University and college is a worthwhile endeavour, but the challenge is the cost implication that is needed to cater for it. These costs include; tuition fees, room and boarding, books and supplies, transportation and many more expenses. However, there are several types of financial aids available for students to help them pay for college. These Aids range from federal, state, institutional and private Aids. The process of navigating the financial aid process can be challenging for students and their families. Therefore, one ought to learn the different types of financial Aids that are available and the eligibility requirements. The financial Aid that one receives could make a difference in the school that one attends and the amount of debt owed after graduation. Some are very expensive compared to others, and perhaps one should consider federal student Aids before others because they are the cheapest. To access this, students need to check the free application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (Clotfelter , Hemelt & Ladd, 2018) .
The federal government is one of the providers of Financial Aid in the United States. They offer several types of financial Aids ranging from loans, grants, and work-study plans. Grants are highly competitive because they do not have to be repaid. They are offered by the federal government based on, merit, need-based or student-specific which include grants for minorities, women, and student with disabilities. Examples of grants include; Pell grants, federal supplemental educational opportunity grants (FSEOG), teacher education assistance and higher education (TEACH) and Iraq and Afghanistan services grants (Hoffman, Reindl, & Bearer-Friend, 2011) . The government also offers federal loans which include subsidized loans, unsubsidized loans, plus loans and Perkins loans. The Federal loans have a lower rate of interest compared to private loans. Students can also benefit from federally funded jobs on campus or other approved locations to help them cater for their Education. However, eligibility for federal aids may or may not be affected by criminal records for an individual.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
There is a big misconception that ex-offenders are not eligible for financial aid; this is a myth which makes many ex-convicts not to apply for financial grants and they, therefore, miss their chance to attend college based purely on wrong information. Mostly, restrictions on federal aid eligibility are removed once incarcerated individuals are released, upon probation, parole or residing in a halfway house. However, someone convicted for the possession and sale of illegal drugs may have eligibility to FAFSA suspended if the offense occurred while the student was receiving federal student AID. Secondly, if one was convicted of a forcible or no forcible sexual offense, and is subject to an involuntary civil commitment; upon completion of sentence one maybe ineligible to receive a federal Pell Grant (Lander, 2018) . When one is confined in a correctional or juvenile justice facility, there are limits on the eligibility of federal student Aid. Upon release these limitations are removed, and one can even apply for funds while still confined in anticipation of being released so that the application is processed in time for the start of the school program. Further to this, Even if you are not eligible while still in detention one can still qualify for state or school Aids.
The Government through the Department of education has introduced a program by the name second chance Pell pilot program. It is estimated that approximately 12,000 incarcerated students are eligible for this Program. Initially, only those incarcerated in a local, municipal or county correctional facility met the eligibility criteria for federal Pell grant while those convicted in federal and state institutions could not. However, the federal government has introduced a test program where 67 colleges and universities, along with 100 federal and state institutions will participate to determine whether access to financial aid for incarcerated individuals produces a high-quality education enrolment program (Smith etal, 2018) . All the participating institutions will provide Pell Grants to qualified students who are likely to be released within five years of enrolling in Education and training programs. However, the prisoners will still need to complete a FAFSA to determine their eligibility for the Pell Grants.
If an individual is incarcerated while enjoying federal Aid, he has the option of applying for a delay of the loan as long as they meet the eligibility requirements. Once they are released, they can continue enjoying the loans to cover their Education. Statistics show that providing federal financial aid to ex-convicts is more beneficial to society than not providing. A Rand study showed that inmates who take part in education programs behind bars have 43 percent lower odds of returning to prison than prisoners who don’t (Lee, & Raschke, 2018) . FAFSA ensures that inmates are offered a fair second chance at life. When one is released and is enabled to access funds to cater for his education, it gives him or her new meaning and approach to life which can have the effect of reducing the chances of committing the crime again. Education empowers the ex-offender with skills to provide for their needs. If the government does not offer financial student aid for ex criminals, most of them are rendered vulnerable to committing a crime again because they lack funds or skills for their upkeep.
