Financial Literacy
scholarship resources
Check your McMurry Email for Updated scholarships from the McMurry Financial Aid Office
private scholarships
budgeting & finance
FAFSA
The FAFSA opens each year in December. Click HERE to complete the FAFSA form online, and be sure to fill it out early!
Why fill out the FAFSA early?
According to studentaid.gov, plan to submit your FAFSA form by the earliest due date for your best chance at financial aid. Missing deadlines takes you out of the running for money you could get. Some states and colleges continue to award aid to FAFSA latecomers, but your chances get much slimmer, and the payout is often lower."
Remember, the FAFSA opens annually in December!
Questions about the FAFSA?
You do not have to pay to get help or submit your FAFSA form.
Submit your FAFSA form free online at fafsa.gov. Federal Student Aid provides free help online at fafsa.gov or you can call 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).
Check out this FAFSA on the Web Worksheet for help on questions regarding dependency status, who qualifies as a parent, and more.
Paying for College
Click the buttons above to learn more about types of aid to pay for college!
Budgeting
Budgeting Worksheet December 2023.docxCredit scores
CREDIT REPORTS:
Articles:
About Credit Reports (Links to an external site.) - What's in it, how it's used, reporting agencies, how it's maintained, how to access it
Ultimate Credit Report Cheat Sheet (Links to an external site.) - Comprehensive guide to help you understand your credit report
Resources:
Request a free credit report (Links to an external site.) from any of the three reporting agencies (1 per year per agency)
CREDIT SCORES:
Articles:
Credit 101: Anatomy of a Credit Score (Links to an external site.)
Your credit score: How it's calculated (Links to an external site.) (visual)
Resources:
Credit Karma (Links to an external site.), Credit Sesame (Links to an external site.), and Credit Wise (Links to an external site.) all offer free accounts with approximate credit scores (just be careful--it's free because they'll try to get you to get credit cards that you might not want/need!). Mint.com (Links to an external site.) (budgeting app) also offers free scores.
Retrieved from Oregon State University.