How to Win the Scholarships You Find : Strategically Choose What to List

Imagine that you need to give a speech to two groups of people. Without knowing who your audience is, you would have a difficult time composing a speech that would appeal to them, right? It would make a huge difference if one were a group of mathematicians and the other a group of fashion designers. To grab the attention of each of these audiences, you’d need to adjust your speech accordingly. References to
mathematical theorems would hardly go over well with the designers, just as the mathematicians probably couldn’t care less about how black the “new” black really is.

In much the same way, you need to decide what to highlight on your
scholarship application based on the purpose of the award. When you
know what the scholarship judges are looking for, it makes it easier to decide
what to include or omit. As we mentioned earlier, organizations don’t give
away scholarships and expect nothing in return. Behind their philanthropic
motives lies an ulterior motive—to promote their organization’s purpose. If
you prioritized your list of scholarships correctly, you’ve already uncovered
the purpose for each award. Now look at all your activities, interests, hobbies
and achievements. Ask yourself which ones fi t the purpose of each award and
would make a positive impression on the scholarship judges.

Let’s imagine that you are applying for an award given by an organization
of professional journalists. In visiting their website, you learn that print and
broadcast journalists join this group because they are passionate about the
profession of journalism and want to encourage public awareness about the
importance of a free press. Immediately, you know that you need to highlight
those experiences that demonstrate your zeal for journalism and, if applicable,
your belief in the value of a free press.

Among your activities and accomplishments are the following:

• Soccer team captain
• Vice President of the Writers’ Club
• Key Club treasurer
• Columnist for your high school newspaper
• English essay contest winner
• Summer job working at a pet store
• Summer internship at a radio station

As you look at this list, you can eliminate some activities outright. Your
involvement on the soccer team, with the Key Club, and your job at the pet
store are not relevant and don’t show how you fi t with the purpose of the
scholarship.

However, even looking at what’s left, you still have to decide which ones
to list fi rst. As you think about the purpose of the scholarship, you remember
that in the Writers’ Club you participated in a workshop that helped
a local elementary school start its own newspaper. Since this achievement
almost perfectly matches the mission of our hypothetical journalism organization,
use your limited space in the application to list it fi rst and to add an
explanation.

You might write something like this:
Writers’ Club, Vice President, organized “Writing Counts”
workshop at Whitman Elementary School, which resulted in the
launch of the school’s fi rst student-run newspaper.

Think of the impact this would have on the scholarship judges. “Look
here, Fred!” one journalist on the judging committee would say. “This student
does what we do! Defi nitely someone we should interview!”

When choosing accomplishments to list, don’t be afraid to eliminate any
that don’t fi t—even good ones. You have limited space in which to cram a
lot of information. As you fi ll out the application, you may fi nd that you are
trying to squeeze in too many details or simply too many things. You need to
be ruthless in trimming down what you submit to the judges. Make sure to
include the accomplishments that best fi t the purpose of the award.

At the same time you are picking which things to include in your application,
be sure to also be aware of what might be offensive to the organization’s
members. Just imagine what would happen if you thoughtlessly mentioned
that you were the author of an economics project entitled “How Labor Unions
Make the U.S. Unable to Compete and Lower Our Standard of Living” to
judges who are members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Clearly you can’t use the same list of activities and accomplishments for
every scholarship. You must take the time to craft a unique list that matches
what each of the scholarships is intended to reward.
Read More : How to Win the Scholarships You Find : Strategically Choose What to List

Prioritize the Scholarships You Find

Until now, we have focused on where to fi nd scholarships. If you invest time exploring these areas, you should have a fairly long list of potential scholarships.

It may be tempting to start cranking out applications. We actually have a name for the methodology used by students that apply to anything and everything they find it’s called the “shotgun” approach and it never works.

Just because you fi nd an award for which you qualify does not mean that you should immediately apply. You want to focus your energies (and limited time)
only on those awards that you have the best chance of winning.It would save a lot of time if you knew beforehand which scholarships you’d win and which you wouldn’t. With this information, you’d only spend time applying for the scholarships that you knew would result in cash in your pocket. While there is no way to be 100 percent certain that you’ll win any
scholarship, you can do some research and make an educated guess.

Here are the steps you should take with each scholarship to determine if
you have a reasonable chance of winning it. By prioritizing your list based on
these criteria, you’ll be able to focus time on awards that you have the best
odds of winning while not wasting time on the ones where being a match is
a long shot.

Step 1 Learn the Purpose
Nobody, and we mean nobody, gives away money without a reason. Every
sponsor of a scholarship has a concrete reason for giving away their hardearned
cash to students like you. For example, a teachers’ organization might
award a scholarship to encourage students to enter the teaching profession.

An environmental group might sponsor a scholarship with the purpose of
promoting environmental awareness, or it might reward students who have
done environmental work in school. A local bank might give money to a student
who has done a great deal of public service as a way to give back to the
community in which it does business.