As much as financing ex-convicts for a college education are beneficial to the society, another school of thought differs with this notion. One of the main reasons some oppose is because of the competition for federal student grants. A significant portion of the United states law-abiding students are ineligible for federal Aids and therefore it is unfair to grant the same to non-law abiding citizens. Many students own tens of thousands of dollars in student loans from private institutions which carry a high-interest rate and therefore it would be not prudent for ex-offenders to be granted cheaper federal grants and loans over students who do not have criminal records. Secondly, most students are actively working American adults who either work full time or part time jobs to make money to cater for their college education. It is also fair those ex-convicts to look for jobs first to cater for their school expenses rather than the government providing a federally funded project for them to study. Other students are single parents with no financial muscle to pay for college and therefore it deems necessary for them to be considered first for federal students Aid before ex-convicts.
Currently, half of the United States college graduates are unable to obtain careers in their respective field. In a report from 2013, the director of the center for college affordability, highlighted that the number of college graduates would grow by 19 million between the year 2010 and 2020, while the number of jobs requiring graduates is expected to grow by less than 7 million (Rosinger, 2018) . This presents a high competition and hardship for current and future graduates to acquire jobs. Thus, what are the chances of someone with a criminal history to obtain a career requiring university education? It is therefore prudent that the federal government invest in other programs for former convicts rather than providing finances for higher education. In a world where most potential employers seek information on criminal history and where the job industry for tasks requiring university education is crowded, it makes it difficult for a graduate felon to acquire a job and thus the federal funds should be focused on other less fortunate members of the society.
In my own opinion, felons should receive counselling, education and all other necessary support that would reduce recidivism. They should be allowed to pursue degrees but these should be funded by use of student loans or use of private funding. Rehabilitation to allow them smoothly transit back to the community is necessary for ex-convicts, but they should not access federal funds such as Pell grants which are monies that are not paid back for their college fees. This is because a majority of many college graduates pay for their degree, at least partially or through student loans and therefore faced with a situation of a law-abiding 18-year-old with that of a felon the former should most definitely be considered first. Federal grants are limited in amount, and therefore the system for the award should be based on clear principles such as merit or need.
However, some people face criminal convictions because of being victims of circumstances such as bad parenting or being brought up in crime-ridden neighbourhoods, poverty, high cost of living and many more factors. These factors push them to commit a crime, and therefore as a nation, we need to pull resources together to ensure that they get a second chance in life to make their lives better. Depending on the availability of federal Aids it can be adjusted to cater for ex-convicts, but a priority for government grants should be accorded first to law-abiding citizens. Most employers will prefer employing a graduate without a criminal history, and therefore the more significant societal issue is adjusting this first rather than financing convicts because at the end of the day they might end up struggling to get graduate jobs because of their history. The government can introduce incentives to employers who employ ex-convicts just to ensure that graduate felons have a chance to be accepted in the society.
References
Clotfelter, C. T., Hemelt, S. W., & Ladd, H. F. (2018). Multifaceted Aid for Low ‐ Income Students and College Outcomes: Evidence from North Carolina. Economic Inquiry , 56 (1), 278-303.
Hoffman, L., Reindl, T., & Bearer-Friend, J. (2011). Complete to Compete: Improving Postsecondary Attainment among Adults. NGA Center for Best Practices .
Lander, M. F. (2018). WHY THE BORDER?.
Lee, M. T., & Raschke, R. L. (2018). Freeing “workplace prisoners” in higher education: Configurations for collective knowledge building and educational value decisions. Journal of Business Research .
Rosinger, K. O. (2018). Can Simplifying Financial Aid Offers Impact College Enrollment and Borrowing? Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Evidence. Education Finance and Policy , (Just Accepted), 1-55.
Smith, B. O., White, D. R., Kuzyk, P. C., & Tierney, J. E. (2018). Improved grade outcomes with an e-mailed “grade nudge”. The Journal of Economic Education , 49 (1), 1-7.
