Now that the financial aid deadline has arrived, students in search of extra money to offset increasing tuiton and fees should beware of scholarships that appear to be too good to be true.

Frequently, the people behind some of the services designed to help students find available aid wind up gaining more money than the students do. And the money these services make is at the students’ expense.

A money-making scam involving false advertising is misleading financial aid-seekers into believing $6 billion is available in the form of academic scholarships.

The scholarship search services offer students information about potential financial aid sources for a $50 to $70 fee. But the catch is that the students only receive information about scholarships that would cost them exorbitant amounts of money.

Studies conducted on the success rate of these scholarship search programs has shown that students are better off trying to find money through university, state and federal financial aid programs.

Instead of getting caught in the middle of a money-making scam, students would be better off doing the leg work that they’re paying the scam services to perform.

By checking out all the available resources such as home communities, churches, unions, professional groups or service clubs, students might even end up saving money instead of needlessly spending it.