Hi again.

 I just had a few questions about some of the scholarship search web sites on the Internet.  I've been looking into trying to attain a scholarship to cut some of my costs, especially text books and a few other things I will need.

The problem is, it seems like, every site you go to asks you a series of questions about what degree you are looking for, the school you plan to attend, and when you plan to graduate, but they then sell your information to a ton of other schools who try to badger you into going to their school instead...or the "scholarship site" wants you to sign up for a ton of credit card offers or sends you advertisements for everything under the sun.  But, until you go through the registration process, you don't find this out.  These types of sites make me wary because of all the scams out there.

I had thirteen different online schools call me after starting the registration process, only to find that the school I've chosen isn't part of their affiliation, so I stopped the registration and unsubscribed.  This was in a four hour period after I had opted out.  Seven wanted to tell me about their programs (which I had already looked into and chose not to consider), and the other six basically told me not to bother with communications and to continue with business.  I found them all to be rude and pushy, and had to lodge complaints with the supervisors of two schools who continued to call every few hours after I had already explained that I wasn't interested.

I've found a few other sites that are set up this way, though some of them tell you the schools they are affiliated with, and a few say that they work with any online college.  These are interesting to me, but I don't want to start registering only to find out it's the same deal as the others.  So...I thought I would ask here to see if anyone had dealt with this agency:  FastWeb (I believe the url is www.fastweb.com).  I am also unsure of www.freecollegescholarship.net and www.online-degree-scholarships.com.  I know the last two ask you to look at their sponsors, so I realize they are probably going to have someone call me...but if they are legit, and don't try to make me change my mind about the school I've chosen, I can just spam the offers that come to my email account.  I'm just wondering if they actually give legit scholarship opportunities.

I know they are out there.  A coworker of mine has a sister-in-law who has gotten so much money in scholarships for the online school she is attending, she doesn't have to work!  He ended up finding a new job before giving me the information, so I have no clue where to begin.  This is not the route I want to take, though it would be nice to opt for a lower paying job while I'm in school that allows me the flexibility of being home when my daughter gets home from school...but basically, I just want help to cover the expense of books, tuition, and an emergency fund in case my computer malfunctions (which isn't unusual for me...I had to replace or rebuild one twice, and buy a laptop while going for my associate's).  I just have no clue how to even look because they never gave us much information on seeking scholarships back in high school, and it never seemed like much of an option.  You either got one because of your academic scores, you excelled in sports, or you were in things like 4-H for so many years (which I missed by one year).  Other than that, you applied for the scholarships through your parents' work.  So now, I feel totally lost, and I'm really not sure how to go about this search on the Internet. 

 Sorry for babbling.  Hope I don't confuse...

~~Ruby