It happens every year. High school seniors and their parents are defrauded by scholarship scammers; people who promise to help them land scholarships and financial aid they wouldn't otherwise receive.
If you'd guess that such scammers bilk families out of $100 million a year or more, you would be correct.
They do it by preying on families worried about the cost of college; families who know little or nothing about scholarships and financial aid; families who are often easy targets.
First, families receive a letter from an organization with a name designed to sound like it was founded to help the families of college-bound students.
The letter doesn't look like typical junk mail. The logo often looks like that of an Ivy League college, and the letterhead and paper are generally on fairly high quality paper. Like the con men behind them, the promotional materials look credible.
The letters almost always begin by frightening families about the high cost of college.
After a few sentences of doom and gloom about the high cost higher education, the sales message begins. We can help you get more in scholarships and financial aid, they say. We can tell you what colleges don't want you to know, they say. Work with us, they tpromise, and you won't have to be concerned about college costs.
Not all scammers use identical enticements in their letters, but they all conclude with an invitation to a free "seminar" on how to qualify for maximum scholarships and financial aid. So, families who believe they have nothing to lose flock to hotel meeting rooms, business centers, and sometimes even churches or library function rooms to listen and learn. Like insects landing on a spider web, they never see the trap coming.
The gathering, whatever it is called, is a well rehearsed sales pitch. The gist...you need money, we can help you get it. And, nowhere do you get the one piece of information you need most...everything of value these people can offer you is available elsewhere, for free.
After the group presentation, families are invited to meet individually with staff members sometimes called counselors. In the world of sales, these folks are called "closers"...folks trained to close the sale. Their job is to get families to sign a contract and pay a fee of up to $2,000 before leaving. Unfortunately, they succeed all too often.
Its sad. And, it happens every year. Dont let it happen to you. Get all of your financial aid advice from your school counselor, college financial aid office, and reputable publications and websites. Most important of all, never pay anyone for financial aid advice or services. Never. - 16752
If you'd guess that such scammers bilk families out of $100 million a year or more, you would be correct.
They do it by preying on families worried about the cost of college; families who know little or nothing about scholarships and financial aid; families who are often easy targets.
First, families receive a letter from an organization with a name designed to sound like it was founded to help the families of college-bound students.
The letter doesn't look like typical junk mail. The logo often looks like that of an Ivy League college, and the letterhead and paper are generally on fairly high quality paper. Like the con men behind them, the promotional materials look credible.
The letters almost always begin by frightening families about the high cost of college.
After a few sentences of doom and gloom about the high cost higher education, the sales message begins. We can help you get more in scholarships and financial aid, they say. We can tell you what colleges don't want you to know, they say. Work with us, they tpromise, and you won't have to be concerned about college costs.
Not all scammers use identical enticements in their letters, but they all conclude with an invitation to a free "seminar" on how to qualify for maximum scholarships and financial aid. So, families who believe they have nothing to lose flock to hotel meeting rooms, business centers, and sometimes even churches or library function rooms to listen and learn. Like insects landing on a spider web, they never see the trap coming.
The gathering, whatever it is called, is a well rehearsed sales pitch. The gist...you need money, we can help you get it. And, nowhere do you get the one piece of information you need most...everything of value these people can offer you is available elsewhere, for free.
After the group presentation, families are invited to meet individually with staff members sometimes called counselors. In the world of sales, these folks are called "closers"...folks trained to close the sale. Their job is to get families to sign a contract and pay a fee of up to $2,000 before leaving. Unfortunately, they succeed all too often.
Its sad. And, it happens every year. Dont let it happen to you. Get all of your financial aid advice from your school counselor, college financial aid office, and reputable publications and websites. Most important of all, never pay anyone for financial aid advice or services. Never. - 16752
About the Author:
Daniel Z. Kane is an educator who produces websites on online degree programs and online college degree programs at the graduate level.
