When it comes to financial aid for college, the myths continue to be perpetuated. For example, a leading talk show host told a caller: "If you're in the middle class, you're not going to get any financial aid anyway."

That is precisely the kind of statement that drives David Miller to distraction.

Miller is the director of financial aid at The College of Wooster. Year after year, Miller finds himself correcting the same misconceptions.

"One of my greatest frustrations is in realizing how many families may not even bother to get involved in the process because they have received incorrect information about it," says Miller. "Often the anecdotes on which they base this decision are simply wrong."

Consequently, Miller considers one of his primary tasks is to educate college-bound students and their parents about financial aid.

The following is Miller's list of the seven most common financial aid myths:

Seven Financial Aid Myths

1) Selective independent colleges and universities are for only rich kids.

Not true. Several national studies have shown that the parental incomes of students in private colleges are, on average, lower than parental incomes of students in large state universities. At Wooster, for example, more than nine out of ten students receive financial aid.

2) There is no aid available for middle-class families.

Not true. Especially if you apply to a high-cost college, even families with middle class incomes often cannnot expected to cover the entire cost of education themselves. Institutional financial aid may well be available even if you are not eligible for a federal grant.

At Wooster, the average family income of students receiving financial aid is over $70,000. Families with incomes at this level are receiving grant aid-not loans-averaging $18,000...half of our total charge for tuition, room, and board.

3) Millions of financial aid dollars go unclaimed every year.

Not true. A few endowed scholarships with quite specific criteria may not be awarded for lack of suitable candidates, but they are rare. Financial aid is not 'funny money'. Colleges make every effort to award good students all the aid they can. We do not benefit from unused scholarships. We benefit when scholarships are awarded to help students obtain an education.

At Wooster, for instance, in 2006-2007 our students are receiving more than $27.5 million in institutional grants and scholarships. (On the other hand, we do have an endowed scholarship for the descendents of Lester Evans of Cambridge, Ohio, which we cannot award every year.)

4) Merit scholarships are only for exceptionally intelligent students.

Not true. Not every private college offers merit scholarships without regard to a family's financial need, but many--perhaps most--do offer merit scholarships to reward a wide variety of student accomplishments.

At Wooster, for instance, half of the students in each year's entering class are merit scholarship winners, including our 'Scottish Arts Scholarship' winners who excel in one of the Scottish musical arts of bagpiping, drumming, or dancing.

5) Since my older child did not get financial aid at a state university, I know that my younger child will not qualify at a high-cost private school.

Not true. Aid eligibility is partially determined by the cost of the school in which you have an interest. A family who receives little or no aid at a low-cost state institution might well qualify for significant financial aid at an independent college. A family that is not eligible for federal or state grants might well receive grants from the college itself. Because of financial aid, many families discover that a private school ends up costing no more than a state school would.

6) My child is interested in a college we cannot afford, so she or he should not even consider applying.

Not true. If a college is genuinely too expensive for you to afford, you will be offered financial aid. You will never know how much any college actually costs-the bottom line expense to the family-until you see how much financial aid might be offered to lower its 'list price'.

7) The process of applying for financial aid is too complicated.

Not true. The federal government is committed to streamlining the aid application process. Much of the information requested on the aid application comes directly from the family's tax returns. Financial aid professionals are eager to help families understand how to apply. But it is true that you will never receive financial aid unless you apply for it.

David Miller has been director of financial aid at The College of Wooster since 1991. He holds B.A., M.A., M.Ph., and Ph.D. degrees from Yale and has been a college teacher and administrator for 30 years. He recently completed a term as Vice President for Training in the Ohio Association of Financial Aid Administrators. He speaks frequently to audiences of parents and high school counselors about financial aid.