Posts tagged college scholarships

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.

One financial aid organization believes these scammers defraud families out of more than $100 million dollars a year.

Because college costs scare nearly all of us, and because many people do not realize that there is money available to help them send their children to college, these scammers have found it very easy to find and exploit their victims.

The first contact between the scammers and their potential victims is a letter offering expert advice and assistance.

The letters look good. The letterhead design, the font style, and other elements are calculated to give the appearance of an established, legitimate organization. And, that can be all it takes to fool families…to get them to take the next step on the path to being scammed.

In nearly all the letters they send, the con men begin by reinforcing families’ fears about their ability to meet college costs.

Once they have stated the problem…paying for college…they assure you they can provide the solution. They may offer to “teach you the secrets of financial aid”, “locate millions of dollars in unused scholarships”, or otherwise help you take advantage of their special expertise.

The letters are not always the same, but one element is. They invite you to come to a hotel function room or other reasonably large venue to learn more about financial aid and scholarships, at no cost. Sounds like a no-brainer, right? If you think so, think again.

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.

Every year, a new set of potential victims come along. But, you and your family can avoid these masters-of-rip-off by turning to the people who really do have your best interests at heart…school counselors and college financial aid professionals.