The company, Edifi College Financial Aid Services, has invited Utah high school students to receive "free personal interviews" and attend a seminar about financial assistance Saturday and Sunday at the Sheraton City Centre.

The BBB has received 130 complaints about the company in the past three years, but Edifi's chief operating officer, John Braat, questioned the legitimacy of the BBB's ratings. He said the bureau is falsely accusing the company of using high-pressure sales tactics and that the majority of the complaints are from families that defaulted on their payments.

"The Better Business Bureau is little more than a tool to be used by people for extortion. We have strived for years to make sure that the presentation is of value," said Braat.

So far, about 140 families have signed up to attend the seminar in Salt Lake City, and Braat said that no families will be charged money unless they decide to sign up for Edifi's services.

"We show them the price before they choose to sit with a counselor. We can determine if the service is of value, and if it isn't, we turn people away. If it's obvious that they won't get any aid, I tell them that this would not be a good program for them," he said.

Braat said that Edifi charges $1,195 for its services, and offers a $400 discount for those who attend the seminar. The company, however, does not keep statistics about whether the aid students receive generally exceeds the fees the company charges, he said.

"If they don't receive much aid, we can't control that. But we talk to them beforehand in the interviews and generate estimates for families that are unbelievably accurate," he said.

The BBB says that the interviews are just a sales pitch in which the company tries to sign parents and students up for its services. The financial aid application Edifi fills out for students includes the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which is managed by the U.S. Department of Education and for which there is no charge.

Braat said that the company doesn't hide that students or parents could fill out the application on their own, but he said the company's other services often make the price worth it. Edifi offers to help students appeal financial aid awards to get more money, and has materials online to help students take college entrance tests.

"We tell people, 'You can do this all yourself if you're willing to do the necessary things and do research,' " said Braat.

This is the first time the company has come to Utah, said BBB of Utah President and CEO Jane Driggs.

"Hopefully there won't be any complaints or problems in Utah," she said.

blange@sltrib.com

offers the following advice:

* Talk to a financial professional. Sit down with your accountant, financial adviser, banker or insurance agent to assess your child's pending long-term educational needs. Aside from investing and saving money for your child's education, there are financial aid programs available to help pay for this expense.

* Learn about types of aid. Financial aid is generally divided into three categories: grants and scholarships; loans; and work-study. Grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, loans must be repaid over a time period, and work-study jobs are work positions in which students are paid for work on campus.

* Talk to a financial aid servicer at a school. Information on the federal aid programs can be obtained in several different ways. Ask your high school's guidance counselor or contact the state education department for state and local aid.

Source: Better Business Bureau