This week I wanted to inform all the student strangers out there about this really helpful site. The information I will be sharing today is at www.students.gov. If your like me you may think that the government doesn’t know or care much about students. In my late night searching on the web I found a site that really surprised me. This site is ran by the government and it has information on planning your education, paying for your education, career development, campus life, online study help, military service, and your government online.
First I will highlight some really helpful links off of the main links they provide on the home page. The first headline is planning your education. Here are the main links I would suggest looking at:
- Interactive Budget Calculator (US Dept of Education)
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/DirectLoan/BudgetCalc/budget.html- This site is awesome! It helps you really think about how much money you need to borrow and how much extra money you will have for entertainment purposes.
- Gear Up Program (US Dept of Education)
http://www.ed.gov/programs/gearup/index.html- This site helps low-income students see that it is possible to go to college and ways to find help to make it happen.
- Savings Bonds for Education (US Dept of the Treasury)
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/planning/plan_education.htm- Great idea on how to help pay for college. Be sure to read the requirements carefully.
- Guide For Adults Returning To College (College Planning)
http://www.collegeplan.org/bcksch/bkschool.htm
- This information may not effect students that are my age but it could effect our friends and family. This site has some really helpful information and answers to commonly asked questions.
- CampusChamps – Student Athletes
http://www.campuschamps.com- There are many student athletes out there. This is site has some really valuable information for them.
The second heading on the home page is paying for your education. Here are the sites that have really helpful information for all students:
- FAFSA (SM) on the Web (US Dept of Education)
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov- This site is a must for all students. The government has money for us and this is the best way to get it.
- Scholarship Scams (US Federal Trade Commission)
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/scholarship/index.html- Really important information to review before you start applying for scholarships. You never know who is taking your information.
- There are very many links to certain types of scholarships such as military children, nursing majors, and many, many more. Its a really good idea to look through all of these if you are needing scholarships.
The next subheading is Career Development. These are all the different headings you could look at under this section.
- Under each of these there are tons of useful links if you are looking for an internship or job while in college.
One of the most interesting subheadings in my opinion was Campus Life.
- HealthierUS.gov (US Dept of Health & Human Svcs)
http://www.healthierus.gov- Everyone has heard of the freshman15 lbs. Well this site has specific creditable information how to avoid the gain or the best way to loose it.
- Just Think Twice (U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration)
http://www.justthinktwice.com- Peer pressure is a lot greater in college so, if you are having trouble or need some advice this is a great link to check out.
- College Drinking – Changing the Culture (Natl Institutes of Health)
http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov- Again peer pressure is great so we need to take action on changing the trends of acohol related deaths on campuses.
Studying is one of the most important parts of college and this subhead has great resource links for homework and for study skills.
- Online research & information
- Study skills
- Study Skills Self-Help Information (Virginia Tech)
http://www.ucc.vt.edu/stdysk/stdyhlp.html - This site under study skills is really helpful because it talks about managing your time which for me is one of my biggest studying challenges.
- Study Skills Self-Help Information (Virginia Tech)
For anyone interested in joining the military instead of going to college or going to the military before college there are many helpful links on this site as well. The final subheading is your government online. I am guilty of not being very well informed on my government so these links really helped me become informed and more aware of what is going on in our government.
- Federal topic directories
- National parks & museums
- Student taxes
- Voting & democracy
- Contact federal agencies
Voting should be very important to all of us at this age because we are all eligible to vote and because there is an election coming up next year. We could be the difference makers in our own future. So we need to be informed when we head to the polls.
I hope this post was informative to many of my peers out there and if you have any questions or comments on what I have written this week feel free to comment!
