If you're a high school student completing your junior year or starting your senior year, it's never too early to to begin exploring your financial options if you're considering college or career school. When thinking about the cost of education beyond high school, many students - and parents - think scholarship first when it comes to footing the bill for college. But there are alternative ways to pay for a college education. One of the best sources for college funding is still the United States government.

According to studentaid.ed.gov, a student aid portal administered by the U.S. Department of Education, the Federal government remains the single most prolific source of student aid in America. Grants, work-study programs and loans - these are the three main student aid programs - pay out more than 80 billion dollars each year in aid to high school grads who are willing to learn first in order to earn more later.

Having a basic grasp of the three types of aid available from the Federal government is an essential prerequisite for completing the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The process of qualifying for Federal student financial aid requires all high school grads to complete and submit a FAFSA application.

Student aid from the Federal government is available in three basic forms: grants, work-study programs, and loans. The different types of aid vary with respect to the amount of aid you may receive and whether or not the financial aid must be repaid. Grants do not require repayment, nor do work-study programs, which pay an hourly wage or salary for work performed. Loans, however, must be repaid, just like a car loan or home mortgage, over a period that ranges from 10 to 25 years.

Within this general three-tiered framework, there are several types of grant and loan programs. One of the better known types of grant, the Federal Pell Grant, is generally regarded as the foundation of the Federal student aid program. Other less familiar grants include the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), the Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG), and the National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant, a long name that is usually shortened to the National SMART Grant.

Loans, too, come in different formats. The best-known type of loan is probably the direct Stafford loan, in which the lender is the Department of Education. Recipients of this type of government loan have between ten and twenty-five years to repay the government, depending on the loan amount and payment plan selected.

With only a pair of exceptions, the amount of Federal student aid you can receive is determined by your financial need. This amount is found by subtracting your Expected Family Contribution, or EFC, from the cost of attending a college or career school. Your EFC is calculated according to a formula established by Federal law using the information you supply on your FAFSA, including factors like family income, family assets and benefits like unemployment or Social Security. The Department of Education notifies you of your EFC on your Student Aid Report, or SAR. You'll receive your SAR once the government has reviewed your FAFSA application.

If all this sounds complicated, the government has a number of excellent resources to help you cut through the clutter. One exceptional resource is the website mentioned at the beginning of this article, studentaid.ed.gov. Another is "Funding Education Beyond High School", a free 60-page document available in PDF format at www.fafsa.ed.gov. Be sure to explore these resources as soon as possible in your senior year of high school in order to have the best possible chance of receiving Federal student aid.