that promotes the transition to higher education. You can register for and complete the PROFILE (which is required for all incoming financial aid applicants) or enter into a scholarship or career search. 

FastWeb is the Internet's largest scholarship search engine. This free service provides students the opportunity to find additional funds for paying for higher education. FastWEB is endorsed by more than 1,300 colleges and universities nationwide, as well as the U.S. Department of Education.

Get College Funds, is a new website from the Oregon Student Assistance Comission.  It has a database of over 3,400 scholarships.  You do not need to be an Oregon resident to search, but most scholarships require residency to receive the award.

If you don’t remember who you lender is, you can receive a summary of your federal student loans at National Student Loan Data System or by calling (800) 999-8219.

There are many excellent sources of information available to students in addition to those noted above, others include, but are not limited to:

FinAid: The Smart Student Guide to Financial Aid
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
California Cash for College
College Answer
Broke Scholar
The Gates Millennium Scholars