ABSTRACT
Students face many barriers in paying for college, and only some can be addressed by mentors. While mentors can certainly encourage students to shop widely for a college, and help families get an early start on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), there are limits to what any caring adult can do in this situation. Good, ethical institutions will show caring and concern for students throughout the process, from admissions, to financial aid, to advising, to the classroom. If the student is not seeing this in one area of a college or university, it is a clear sign that the institution may not be a good choice. The family will then receive a statement of financial aid from each school to which the student has applied. Unfortunately, this aid letter can be misleading. The school may present aid in unfamiliar categories, or the school may offer more aid to first-year students than to later classes.
