So now that we’ve covered how to avoid being scammed I’m sure you wondering how you can find legitimate scholarships. I have twelve tips that I give families that will help you get some of that illusive scholarship money. You can check these out at college scholarships and free money for college.
- Start with a FREE reputable online scholarship search, like www.fastweb.com or srnexpress.com or buy a scholarship book that is LESS THAN ONE YEAR OLD. Also, library and colleges themselves are good sources of info.
- Check yours and your parents’ employers. Many have scholarships that nobody knows about that not many other students compete for. Each time I teach a class on this subject, I get a call or two the next day from parents thanking me for this.
- If at least 1/6th Native American, check with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. They often have killer scholarships available depending on what tribe you are from.
- Since you don’t have unlimited time, apply wisely. DO NOT apply for scholarships that ‘everyone’ can apply for. Try to find things that are more unique to you. Example: Loyola Chicago has a scholarship for people who meet two criteria: Catholic and last name Zolp. This is different than Coca-Cola scholarship that almost anybody can apply for. Look for stuff that matches you as closely as possible, and weeds out as many others as possible. IMPROVE YOUR ODDS.
- Do NOT apply for scholarships that your do not qualify for. Example: don’t apply for a scholarship that has a 3.75 GPA requirement if you have a 3.6.
- Do make sure you get your application to them in time. Missing a deadline just means you wasted your time, since you will automatically be disqualified.
- Don’t assume you don’t qualify just because you don’t have a perfect GPA, perfect SAT scores. During the research process, you can learn what they are looking for and many sponsors are looking for something other than grades, like community service or religious affiliation.
- Read the directions. Don’t leave sections blank.
- Write a good essay about something you’re enthusiastic about. Put time into it and proof it.
- Get letter of recommendation from people who will do a good job for you, not just whoever is handy.
- Start NOW. As in RIGHT NOW. Don’t wait until you’re a senior or already in college.
- Lastly, don’t forget to apply for financial aid, even if you think that you don’t qualify or your family makes too much money. This is where over $100 BILLION each year is available, versus less than $3 billion for scholarship money. Many parents miss this altogether. Each time I ask the question in my seminars: “ How were you planning on paying for college” Most parents will mention scholarships and loans. Many miss the fact that financial aid is a very large source of funds and should always be applied for. I would, however, never discourage a family from applying for scholarships…except in extreme example. I had a very nice lady come into my office with a box about 2 feet long. I really was not expecting any gifts. Inside the box were scholarship applications. In this case she had so many scholarship applications that her daughter could not have possibly done a thorough job on each one.
I hope these tips keep your family away from the scammers. College tuition has gone up by 35% since 2001 and the scammers know this. They are looking for ways to make money on your family. For the full report and more go to college scholarships and free money for college.
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Apply to as many scholarships as you can. There are tons and tons of scholarships that go unused every single year. If you really put some time and effort it into your scholarship search, you can save a great deal of money on schooling.
Scholarship applications and be long and tiring but in the end the free money for college is well worth the time spent. Trust me I’m still paying back student loans.
Ooh dang i just wrote a long comment and as soon as i submitted it it come up blank! Please tell me it worked right? I do not want to write it again if i do not have to! Either the blog bugged out or i am just stuipd, the second option doesnt surprise me lol.
My mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. She said that ‘achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you. Success is being praised by others, and that’s nice, too, but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for achievement and forget about success.’
Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.