While owning a home has long been considered part of the “American Dream,” getting a college education for free has quickly become the “American Fantasy.” Students across the country search eagerly (and sometimes frantically) each year for merit and grant aid to help pay their college bills. Many daydream of a “free ride,” and while it may be hard to find, it does indeed exist—and it’s not just for superstar students.

Check out these schools for a shot at turning your “American Fantasy” into reality.

Work for Your Degree

The seven member schools of the Work Colleges Consortium (WCC) put their students to work in exchange for their education, trading on-campus jobs for tuition.

If you live in the Appalachian region, check out Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, Kentucky, or Berea College in Berea, Kentucky—these schools specifically serve students in your backyard. College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri, calls itself “Hard Work U” because all of its students work 15 hours per week, including jobs at the computer center, child development center, dairy barn, and museum.

The other WCC members are Blackburn College, Ecclesia College, Sterling College, and Warren Wilson College.

Free Tuition…if You’re in the Right Field

Want to be a teacher? The City University of New York’s Teacher Academy offers free tuition for future science and mathematics teachers. Academy graduates receive teaching positions at New York City’s public middle and high schools.

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City focuses on the areas of engineering, art, and architecture. The college admits students based on merit and provides all students with a full-tuition scholarship.

Are you a musician at heart? Check out Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Competition for admission is tough, as the institute enrolls only about 160 students. But if you make the cut, your tuition (valued at $33,500) is paid for each year by a full scholarship.

Calling all engineers: The Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts, offers an outstanding education for its select student body of just over 300 students. You’ll need to have a strong background in math and science, but the college is looking for students with interests and passions beyond these areas as well to create a well-rounded student body.

Take to the seas at Webb Institute in Glen Cove, New York, where the focus is on naval architecture and marine engineering. Rigorous academics and loads of real-world experience help Webb graduates prepare for rewarding careers.

Follow Your Faith

Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois, funds the tuition of its students ($17,500 annually) through donations. Students are only responsible for room, board, medical insurance, and a few additional fees.

For Men Only

Deep Springs College in California enrolls a small all-male student body. Students here take thought-provoking classes and work at least 20 hours per week on the college’s alfalfa farm and cattle ranch. Students attend Deep Springs for two years on a full scholarship (valued at $50,000 per year) and go on to complete their degrees at four-year institutions across the nation.

By: CollegeView

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Collegeview is a great resource to help students and their parents as they begin their college search. The website provides information about free scholarships, www.collegeview.com/financialaid/index.html”> financial aid , career information and more. Collegeview offers profiles of thousands of universities that can be searched by area of study, name, and location.

If college is in your future, yet the ability to pay for it seems out of reach, one of the best options is to get a scholarship. However, applying for and receiving scholarships is not always as cut and dried as you may wish. Here are some tips you can use to help you land a winning scholarship and get the education you desire.

First, start looking for scholarships as soon as possible. Some programs require you to apply even before you are a senior, and many require you to apply early in your senior year. Even if it is too early to apply, knowing the application deadline ahead of time will ensure that you do not miss it.

When filling out the application, read the requirements in full before you begin. These applications take time, and if you do not qualify, you are wasting your time. Once you are sure that you qualify, read the instructions two times. Then, follow them exactly. Any mistakes could cost you a scholarship that you are absolutely qualified to receive. If you have a question, ask, rather than guessing and making a mistake. Talk to the financial aid officer at the college of your choice or the guidance counselor at your high school. Have them proofread the application if they are willing and make sure it is error free.

You want your scholarship application to stand out from the crowd. Make sure it is neat. Mail it neatly as well. Do not wad up the application and stuff it in a business-sized envelope. Keep the pages flat and send them in a large envelope. Consider springing for FedEx delivery or certified mail.

Remember to look in unlikely places for scholarships. Most schools have school-based awards, so talk to the financial aid office to see if you qualify for one of these. Also, there are many businesses and organizations in your local area that will offer scholarships for local kids. These have less competition, making them a great option for those who qualify.

There are also things you can do to put yourself in a good position for receiving a scholarship outside of the application process. The more active you are in your community, the better your chances to qualify for a scholarship. Also, you need to keep your grades up. Most of the best scholarships have some sort of merit component, which means your GPA will be a factor. The better your grades, the better your chances of receiving a scholarship will be.

What is the key to finding college scholarships? Know your sources. Higher education is expensive, but every year more and more money is given away to supplement that cost. A quick online search for “scholarships” reveals almost 66,000,000 keyword hits! Well, how do you narrows these down? There are many sources already planned and mapped out for you.

First, check out government online sources. The government alone will provide over $83 billion dollars in aid this year.

Ed.gov – The US Department of Education website has a wealth of knowledge regarding financial aid. Clicking on the “Student Financial Aid” link on the right menu bar will bring you the in depth articles discussing government money. You can learn how to apply for college aid, federal student aid, or federal loans here.

Students.gov – Not only can you find scholarships, but they lay out a full fledge college planning course. Information found here includes military programs ( G.I. Bill ) , career planning, and even state level funding articles.

Fafsa.ed.gov – Fafsa is the “Federal Application For Student Aid” This is the basic government requirement for federal aid. Here you are taught how to fill out the application as well how to follow up your application.

Government funding actually doesn’t have a lot of “red tape” to get the cash and the requirements are sometimes a great deal more relaxed that other sources.

Secondly, online search databases are a great place to find scholarship money. There are hundreds of them out there. A quick search for “scholarship search” will pull up more than enough to find good matches. Most of these sites will require in depth personal information down to your address, phone number, or high school. Make sure to check out their privacy policies to see how your information is handled. These search engines will match scholarships to you based on your given personal information. One slight drawback to this type of searching will be the advertising that you have to wade through. You are given to option to skip most ads so it is only mildly annoying. I will only try scholarships databases that are free. You should not be required to pay for this type of information.

Lastly, look around for corporate or business funding. Many corporate and business entities have a employee education program. Both parties have a stake in your education, so feel free to look around for your “ideal” job and find companies that match your ideal. Call them up and see if they offer some employment education incentives. Most companies will fund a portion of your higher education in exchange for so many years of dedicated service. Fortune 500 companies are more than willing to find tax write-offs in education.

Financial aid can be found almost anywhere. Get passionate and make funding your education a full time jobs for a couple weeks. Adopt a “Ain’t to proud to beg attitude” if you want to succeed.