College financial-aid season has just kicked off, and experts say students seeking state grants had better act fast.

At least six states, including Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee, now have "until funds depleted" policies on grants, meaning late filers risk getting nothing. Other states are shrinking the application window. Oklahoma, for example, moved its grant-application deadline to March 1 this year, two weeks earlier than last year. Oregon's Feb. 1 deadline is the earliest of any state for the second year in a row.

"It's essentially a technique for reducing the number of students who qualify because not everyone will [apply] on time," says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of and

Thanks to growing budget deficits and rising demand for financial aid, states say they're running out of grant money earlier and earlier each year. Many cash-strapped states have cut student aid, while colleges have been raising tuition.

For some, acting quickly still won't be enough. Last year, New Hampshire announced it was ending its grant support to college students because of state budget woes—making 2012-2013 the first year that residents can't apply for state aid. The cut also impacts Maine residents, who previously could use their state's grant when attending a New Hampshire college; Maine ended that practice after New Hampshire terminated its grant program. (Maine still offers its state grant for students attending college in its state and in five other states on the East Coast, including Connecticut, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, as well as Washington, D.C.)

To increase their chance of receiving aid this year, parents should file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or Fafsa, as soon as possible, says Rod Bugarin, a financial-aid consultant and former financial-aid officer at Brown and Columbia universities. Even parents in states with spring deadlines might want to consider filing soon since more states may run out of aid early, he says. Filing early also helps maximize the free aid students will get directly from colleges, advisers say.

Submitting the required paperwork in the next few weeks may be a challenge, especially for families who have not yet filed their taxes. Rather than waiting, parents should consider filing the Fafsa with estimates based on 2011 paystubs, bank account and brokerage statements, and their 2010 tax return, says Mr. Kantrowitz.

You can make updates to the application later on. But parents should keep in mind that revisions could impact the grant money students receive when school begins.

—AnnaMaria Andriotis,

Too Much Information?

Google said last week that it's going to start combining nearly all the information it has on its users, under a new privacy policy that will become effective March 1. Here are answers to some of the most pressing questions about this.

What do Google's changes mean for me? If you use Google services such as Gmail and Google+, Google will be able to take your information from one and combine it with information from another.

In practice, this could mean, for instance, that you'll search for something on Google and see ads for a subject you've just been discussing with a friend over email.

Are any services excluded from this? Google says it won't combine information from your account with data gathered from its DoubleClick ad network.

Google also says that it requires your opt-in consent for the sharing of any "sensitive personal information," which it defines as "personal information relating to confidential medical facts, racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, or sexuality."

And the company is taking pains to point out that it isn't giving your information to advertisers. Google keeps the information and uses it to place the ads that other companies buy.

Is there any way I can get out of this? Yes and no. It is possible, after all, to use the Internet without logging in to Google. You can even use Google search without logging in to a Google account. If you aren't logged in, your searches won't be tied to your identity. You can also decide to leave Google services, such as Gmail and Google+, and take your data with you if you do.

There also are a few adjustments you've always been able to make to your Google settings, and you'll still be able to make those. And you can change your settings on Google's Ads Preferences pages. Finally, you can opt out of the sharing of Google Wallet information, because there are special laws that govern privacy when it comes to financial data.

But in general, if you're logged in and using Google services, there isn't really a way to get out of this new policy. Your data will be shared among whatever services you have tied to your account.

—Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, Digits Blog,

Savvy Car Shoppers

Women sometimes get a bad rap when it comes to shopping, but they appear to be more thorough than men when it comes to wrangling with car salesmen.

Some 67% of women order a vehicle inspection during a lease transfer versus just over 54% of men, according to the research by, a car-leasing website. Women buyers also ask different and more probing questions than men. They inquire about safety performance, incident history and a general sense of a vehicle's overall functionality given certain circumstances, the study says.

Younger women appear to be far less cavalier than young men when it comes to choosing their wheels. More than 78% of women ages 21 to 30 requested a vehicle inspection compared with 42% of men in that age group, according to

What's more, men are more concerned with performance rather than reliability: The majority of questions from male buyers primarily covered a vehicle's overall driving and engine performance, aesthetics, high-tech features "and some minor safety features," the study says.

—Quentin Fottrell, Pay Dirt Blog,
