Cecelia "CeCe" Venegas graduated from college with a degree in history, an infant son, no husband and no prospects for a job. She admits she had majored in history because people advised her to follow her passion. "If I ever give advice," CeCe says, "I will say, "follow your wallet, because passion lands you nowhere'." Although she had graduated with honors-a straight-A average in her major-Cece could not find work, and the recession sent five experienced candidates to interview for each job at which she would be a rank beginner. Lower-paying jobs, of course, told Cece she was over-qualified. A college graduate living on food stamps and welfare, Cece could not stand what her life had become, and she dreaded where life might next lead.

Federal grant helps single mom follow her own best advice.

Sitting in the Laundromat one afternoon, Cece was watching an old episode of "Law and Order," thinking to herself, "I could do that." Thinking about her own advice, "follow your wallet," she pondered the possibilities. She knew she would be good at legal work, and she knew she would make a handsome salary in the legal profession; but she had heard stories about the rigors and horrors of law school. Cece knew full-time law school was out of the question. Part-time law school just simply did not exist at any major law school, and Cece could not wait indefinitely to start rebuilding her life and career. In the "Law and Order" episode, Cece noticed how the lawyers relied on their paralegal assistants for much of their research and many of their documents. The lawyers regarded the paralegals as indispensible. "I should do that, " Cece told herself. And, exhaling, she made-up her mind.

Using a computer at the library, Cece took two bold steps that revolutionized her life and launched her on the path to success. First, she signed-up for paralegal certificate preparation through the University of California, Irvine; second, she submitted her Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). While she submitted the FAFSA forms, she saw opportunities for other scholarships and grants based on academic merit and "scholarly potential." Reasoning that she had nothing to lose and everything to gain, Cece applied for those grants and scholarships, too.

Federal grant supports a life-changing choice.

Within ten days after she applied, Cece was taking paralegal classes in "property" and "contracts," and she had a bank account big enough to pay all her bills, freeing herself from welfare's bondage. Cece's grants and scholarships supported her as she completed her certificate and worked part-time. When she finished her program, the firm at which she had interned hired her full-time. Now, after working for several years as a paralegal, Cece will begin law school-full-time!-at a prestigious law school. A federal grant and her law firm will support her.

You can follow your own best advice. Apply for a federal grant.

If your conscience and intuition have been telling you that you should go back to school, you easily can follow Cece's example: Carefully search for jobs that will help you "follow your wallet," and apply for a degree program that leads to the job you like best. Then, working with a financial aid counselor at the school of your choice, complete your federal application forms, and prepare to put your life on the fast track to success.

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