Just found out there are way more scholarships for veterans children than I thought. Like, if your parents served, there's legit money out there you're probably not using. The Marine Corps one pays up to 10k a year for four years if your parent was wounded, and the Coast Guard Foundation gives up to 5k. That's actually decent.

I was looking at the Army Scholarship Foundation too - they do like 1k per year which sounds small but adds up. The thing is, most of these scholarships for veterans children have a 2.0 GPA minimum, so it's not crazy hard to qualify. Some are more selective though - like the Women's Army Corps one wants a 3.5 GPA.

What surprised me is the Fisher House Foundation does 500 scholarships a year at 2k each, and you just need a 3.0 high school GPA. The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society also does grants and interest-free loans, which is kind of a game changer if you need cash.

Beyond just scholarships for veterans children, there's the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill where your parent can transfer benefits to you, and some states have their own veteran grants too. Plus the Pell Grant maxes out at like 6,895 if your parent died in Iraq or Afghanistan after 9/11.

Honestly, if you haven't looked into this yet and your parents are military, start with your state's higher education agency website. Most schools also have a financial aid office that knows about these veteran-specific programs. Don't sleep on this - it's free money just sitting there.