This question comes from my reader Nicole…
I’m currently working on looking for scholarship opportunities for my soon to be high school senior, (and her brother the following year) I’ve seen a ton of websites, but was wondering if you’ve heard from other readers or friends of which websites are the best for listing available scholarship opportunities by state?
Go local. I am Greek Orthodox and just by submitting an application to a scholarship program through my church I received $2000. With a smaller pool of applicants I was able to stand out and get more $. Find something unique about yourself or reach out to your community to find things you qualify for.
As a College Admissions Counselor, I can’t stress enough just apply for everything! You can ask local businesses, fastweb.com is great. Your college should also have scholarship applications on their financial aid page. We also include FAFSA opportunities in with our schol. app (i.e. You can only get a certain incentive if both forms have been filled out.) And don’t stop applying, the schol. app opens up every spring. Fastweb.com has information for all levels of students, in all studies. If you find your major sooner than later, that’s good too. Ask your department for specific major scholarships & opportunities. GL!
As a high school counselor I like zinch.com. Lot less ads, great filters to find scholarships relevant to your student, and they have a great scholarship matching program. If you student applies for a scholarship from the site and wins then Zinch will match the money they won. Same thing applies for them recommending a scholarship through the site to a friend. If the friend wins then they will send a matching check to your student for recommending it.
We have also been using the Ultimate Scholarship Book this year and have found it to be a great complied list of scholarships.
I graduated last year from a four year university. I have no debt from college. I recommend checking with your insurance company especially if your family has been a member for many years. Think of other activities that you and your family are a part of some churches give scholarships and other organizations you have been apart for years. Apply every semester for many different scholarships to increase your odds of being chosen. Keeping your grades good and becoming active in many different activities shows that you are a good candidate.
ELKS.ORG They have scholarships! Second to the US Government in scholarship money giveaways!!!
I was able to fund 4 years of private school through scholarships so it is possible. I used fastweb.com and my high school and college counselors and scholarship resources. Apply to as many as possible and never give up!
Try Cappex, they have been very good, their website has a ton of great scholarships. Good Luck!
You can call the financial aid offices at the colleges that she is looking to attend and get them to send you a list of all the scholarships they offer. They may even refer you to a link on thir website but the list should include a description of applicant criteria for each type of scholarship (ie, a scholarship specific for students in her major, scholarships for children of veterans, gener scholarships that anyone can apply to). They can also do the same thing for grants. Grants are not loans and therefore do not have to be paid back and they are similar to scholarships in that certain students can apply for certain grants. Also, if she will be living on campus, tell her to make friends with her RA immediatley and as soon as she is elegible, apply to be an RA. RA’s typically get free housing and some even get compensation either by paycheck or meal plan and being an RA is very easy if you are organized and not a procrastinator.
Don’t just look at being an RA as an easy way to pay for college. It is a big responsibility to be an RA and it can be very stressful. Being an RA is not for everyone – you need to be able to confront your friends, to stay calm in emergency situations, mediate between roommates, things like that. Sure the programming and bulletin boards part of it may be very easy, but my experience as an RA tells me that it is so much more than that. And don’t think nothing big will ever happen during the time you are an RA. Being an RA can help you pay for college, but it is a big responsibility and a lifestyle (because you have to be able to be a role model) and it should not be entered into lightly just to get the money.
Check the high school, college that you plan on attending, and family members work place. Don’t be afraid to apply for everything you are eligible for.
Definitely try local clubs – Women’s Club, Rotary Club, etc., and also check with the actual colleges the student might apply to. There are scholarships out there for all kinds of things – volunteer work, specific career paths being pursued, high SAT/ACT scores, grade point average, etc. High school guidance offices should be able to help, but some high schools are a lot more helpful than others. Even home-schoolers can get scholarships for the years they spent being home-schooled.
Your high school college counselor can be a huge help with this. They get notified about many scholarships and try to match them to the kids who best qualify. If you haven’t had an appointment with the school college counselor, do it now. Ours found a $20,000 scholarship for my dd and it is one that she can use at any college.
I second the fastweb comment above, but they do send ALOT of e-mails. They’re still sending me e-mails and I graduated last year.
I am currently a college senior. I have filled out dozens of scholarships on those websites and I’m sure thousands of other people do as well. Your best bet is to go to the guidance office in your child’s high school. They have TONS of scholarship applications that they do and do not advertise. Also go to the website of the school they are applying to or even better go to the registrars office. They have been very helpful to me. Hope this helps!
If your kids have definite preference for the school they want to go to, look into applying early decision. Basically, doing this you are making the commitment to go if you are accepted and this also puts you first in line for their scholarship money. I did this myself and it definitely paid off!
I would definitely contact the school’s financial aid office. They’ll be able to let you know of any school, departmental, or even local scholarships. Also, if you have a library near by, go one day (when you have plenty of time) and go over their scholarship reference books. I know my local library has three and I was able to find an Indian heritage scholarship for $400/semester! Usually you can’t check these books out, but you can photocopy or take notes.
Go to the main offices of the different departments (start with the area you’re studying) and ask if they have any scholarship jobs available. (Ask sooner rather than later) That’s how I got my full-ride scholarship :)
Try local clubs
You can find available scholarships off the actual College websites as well! even scholarships for books
http://www.fastweb.com – it’s fantastic!