Let's suppose that you have a child who will be graduating soon from high school. Of course, you will feel happy, just like any proud parent who have their children graduating from high school. It is one of the challenges of life that you have successfully surpassed, despite of the financial instabilities that you have probably experienced. It is time to celebrate, for you have fulfilled your responsibility of giving your child a bright future.

But as many would say, a high school graduation is not the end. In fact, it is just the beginning of tougher challenges that awaits you and your child in the succeeding years—college education.

At this point, you should start thinking about how you will finance the studies of your college-bound child. With the increasing cost of tuition fees, you need to plan ahead of time to avoid any misfortune, especially if you have experienced how to be financially-needing. You know how hard it is to have both of your hands tied-up against the increasing cost of your child’s high school education before. The sooner you start planning for the college education of your child, the less you will encounter financially-related problems later on.

If you think you will be faced again with financial problems, it is important that you know the different financial aid programs available for your college-bound child. Continue reading and learn the financial aids to lean on to:

•    Grants- it is the first type of college financial aid that you can apply for. It simply requires you to complete a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form. Once the application has been sent, it will be evaluated and if your child will qualify, he/she will be entitled to the full amount of what he/she qualifies for. At this point, you need not do anything much further except to provide the name of the college or university your child wants to enroll to.

•    Scholarships- although scholarship is commonly intended for students who have the “brains” but do not have the “fortune”, not all college scholarships are bounded to academics. Students who do not have the best academic record can still qualify to other multitudes of college scholarships. There you have the college sports scholarships, community service work scholarships, social involvement scholarships, and others. There are just the different types of scholarships for your child if he is not that talented when it comes to academics.

•    Student Loans- these type of loans have lower interest rates compared to other types of loans. There are instances where the loans are subsidized, which means that the interest does not accumulate until a student finishes college. Furthermore, these loans does not require a collateral, thus you do not have to worry about putting your own home as a collateral against the student loan for your child. Most of these loans are available on a variety of repayment plans at low interest rates and low monthly installment payments.

If you have not started searching for the various financial aid programs available, it is recommended that you start now. These financial aids will help you in the long run and will provide the funds needed for your child’s college education. Get yourself free from financial worries through these aids.