FAP395: Free stuff Friday including how to work tradeshows, preferred lender lists in question, Cumberland farms scholarship, Ayla Brown

Student Financial Aid News
+ Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) wrote a letter to Department of Education Inspector General John Higgins on Oct. 31 urging him to investigate "any conflict of interest between lenders and the universities to which they offer outsized incentives based on how much students borrow."
+ Durbin described the preferred lender list practice as "disturbing" and mentioned recently publicized lender incentives like iPods, all-expense paid trips and bonuses.
+ "At a time when college costs continue to rise and students are borrowing more and more to pay for higher education, university officials should be looking out for the interests of the students and not the next all-expenses paid trip to the Caribbean," Durbin said in a press release, referring to a conference that one lender canceled after it received negative publicity and had received almost no acceptances to its offer.
+ Durbin made it clear that students' interest should be the only thing schools consider when choosing a lender.
+ "The first obligation of any college or university is to help its students, not the lenders," Durbin wrote in the letter to Higgins. "Colleges and universities should not be enticed to select âpreferred' lenders or take other actions related to the student loan program on the basis of factors that are irrelevant, or at best ancillary, to the primary interests of the students."
+ Durbin noted that the current law prohibits lenders from offering inducements (directly or indirectly) to secure loan applications. He argued that "Even if the law does not prohibit lenders from offering inducements in exchange for private loan applications, there is the potential for a conflict of interest."
+ "Colorado universities got the preliminary go-ahead Monday to raise tuition up to 7 percent next fall, a significant boost compared with last year's strict 2.5 percent cap," The Denver Post reports. "The Colorado Commission on Higher Education's tuition limit comes with a request that the legislature increase spending on colleges and universities by $100 million next year. Both proposals are signs of cooperation between the commission and university presidents - a relationship that was severely strained in recent years."
+ "It is more important than ever for institutions of higher education to offer a path toward career advancement and personal achievement that accommodates traditional and nontraditional students," writes Matthew Johnner, vice president of sales and marketing for Global Financial Aid Services, in University Business Magazine. "...As the [distance learning] market expands, it is crucial to understand how to best serve distance learning students and thereby grow enrollment. ...The financial aid process must be proactive and reach out to prospective students. This is important for any type of financial aid student, but often more effective for underrepresented groups that have not had as much access to affordability counseling."
+ Check out our distance learning loans and distance education loans! 866-229-8900
+ The charm may have gone out of smoking, but a survey released Thursday suggests that students in Minnesota remain a hard drinking crowd. The studyâs author said the results show that tobacco reduction programs can be effective, but that campus health officials have to think up creative solutions to lessen binge drinking.

Scholarship Update
+ Someone mailed me a scholarship!
+ Christen Graham from Warner PR sent in the Cumberland Farms Scholarship
+ Be high school seniors who plan to enroll in a full-time undergraduate course of study at an accredited two- or four-year college or university or vocational-technical school.
+ Have a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
+ Reside within a 30 mile radius of a Cumberland Farms retail location.
+ 130 scholarships for $1,000
+ Deadline December 15, 2006
+ Details in our free student scholarship search site
+ 5 more episodes to the Scholarship Points Episode 400 drawing!

Free Stuff Friday
+ Napster now has free download of the day
+ Free Photoshop plugins
+ Zamzar waves the magic file conversion wand!
+ XCast podcast manager (Mac)
+ IHMC CMap Concept Mapper
+ How to get free stuff at trade shows
+ A side note - being the media means lots of stuff - so in addition to bolstering your personal reputation and job prospects, it can get you schwag, as long as you return the favor and promote!

Podsafe Music
+ Ayla Brown, Thanks to You
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time - visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ My personal blog
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/subscribe/

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