I am a middle age recovering alcoholic who wants to go into the field
of Drug and Alcohol counseling.  Where can I find financial resorces
to help me.  I have been told there are federal and state money
available.  I live in central New York state

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Request for Question Clarification by bcguide-ga on 03 Jan 2003 12:28 PST

Hi,

As tutuzdad-ga said in the comment, you need to clarify if you are
looking for information on financial aid for a degree, for training
funds for abuse counselors or for money to start a counseling
practice. The first is a $2.00 question, the latter 2 would require
more research and might be difficult to answer in the time frame of a
$2.00 question.

regards,
bcguide-ga

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Clarification of Question by jsimon49-ga on 05 Jan 2003 04:00 PST

To clarify my question.  2 important concerns.  I am trying to assist
an individual in obtaining this information.   I can afford a small
amount - she can not.  This individual has been working in a 'rehab'
on a per diem basis for a number of years.  Has been passed over for
certain possitions because there are no initials behind her name, ie:
CAC etc.
I hope this clarifies my request

Hi jsimon49-ga,

Financial aid for a degree program at the undergraduate level is
usually dependent on financial need. The way this is determined is by
completing a FAFSA. You can do this online at:
http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/

The FAFSA for September is available now. It's free. Do it now. You
can use estimated 2002 tax information if you are not prepared to file
your taxes at this point. Don't wait to get accepted to a program
before filing. You can get the results sent to any school
electronically or by bringing in a paper copy of the SAR - the results
sheet that the Federal Processing Center will send to you.

Most school use need as a criterion and most single, independent
students do not qualify for much in the way of Federal dollars. Having
children or other dependents may increase the chances of getting
assistance. There is always the student loan program for matriculated
students - those who've been accepted to degree programs and attend at
least half time. The loans are interest free while you're in school
and currently around 5% after you stop attending.

The thing about student loans is that you don't have to make payments
or pay interest while you're going to school. It pays for getting a
degree that opens the door to higher earnings - and you have 10 years
to pay it back so the payments are much smaller than other loans or
credit cards. http://www.isac1.org/healthy/payment.html let's you
calculate estimated loan payments.

If you look into a state or other government subsidized school - a
community or city college, the tuition costs are reasonable and you'll
probably have enough to study and get books and supplies. While a
degree from Harvard may impress employers, those intials after your
name don't include where you received the degree. Some social work and
rehab counseling programs in state and city university systems have
great reputations in the field.

Most schools have institutional funds to help students with expenses,
but these also go to the neediest first.

http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/Students/student.html
contains more information on Federal Student Aid.

If it's graduate programs that you're intersted in... The same FAFSA
and student loan scenario applies.

http://www.ed.pdx.edu/spedcoun/rehab/Admission.html
is the home page of one school that offers a graduate degree in this
field.

Private sources of funds do exist, but the competition is fierce. Many
have January deadlines for September funds. School admissions
deadlines may be in February as well- so now is the time to do all of
the paperwork for September enrollment.

http://www.finaid.org/
http://dir.yahoo.com/Education/Financial_Aid/Grants/

list many sources of privately funded financial aid.

search terms: 
FAFSA Online
private sources of financial aid
rehab counseling financial aid

Going back to school takes an investment of time, energy and money,
but the results are definitely worth it for you to advance in the
field you have chosen. There is help out there for the money part. If
you really want it - it can be done!

Good luck,
bcguide









rehab counseling financial aid

Before I start working on this, I feel I must say that in most
instances, a recovering person interested in entering into the
treatment field seeks to obtain some type of counseling certification
or degree before actually looking for financial assistance with his
venture. The mere fact that you aslso suffered from this often
dibilitating disease does not, of itself, mean that you legally
qualify to counsel others, though you may indeed be capable of doing
so otherwise.

I recommend that if you have not yet sought financial student aid to
help you get some training, that you do so. If you already have some
type of degree or certification in this area please let us know and we
can proceed. If you are already qualified, the sources for financial
aid may depend upon where you want to set the business up, what you
intend it to be, and how much money you need (among many other
factors). I should also say that the research required to providxe a
quality answer for such a question may also exceed the normal time
required for a question priced in the range you have selected.

Regards;
tutuzdad-ga