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Complimentary Consultation

Regarding the Complimentary Consultation and our services.

All families are not going to benefit from all sources. In order that you might explore your options, there is no charge for the first consultation. There we find out what strategies interest you and would work for your situation.

Fees vary depending on the strategies employed and the complexity involved, ranging from $545 to $2,795. This will all be explained before there is ever a charge. The college savings to you can be substantial, making it very worthwhile.
PGA Financial College Planning
(909) 790-8622 www.HowToPayLessForCollege.com
Lee Martinson, Certified College Planning Specialist

Services We Offer

Your Custom Game Plan

You get a Customized Binder, which will typically have 75 to 150 or more pages, customized with your specific game plan.

College Planning Strategies


Your Custom Game Plan may contain any or all of what follows in the sections below showing planning in the areas of Need Aid, Merit Aid, Tax Scholarships, Tuition Reduction, and Room and Board Reduction. These are the main and most common strategies and services shown. There are many more that work for certain families in certain situations. As needed we explain and help you implement those as well. It is also worth noting that not all strategies and services work for all families. That is why we have the intitail complimentary consulation in order to determine what will work for your situation.

All clients also get...

Scholarship and Admissons Strategies                  and                 Successful Major, Degree and Career



And this beauty that you won't want to part with...

College and Scholarship Essay Writing


Need Aid & Admissions

Some income and assets unfairly keep you from getting financial aid that you would otherwise qualify for as would other families of your status. We show you how to legally get around these problems so you can qualify for what you should be getting. You also get coaching on colleges of choice, FAFSA filing, general questions, basic need aid planning to reduce EFC, Admissions coaching, Cash Flow, Let you know how likely the colleges of your choice will meet your Financial Need. Review up to 3 applications, essays etc. You also get help with how to maximize Letters of Recommendation, and a résumé.

Drop-Dead Gorgeous Essay Writing Guide, Admissions Guide, Competing for Scholarships Guide.

Results - $4,000 to $48,000 more free money


Merit Aid Planning Options

For a key part of our Merit Aid portion of the package (this portion is not in the custom binder) we partner with ePrep to bring you the best in SAT, ACT, PSAT test prep ONLINE video tutorials:


Expert test preparation delivered right to your computer

In any test prep course, taking practice tests is a must.
But how do you review and learn?

ePrep courses feature expert video instruction, available to you whenever and wherever - day or night, at home or on the road. The ePrep experience is like having your own private tutor right next to you, guiding your progress every step of the way.

Take practice tests that assess your weak areas and then give you video tutorials to strengthen yoiu in those areas. Bump your score up a couple of hundred points or more and highly increase your chances of admission and (at the right college) more Merit Aid Money

ePrep Standard, Only

(For those not needing the extensive 6 College Search and Profiles)

Adds ePrep to the basic service and using it increases your SAT score.

Advanced Merit Aid

You get ePrep PLUS the "6 College Search and Profiles" as shown in the following charts right below, including the Financial Aid Profiles and Enrollment Yield chart, the Merit Aid Thresholds chart, the Admissions Historical Data chart, and the Amissions Factors chart. Each chart comes with explanations as well as coaching so you know how to capitalize on the information to get admtiied and get the best financail aid package whether it be Need Aid, Merit Aid, or a combination of both. We review your Student Aid Report. You also get Financial Aid award analysis and help with negotiating a better Financial Aid package from the college (if necessary). And of course the Drop-Dead Gorgeous Essay Writing Guide, Competing for Scholarships Guide, Admissions Guide and coaching and Coaching on up to 6 essays

The following charts show fictitious colleges, but obviously the charts done for you will have real colleges listed. These charts (as customized for you) and the information shown on them give you knowledge of which colleges you can expect a better deal from. Armed with the stats shown, you'll have a track to run on and knowldge of what reasonable goals to set for improving your GPA or SAT/ACT scores (by using the ePrep Course) in order to get accepted and get more free money offered to you.

            Please note: Not all charts are shown here below.

Financial Aid Profiles and Enrollment Yield
(Lower Enrollment Yield % means a college may be willing to pay you extra money to entice you to go to there)

 

Cost

Av. Fin. Aid  % eligible who received / % need fully met

Average Net Cost

 

Average Debt at Grad

Ratio of Grants to Loans & Job

Enrollemnt Yield

Brains-R-Us

$34,000

$19,700

97%/15%

$14,300

$18,800

72 %

28 %

42%

Intellect Tech

$36,000

$24,000

92%/19%

$12,000

$49,000

67 %

37 %

37%

University of San Cerebellum

 

