Being a single parent isn’t easy. Trying to juggle children and a job is twice as difficult when you don’t have the physical, much less emotional, support of a spouse to share the workload. As for taking classes to advance one’s place in life?

That’s why many single parents now consider continuing their education through an online college. Getting an online degree, especially with the number of accredited universities out there, offers a number of advantages going on campus 3-5 times a day simply can not provide.

First and foremost, an online mom can study from home. Simply register, take the course load and eventually graduate from the comfort of home with the help of grants for online college. You are always nearby when your child scrapes his/her knee, needs to be fed or put to bed, or even needs help with his/her homework.

Then you can set your own pace. If the kids are so young that they need more supervision than their elder siblings or friends, you can decrease the workload to suit that pace. Many programs allow for part-time students. It may take a little longer before you get that online degree, but real life, aka raising your kids, still set the pace. This way you can match it.

Financial aid is available. Not just tuition and fees, but also things like rent, food and clothing. Sites list such aid as: Teacher Education Assistance, Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Academic Competitiveness Grant, National SMART Grant, Institutional Grants, Campus Based Aid (FSEOG, FWS, Perkins Loans); Stafford Loans (FEFL, Direct Loan), Plus Loans just for starters.

Another side perk is one can cut commuting. You save not only time, but cost, by not having to commute. By studying at home instead of going back and forth from home to work to campus, you cut the costs by approximately one third. That’s more time to both study and look after the kids.

A good way to get started, even before deciding on a school, is to consult a site like Single Moms. Sit down and learn both the advantages and obstacles that are going to come. The site will also provide excellent tips on the kind of degree you want to pursue, which schools offer them and help on getting financial aid. From there, it’s definitely a good idea to pick up the phone and call the school. Try to get in touch with registration and officers to help you with college loans, if only to see what you can get.

The important point is to do some homework before you decide to study from home. With the help of single mothers grants and financial aid these goals are easier to accomplish than ever. Before you know it, the kids will grow up and before you can say “empty nest syndrome” you are well on your way with a new, degreed, career.

Nursing has come a long way from the days of Florence Nightingale. These days the profession needs a lot more than a clean white smock, a thermometer and a good bedside manner. Modern nurses need to have at least two years of basic education just to get licensed. That goes up to four, and maybe more, to get registered. The end result is there’s a serious shortage of nurses throughout the world these days.

In fact, the shortage of degreed nurses is rapidly becoming a critical situation. The Department of Labor projects that the U.S. alone will need 1 million more than there will be available. This is probably why it’s become one of the fastest growing areas of study at online colleges.

With these kinds of cold facts and numbers, it’s easy to see why nursing has become one of the most popular fields for online colleges. In fact, the demand has become so huge both pubic and private institutions are stepping in with a number of programs to fix the situation. If you are interested and need more information on graduate school scholarships, look on the internet.

To counter this, the U.S. government is offering a lot more than just standard Pell grants and similar financial aid. Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois introduced the Nurse Training and Retention Act of 2007 on the floor of the Senate. It was a bill to fund comprehensive programs to ensure an adequate supply of nurses. It was referred to committee for study.

In April 2008, in the 110th Congress, H.R. 5924: Emergency Nursing Supply Relief Act was introduced as a bill to the House of Representatives by Robert Wexler of Florida. It would amend the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act of 2000 to lift the numerical limitations for employment based immigrants (and accompanying family members) for nurses and physical therapists until September 30, 2011, subject to a cap. The bill was referred to committees for study in Congress.

If that isn’t enough, private corporations such as Johnson & Johnson have stepped in and are now offering their own financial aid packages. Many private and state-run hospitals also offer assistance for educational advancement if a lower ranked nurse will stay with the institution and go to an online college. To find out more about these opportunities, it’s best to talk to the financial aid officer of the school(s) of your choice.

What’s more important these days is the chance for advancement within the field is growing exponentially. Upon licensing or registering, a nurse can look into such areas as medical billing, set up a practice as a nurse practitioner …there’s even such exotic possibilities like a need for nurses on cruise lines. For more information on single mothers nursing schools, check the web.

Salaries are also growing. As of 2008, the median salary of a nurse is $62,500. A nurse with two years experience, and has graduated from a nursing university makes a minimum of $33,000 while more experienced nurses can go over $100,000 a year. There is also an abundance of financial aid for careers in the medical field.

Going back to single mothers is a great thing. They can advanced their career or go into another high paying career. However, money is a major factor when deciding to go back to school. Tuition, housing, and food do not come cheap.

Even though it is quite expensive to get an education, single mothers have options to help pay for it. They can apply for Pell Grants for single mothers, which are government money given to students who are in need.

Single mothers can apply for Pell Grants by going to the FAFSA website and submitting the form. The FAFSA is the Free Application for Financial Aid and everyone that wants financial aid for school needs to fill this out. You will need to put in the application information on your income and assets that you have.

The Pell Grant is given to students based on income and assets. The more income and assets you have, the less money you will get. If you are still dependent of your parents, their income will also be included in the calculation.

You do not need to apply separately for the Pell Grant. Everyone that sends in the FAFSA is automatically considered for a Pell Grant.

You will get the SAR once you have sent in your FAFSA. The SAR gives you a summary of the information filled on the FAFSA. Make sure its right.

Try to send your FAFSA in early. That way you have a chance to apply to more scholarships too. Scholarships have different deadlines so if you get your FAFSA back too late then you will miss out on some scholarships.

Pell Grants for single mothers is the best way to pay for school. You do not need to repay it like a loan and you do not need to compete with others to get it like scholarships. As long as you meet the criteria, you will get a Pell Grant.