Money (and a lack thereof) is a big source of stress for students, many of whom have taken out loans to cover tuition and work multiple jobs to pay the bills. But financial stress can take a toll on students’ mental health, personal lives, academic success and future financial well-being.

Luckily, there are plenty of resources on campus for students who want to become more financially literate and explore their options for receiving assistance at Grand Valley State University.

First and foremost, there is the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships. The staff there is dedicated to helping students understand the different types of financial aid available to them (grants, scholarships, loans and work study), how they function and which students are eligible for specific forms of aid. For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/financialaid/. 

Through the financial aid office, students also have the option to search for scholarships on their own using myScholarships, available at www.gvsu.edu/financialaid/myscholarships-163.htm. Now is the perfect time to start looking for available scholarships for next year since the majority of application deadlines fall between Feb. 15 and March 1. 

MoneySmart Lakers, another subset of the financial aid office, is another resource for students who want to boost their money smarts and improve their fiscal well-being. According to the organization’s website (available at www.gvsu.edu/moneysmart/), the MoneySmart Lakers’ goal is to equip students with the tools necessary to understand their finances and work on their money-management skills.

Although learning how to tackle student loans and make detailed budgets may seem daunting, these resources on campus are there to make sure students are equipped to be financially responsible both now and post-graduation.