$25,000

$20,500

86%/35%

$4,500

$17,000

68 %

32 %

34%

Cantaffordya University

$43,000

$19,667

96%/25%

$23,857

$28,482

68 %

32 %

38%

Reason College

$27,000

$7,400

19,600

$22,000

63 %

37 %

27%

Humble College

$17,000

$10,700

$6,300

$12,000

75 %

25 %

22%



Merit Aid Thresholds
(There would actually be six colleges shown, but for brevity's sake only four colleges are shown on this chart)

College Name

Merit-based Aid Determined By:

Requirements / Special Notes

Brains-R-Us

Academics; Drama, Sports,Music

Full Ride Minimum qualifications: 3.85 GPA (weighted) and 1,320 SAT (critical reading & math combined), or a 31+ on the ACT. 4 year renewable. Special Application.

President’s Scholarship - $11,000 annual Qualifications: usually students in top 10% of class. 3.85 GPA  and 1,320 SAT (critical reading and math combined), or a 31+ on the ACT.

Provost Scholarship: $7,500 Annual--3.65 GPA  and 1,220 SAT (critical reading and math combined), or a 27 on the ACT .

Dean’s Scholarship: $6,500 Annual-- 3.5 GPA  and 1,150 SAT (critical reading and math combined), or a 25 on the ACT.

Ed Fund Scholarship: $5,000 Annual-- 3.2 GPA  and 1,040 SAT (critical reading and math combined), or a 21 on the ACT

Intellect Tech

Academics.

Other awards available for music drama art,

Full Honors – Full Tuition. Cumulative GPA 3.9 to 4.0, 30 ACT or 1320 SAT (critical reading and math). Essay required. 5 Freshman; renewable at cumulative 3.7 GPA

Trustee’s - $700 to $12,000. Cumulative GPA 3.8 to 4.0, SAT 1050 to 1600   

Provost - $5000 to $9000. Cumulative GPA 3.40 to 3.79, SAT 1050 to 1400 

Dean - $2500 to $5000. Cumulative GPA 3.0 to 3.39, SAT 1000 to 1200  

University
of San Cerebellum

 

Academics.

Some of the departments also award scholarships

Academic Requirements are:9-12 grade GPA weighted (if AP classes) and SAT without writing portion. All who qualify receive. All are renewable

Bright: $3,000 to $6,500 award - Minimum 2.5 GPA and  SAT 1000

Founder’s: $7,000 to $10,000 award - Minimum 3.0 GPA and  SAT 1040; or 2.7 GPA and  SAT 1140

Star: $10,000 to $12,000 award- Minimum 3.4 GPA and  SAT 1040; or 2.7 GPA and  SAT 1200

Allbright: $13,500 to $16,000 award - Minimum  3.8 GPA and  SAT 1090; or 3.4 GPA and  SAT 1250

Cantaffordya University

Academics; Leadership

National Merit Scholarship - $4,000 Can be in addition to any award listed below.

President’s Scholarship - $12,000 Annual renewable with a GPA of 3.5 – 30 students chosen.

Regent’s Scholarship: $8,000 Annual renewable with a GPA of 3.5 – 45 students chosen..

Provost’s Scholarship: $4,000 Annual—Guaranteed to freshman with a weighted high school GPA of 3.7 and a 1,200 SAT (critical reading and math combined), or a 26 on the ACT. Annual renewable with a GPA of 3.40



Admissions Historical Data

College Name

Admission

Deadline

Reg./Priority

% Admitted

% Return

 

% GPA Of

1st Year Class

% In Top 10th, 4th

Of  H.S. Class

Middle 50 % of 1st Year Students

Top Students

Grad Rate In 4 Years

SAT

 Verbal / Math

ACT Composite

% Above 700

Brains-R-Us

Mar 1st  / ?

Early Action Dec 1st

82%

?

41% 3.75 +

21% 3.50-3.74

49% / 10th

85% / 4th 

500-620

490-620

21-27

?

50 %

Intellect Tech

None / Feb 1st  

Early Action Dec 1st 

72%

85%

21% 3.75 +

18% 3.50-3.74

23% / 10th

52% / 4th 

450-550

440-550

18-22

?

49%

University of San Cerebellum

Jun 1st  / Mar 1st

69%

82%

37% 3.75 +

19% 3.50-3.74

25% / 10th

57% / 4th 

490-590

490-590

22-29

Verbal

4%

Math

3%

55.6 %

Cantaffordya University

? / Feb 1st

51%

79%

36% 3.75 +

31% 3.50-3.74

16% / 10th

71% / 4th 

440-540

440-540

20-26

Verbal

2%

Math

2%

53.1 %

Reason College

Mar 1st  / Jan 15th

43%

87%

57% 3.75 +

19% 3.50-3.74

43% / 10th

78% / 4th

540-630

540-630

19-24

Not Available

75.3 %

Humble College

None / Dec 1st 

84%

71%

26% 3.75 +

16% 3.50-3.74

20% / 10th

49% / 4th

450-560

440-550

20-28

Verbal

3%

Math

2%

50.2 %



Results - $4,000 to $20,000 more free money


Tuition Reduction

You get the ...

