JTSP Financial Health Resource Hub
The JTSP Financial Health Resource Hub gives you the tools and real-world knowledge to manage money now and build lasting stability for your future.
Budgeting & Saving
Track your expenses, build an emergency fund and cut costs to achieve financial stability.
Budgeting Strategy Guides
- Budgeting Methods: includes methods such as the “50/30/20 Rule” and “Zero-based Budgeting”
- Ways to Save Money as a College Student
- Every Dollar: A zero-based budgeting website/app that helps you allocate every dollar of your income to a specific purpose.
Finance Basics
Money-saving Hacks
- Save on Textbooks and Supplies (e.g., rentals, used books)
- How to Save Money on Food in College
Debt & Credit Management
Understanding Student Loans
Credit Fundamentals & Building Credit
Debt Management
Financial Aid
For Students Entering College and Current Undergraduate College Students
| Resource | Description |
|---|---|
| Federal Student Aid | This website provides information about financial aid, including federal grants, loans and work-study programs. |
| Higher Education Service Corporation | An easy way to explore New York State financial aid opportunities. |
| College Board’s Big Future | Offers a free scholarship search tool that connects you to over 6,000 scholarship opportunities from various organizations. |
| Fastweb | One of the oldest and most well-known scholarship search platforms. You create a profile with details about your academic achievements, extracurricular activities and interests, and Fastweb provides a personalized list of scholarship matches. |
| Bold.org | Donors (individuals and companies) create and fund their own scholarships, many of which are exclusive to Bold.org. The site provides an opportunity to search for scholarships with less competition. |
| Scholarships.com | A comprehensive database with a vast number of scholarships. You can filter by major, year in school, state and other criteria to narrow your search and find scholarships that are a good fit. |
| Going Merry | This platform aims to streamline the scholarship application process. It not only helps you find scholarships but also allows you to apply for many of them directly on the site, sometimes even with a common application for multiple awards. |
| Common App | This is the most widely used college application system, accepted by over 1,000 colleges and universities worldwide. The platform itself is free to use, and you can request an application fee waiver directly on your profile. |
| Coalition App (via Scoir) | The Coalition for College is a group of colleges dedicated to making the application process more accessible. The criteria are similar to Common App’s, with a focus on supporting students from underrepresented or low-income backgrounds. |
Application Strategy & Execution
| Topic | Primary Resource | Secondary Resource |
|---|---|---|
| Tips on writing effective scholarship essays | Princeton Review | College Board |
| Guidance on effectively organizing application deadlines and documentation | Scribbr | Coalition for College Access |
| Maximize Your Financial Aid: FAFSA and CSS Profile Tips | FinAid.org | UAspire |
For Students Seeking Food & Basic Need Resources
| Resource | Description |
|---|---|
| Feeding America | Find local food banks. |
| CUNY Food Pantries | CUNY has 19 food pantries. |
| Swipe Out Hunger | This is a national non-profit that partners with colleges to end student hunger, often through “meal swipe donation” programs and campus pantry support. |
| United Way 211 | This is a national resource that connects people to critical health and human service programs, including food assistance, housing and utility help, by simply dialing 2-1-1 or searching their database by ZIP code. |
About JTSP
Contact Us
Questions? Email 1199JTSP@1199Funds.org or call (646) 473-8999. Help us reduce delays: Please submit your inquiries via email or voicemail, not both.
While your 1199SEIU Child Care Funds (“CCF”) provide you with tools to make important decisions, CCF does not provide tax, legal, investment or financial advice. The documents posted on this web page contain links to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. While we are pleased to share these resources with you, CCF cannot endorse, control, vouch for or verify the service providers listed here. CCF does not cover services other than the child-care and youth programs provided to eligible members as described in the official Summary Plan Description (SPD). Any information presented is provided to you to empower you to make your own financial decisions. Decisions based on this information are the sole responsibility of the member. Please contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.