Bottom line: "They're not accurate enough that you can compare different colleges, " says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org.
"Consider walking the streets and exploring the wonderful shops that sell wine, cheese and delicious baguettes, " says Kantrowitz.
"They're all looking for the best students to match that criteria, " says Kantrowitz.
But they're less accurate at predicting need-based grant aid from colleges and don't predict merit aid well, says Mr. Kantrowitz.
You also can reference your 2011 tax return to gauge any financials that have remained the same, Mr. Kantrowitz says.
While some universities offer full rides to qualified students, Kantrowitz estimates that only 200 U.S. students receive full scholarships from outside donors each year.
Student loans from credit unions can be among the least-expensive options for borrowers, says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Edvisors.com, which runs college-planning and financial-aid websites.
They often must apply for a loan to see if the attractive rate advertised on a lender's website is the one they will actually receive, says Mr. Kantrowitz.
Congress also may make cuts in the Pell grant, the most popular federal college grant, says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org, which tracks financial aid and student-loan debt.
Since 2005, the number of graduates defaulting on their federal student loans has jumped 38%, according to Mark Kantrowitz, the publisher of FinAid, which tracks the student loan industry.
Kantrowitz suggests taking a pedestrian route through the city.
Most federal loans now carry interest rates of 6.8% or 7.9%, versus a rate of 2.875% on federal Stafford loans in May 2005, said Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of the financial-aid website FinAid.org.
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Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Finaid.org, a website that compiles data and provides financial advice for students, said the subsidies sometimes go to students from middle-class families who attend pricey colleges, and not just low-income students.
Despite the breadth of private scholarships available, the actual number of students who receive these funds is low--only about 1 in 15 college students, or about 6.7%, according to Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Finaid.org, an online scholarship resource.
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