Top Secret
Guide to Maximizing
Tuition Reduction Strategies
Tuition Reduction

Thousand of dollars can be saved!

Option 1— You get a Customized Planning Guide and and coaching, which shows which colleges among those profiled for Merit Aid will accept the strategy and how to implement each college’s rules. This is coordinated in order that where possible the same colleges that will be advantageous for you in Merit Aid will also be colleges that accept the Tuition Reduction program. Additional costs will be incurred for testing and study prep.

Option 2— Standard Planning Guide only. Additional costs will be incurred for testing and study prep.

Results - $6,000 to $20,000 reduced cost


Tax Scholarships

Results - $5,000 to $50,000 or morefree money*

Taking advantage of tax savings strategies that most people aren't utilizing can save thousands of dollars more, which can be used to pay for college or fund retirement. Many of these strategies require a formal written plan and so they are not something that most tax preparers routinely do. We can provide you with the documentation and work with your tax advisor to make sure they are implemented.

*Additional costs may be incurred for a tax professional’s service.

Results depend on your tax bracket, tax filing status, and which of the Tax Scholarships are utilized



Tax Scholarship 1: s105—You get an explanation of how it works and plan documents for implementation

Tax Scholarship 2: Student Basic—You get an explanation of how it works and documents for implementation

Tax Scholarship 3: Transport—Explanation of how it works and sample documents for suggested implementation

Tax Scholarship 4: s127—Explanation of how it works and sample documents for suggested implementation

Tax Scholarship 5: Gift of Appreciated Assets—Explanation of how it works and how to implement it

Tax Scholarship 6: Phase Out planning—Explanation of how it works and how to implement it


Room and Board Reduction

Dorm - Student Housing

We partner with a national network of Real Estate College Specialists who go into the community where a student will go to college and they do a detailed analysis/report of the dorm costs, local housing costs, rent costs etc and then show you if it would feasible to buy a condo instead of paying for a dorm or renting. To make it work the student then takes in other students as renters. We show you how it works, and how to implement it, including how to attract student renters. There can be many tax breaks. After college it can be sold if desired.

Results - $15,000 to $30,000 of costs saved, plus often a profit that helps pay for college.


Off Campus Scholarships

Scholarship Girl

This is an area that may be more work for less results, but there are ways to work it smarter and it is still a viable option for some students, especially where the other strategies aren't a very good fit. You can search for scholarships online, but if you would like we can also help you. If desired, we go beyond just finding scholarships, we can also coach you on essay writing and review, so you can represent the best "you" possible in your scholarships essays and applications and increase your odds of winning. Scholarships don't have to all be done at once, it is possible to spread them out throughout the year, and even compete for some while in college.

Results - a possible $600 to $5,000 or more in scholarships, depending on how many you enter.


Student and Parent Loans

Signature on student loan

While our primary object is to make loans as little needed as possible, the reality is that for many families they still end up being neccesary. However, if you implement our strategies and programs the loans will play a much smaller role. To that end we offer guidance for loans as well.

Which kind of loans should you take out? Which loans are considered financial aid and which are not? (Some colleges try to fool you on this.) Is it better to take them out in the student's name or the parent's name? What are the tax implications? What to do if the parents have bad credit? What other issues are important? What kind of questions should you be asking the loan source? There is not one answer for everyone. Among other issues the correct choices depend on what the student's major will be, and what the parent's income tax status is.

With any of our service packages we offer you guidance in these areas and show you which loans to consider and which ones to avoid and what questions to ask the loan source. The answers to these questions can have serious implications for your future and finances..


Cash Flow Maximizing

Cash Flow Maximizing

Many families are commited to making college happen for their student. They have decent income but still wonder how they will meet current obligations, add in college, and not get behind. We have cash flow specialists who not only show you how to accomplish the above, but also show how to reduce debt over the long term. We have access to proprietary cash flow systems that will help you pay for your portion of college and either pay off your house sooner, or contribute more to your retirement.

It's important that the parents don't sacrifice their retirement for their children. You can borrow money for college but you can't borrow money to retire on.

 


* Regarding all the srategies—some results are virtually guaranteed if you implement the strategies, others depend on the decision of the college officer, current tax law. market prices etc.


PGA Financial College Planning
(909) 790-8622 www.HowToPayLessForCollege.com

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