There is such a thing as free money for college. All you have to do is graduate on time with decent grades to get it.

I didn't say there weren't any strings attached.

In Texas, college students who earn their undergraduate degrees in fewer than five years are eligible to get out of their student loans free.

The state's B-On-Time loan program is open to anyone who graduated from a Texas high school after 2003. If you've already got a bachelor's degree, it's too late to go back and collect from this pot of gold.

 Otherwise, you're eligible for between $1,270 and $4,750 a year, depending on the type of school you're at. Because government funding for this program is limited, there's no guarantee you'll get the loan. But since legitimate free money always is worth a shot, there's no reason not to try.

To qualify for a B-On-Time loan, you must enroll as a full-time student, have a high school degree, apply for financial aid and meet any specific requirements set by your school.

To transform the loan into actual free money, you'll have to graduate with a 3.0 GPA without taking more than six course hours above your degree program's requirements.

Or, you'll have to graduate with a cumulative GPA of at least a 3.0 and do it within four calendar years, five if the degree is in architecture, engineering or another specialized program that usually requires longer to complete.
You'll have to graduate within two years if you're at a community college.

If your GPA is between 2.5 or 2.9 at graduation, you'll have to repay the loans, but you can get out of making any interest payments.

That would be the B-On-Time portion of the B-On-Time loan program. You actually have to graduate on time.

When I was at the University of Texas at San Antonio, I thought on time was six years.

Recent statistics show only 22 percent of college students actually graduate in four years.

I stayed in college one extra semester before I graduated in 2004. A lot of my friends stayed longer.

One, we'll call him “G,” used to make fun of a college buddy for dating a high school girl five years younger. Several years later, G didn't find it funny when the girl graduated before him.

The B-On-Time program is meant to encourage students like G to get out into the work force instead of hanging out for a few extra years of frat parties, football games and going to class in pajamas.

For a few thousand dollars a year, I might have worked really hard to make better grades and not extend my college stay. I bet G would have, too.

After all, what better motivator is there than money?