<p>My son received a strange mailing today from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. In it was a ‘certificate’ signed by the governor praising him for being one of the top scores in PA for his SAT / ACT scores. Then there was an attached notice that said he could apply for financial assistance from this agency HOWEVER his scholastic merits would not be considered. It stated that all awards were based on need. </p>
<p>Maybe they were trying to save postage, but it sure did come off as very odd. Does anyone have any insight into this?</p>
<p>I also receieved one of those letters. I think that the grant is somehow tied to the PA state grant as well as the Pell grant, and might need to be done to confirm grant availability status.</p>
<p>On the other hand, I think that it might all be a scam. The most accurate way, for me at least, when dealing with shady institutions and companies is to give them a call and see just how professional they are. I have a pretty good intuition, so I can usually tell if it’s a professional (albeit bored and uninterested) representative, or some guy who runs an internet scam out of his basement.</p>