fldcu.org

            The internet is a fantastic resource for researching different schools and financial options as well as verifying facts and preparing yourself to financially handle higher education.  We’ve listed some websites that have the information you need know before deciding how to approach your education. 

www.ftc.gov – Federal Trade Commission
            The Federal Trade Commission is not just important to students considering loans, but to every American consumer.  On their site you see the latest additions and changes to consumer law, credit issues and more.  The FTC is dedicated to making sure that consumers know their rights, their options and are protected from dishonest lenders and businesses.  For any credit questions this is an excellent resource to turn to first.

www.careonecredit.com - CareOne Credit Counseling Services
                CareOne Credit is a highly reputable credit counseling agency that offers consumers information and resources on managing debt.  They also provide credit counseling services that include debt management plans and debt settlement plans that can help you pay off debts quicker and more easily.  They are an excellent resource if you specific questions about debt management.

http://loanconsolidation.ed.gov –  Direct Consolidation Loans
            Direct Consolidation Loans is affiliated with the Dept. of Education to provide individuals with information on consolidating federal loans and how to apply for federal loan consolidation.  If you’re having trouble paying for your direct federal loans you need to familiarize yourself with this site.  They list the steps that you need to take to gather the necessary information  and the questions you need to be asking loan consolidation agencies.

www.transunion.com - TransUnion
            TransUnion is one of three credit reporting agencies in the U.S.  They keep records of every consumers credit reports that can be checked for free once a year or at any time for a fee.  In addition to housing credit reports you can also find information on protecting yourself from identity theft, credit information for business owners and more.

www.equifax.com – Equifax
            Equifax is another of the 3 credit reporting agencies.  As with TransUnion consumers can also check their credit for free once a year or multiple times for a fee.  In addition they offer services for monitoring your credit to prevent fraud, information for both commercial and consumers as well as credit products.

www.experian.com  - Experian
            Experian is the other credit reporting agency here in the U.S. offering the same credit report services as TransUnion and Equifax.  They offer credit services and information to individuals, small businesses and larger businesses for everything from automotive to marketing issues.  They also have tools for finding a contractor and comparing credit cards among other financial topics.

 http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/DirectLoan/index.html  - Federal Student Aid (FSA)
            This government site’s focus is the U.S. Department of Education's Direct Loan Program.  These federal loans provide thousands of students with the means to afford higher education.  You can read about each type of direct loan and their requirements, use their calculators to get estimates on monthly payments and more.

www.ed.gov – U.S. Department of Education
            For any type of education in the U.S. whether it be at a public university, an online university or private institution the Department of Education is the authority on higher education information.  They are the first source to report on education legislation, issue accreditation to schools, have statics and trend report and more.  Their division of sections into students, parents, teachers and administrators making finding the information you need easy.

http://www.chea.org - The Council for Higher Education Accreditation
            Students can find not only accredited traditional schools and programs at CHEA’s website but also online universities that have been accredited.  Amoung their resources is a directory list of the accreditation agencies that approve the higher education programs.  They are the largest membership organization for higher education in association with 3,000 degree granting universities and 60 accredited  institutional organizations.

http://www.geteducated.com/services/diplomamillpolice.asp - Diploma Mill Police
            Diploma Mills are the unscrupulous organizations that have given online degree granting institutions a bad name.  These organizations promise to provide students with quality educations and degrees.  However, instead they take money from those looking to better their education but don’t follow up with providing that education and their degrees are worth only the paper it’s printed on.  The Diploma Mill Police have set out to make sure students are well informed on which organizations are indeed accredited institutions or and which ones are scams.

http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/campusaid.jsp - Federal Student Aid
            This is another section of the Federal Student Aid’s online resources that is geared specifically towards students and answering the questions they have on federal education aid.  They cover everything from grants to loans as well as the federal loan application process, applying at different schools and more.

http://www.staffordloan.com/ - Stafford Loan
            This site is dedicated to supplying information on federal Stafford Loans.  Not only is their detailed info on the requirements and programs but you can also apply online at their website.

http://nasfaa.org/Home.asp - National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
            Though this website is directed at career schools, universities, colleges, and others with an interest in student financial aid it’s still an excellent resource for gaining solid information of student lending.   They also have up to date government info on education laws and regulations as well as articles on the subject.