Do You Want The Short Answer?

You have to seek Non-Traditional pathways to higher education, while simultaneously looking for Gift-Aid opportunities.

But what does that really mean? Let me break it down for you...

What Are Non-Traditional Pathways?

Let’s first define what a “traditional” path to higher education looks like. The “traditional” path usually refers to students who graduate high school at age 17 or 18, then once Fall semester approaches, they are already enrolled and beginning their full-time coursework at a 4-year institution.

Typically, this 4-year institution does not offer Associate-level degrees or Technical Certificates, instead primarily focusing on Bachelor's and Graduate level programs (Graduate Certificates, Master's, PhD, Doctorate of etc.).

Non-Traditional pathways can appear in students' lives in many different ways. For some students, it means skipping grade levels so they graduate high school earlier, it can be pursuing dual-enrollment or IB programs while still in high school, it can mean completing CLEP or DSST exams during gap years, or even opting to knock out the first two years of your degree at a community college before transferring to a typical 4-year institution.

Why Are Non-Traditional Pathways So Important?

These Non-Traditional pathways can lessen the financial burden associated with attending college, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. They do this by offering discounted credit-granting opportunities.

Take CLEP exams, for example. As of right now, CLEP exams cost about $90. Upon completing a CLEP exam with a certain score, stipulated by your college, students are able to get college credit for the course that the exam is based on.

This means that instead of paying $300 for your College Mathematics class, you could instead pay $90, study the material yourself, and take the exam, aiming to complete it with your college's approved passing score.

Non-Traditional pathways also open students up to a more diverse variety of life experiences and, likewise, opportunities.

Truthfully, you can have enriching experiences and multiple opportunities wherever you go, so long as you put in the effort needed to find them. However, students tend to have an easier time cultivating these experiences, which are career-essential, when they actively engage with people from a variety of ages, economic backgrounds, and cultures. I find that seeking Non-Traditional pathways allows students to have better access to these types of enriching diversity.

What Is Gift Aid?

Gift aid refers to money given that does not need to be repaid. Scholarships and grants are excellent examples of Gift aid. Oftentimes, I am asked by students:

“What is the difference between a scholarship and a grant?”

Many online sources will say that scholarships are strictly awarded based on merit, whereas grants are awarded based on financial need, but this is not completely correct.

There absolutely are scholarships that require a student to exhibit extreme financial need to apply; likewise, there are just as many grants that are based on meritocracy and extracurricular activities outside of school.

To be honest, the distinction between scholarships and grants is 49% a matter of semantics and 51% stipulations of the application, award, and authorized-use process.

I call this the Triple A designation, and use it to discern how flexible a scholarship or grant can be. I have a post discussing this in more detail here.

To Quickly Clarify

Some academic institutions will delegate the term “financial aid” to specifically refer to Self-Help aid like loans (government-issued or privatized) and Work-Study programs. As a result, their Financial Aid department may only be able to pull up and advise on information exclusively related to Self-Help aid and not Gift aid.

In this case, schools may have a separate department or foundation that exclusively handles Gift Aid. If students have questions about their scholarship or grant money, they should direct their questions to that department.

When in doubt, CC both departments on the e-mail and explain that you don’t know where to go or who to contact. It is okay to not know things; they will happily direct you to the correct place and answer your questions, after all, that is part of their job.

The Best Thing About Gift Aid

Aside from the fact that Gift aid typically does not require repayment, whether through actual money or employment, the best thing is that students can sometimes use Gift aid to repay student loans.

Scholarships that are able to be applied to existing loan debt will usually stipulate that this is the case. It never hurts to ask the donor or Gift-aid department for additional clarification. Best-case scenario, the scholarship can be disbursed to you as a refund, and you will be able to use the money to pay the loan provider. This technically converts the disbursed scholarship into a grant, but again, semantics are bleh!

A Final Note

Money is money. No student should be shamed for using whichever form of financial aid they choose to use. However, more students should be made aware of the benefits of Gift aid and how it sets them up for a less stressful, debt-free life.

Accessing Non-Traditional pathways to higher education, combined with the benefits of gift aid, is the key to graduating completely debt-free.