Your job is to uncover the purpose of every scholarship on your list. If
you’re lucky, it will be stated in the description of the award. Look at the
eligibility requirements to see what kind of questions the scholarship spon

sors are asking. Is there a GPA requirement? If there is and it’s relatively high,
academic achievement is probably important. If the GPA requirement is low,
then grades are probably not important. Does the application ask for a list of
extracurricular activities? If so, they are probably a signifi cant part of the selection
criteria. Do you need to submit an essay on a specifi c topic or a project
to demonstrate profi ciency in a fi eld of study? All these requirements are clues
about what the scholarship judges think will (and won’t) be important.

For example, the sole purpose of a public service scholarship may be to
reward a student’s philanthropic acts. If that is the case, the application will
most likely be focused on descriptions of a student’s selfl ess deeds. On the
other hand, a scholarship given by a major corporation may be based on a
combination of grades, leadership and character.

If you cannot determine the purpose of the scholarship by reading its description
and eligibility requirements, then you need to look for the purpose
of the group that sponsors the award. For example, even if the scholarship
description does not directly state it, you can be sure that an award given
by an organization that is composed of local physicians will probably prefer
that the winner have a connection with medicine or an intention to enter the
medical fi eld.

The membership of the organization can be a big clue. Just as your friends
are a refl ection of who you are, most clubs and organizations want to reach
students who are similar to their membership. If you don’t know much about
the organization, contact them to learn background information regarding
the history, purpose or contributions of the group. Visit the organization’s
website. Read their brochures or publications. The more you know about
why the organization is giving the award, the better you’ll understand how
you may or may not fi t.

Somewhere on your list of potential scholarships, note in a few words its
purpose. You’ll be using this information in the next step which is to determine
if you can make a case that you are the type of person the scholarship
committee is looking for.


Step 2 Think Like a Judge
Once you know the purpose of the scholarship, you need to see if you are
a match for the organization that sponsors it. At this point students often
make one of two mistakes. Either they 1) overestimate how well they fi t the
purpose or, more commonly, 2) underestimate their qualifi cations and don’t
apply. After working with thousands of students, we have learned that students
more often underestimate their abilities than overestimate. Try to be
realistic, but also don’t sell yourself short. Remember that scholarship judges
are not looking for the perfect match. There are a lot of factors that will infl uence
their decision, and many of these things—like personality, character and
motivation—are diffi cult to measure.

Let’s look at an example. If you are your school’s star journalist, naturally
you should apply for journalism scholarships. But if all you have done is write
a single letter to the editor, then spend your time applying to scholarships
that better match what you have accomplished. You can still apply for a journalism
scholarship, especially if you only recently realized that you want to
become a journalist, but you will be at a disadvantage compared to the other
applicants and therefore should prioritize this award below other awards on
your to-do list.

As you go through your list of scholarships, move to the bottom those
which are the weakest matches to the goal of the scholarships. Make those
awards that fi t you best your highest priority. These are the ones that you
want to focus on first.


Step 3 Take a Reality Check
Scholarship deadlines are not like tax deadlines, where there is a single day
when all forms are due. The deadlines for scholarships vary. Be aware of
these crucial dates. Unless you plan carefully, you may miss out on a scholarship
simply because you don’t have the time to create a decent application.
Sandwiched among studying, sleeping and everything else in your busy life,
there is limited time to spend on applying for scholarships. If you fi nd a
great scholarship that is due next week but requires a yet to-be-written original
composition that would take a month, you should probably pass on the
competition. If you know that, given the amount of time available, you won’t
be able to do an acceptable job, it’s better to pass and move on to awards in
which you have the time to put together a winning application. Remember
too that you may be able to apply for the award next year.

Review Your List Daily
After you prioritize your scholarships with the ones you feel fi t you best at the
top of the list, push yourself to apply to as many as you can, working from
top to bottom. You probably won’t get to the end. This is okay since you have
the least chance of winning the awards at the bottom anyway. By prioritizing
and working methodically down your list, you will have hedged your bets by
making sure that your fi rst applications are for the scholarships that you have
the best chance of winning while also not limiting yourself to only a handful
of awards.
Read More : Prioritize the Scholarships You Find

Scholarship : Searching Beyond Your Backyard

Once you have exhausted the opportunities in the community, it is time to broaden your search. Although the applicant pool is often larger with national awards, you shouldn’t rule them out. Because many national award programs have marketing budgets, fi nding these awards may actually be easier than local awards. Most national awards will be advertised and the following places will help you track them down:

Internet
Forget the time-wasting social networks, and let’s use the Internet for something productive. We recommend that you use as many online scholarship databases as possible as long as they are free. There are enough quality free databases that you should not have to pay for any online search. Here are a
few we recommend:

• SuperCollege (www.supercollege.com)
• Sallie Mae (www.salliemae.com/scholarships)
• BrokeScholar (www.brokescholar.com)
• Careers and Colleges (www.careersandcolleges.com)
• The College Board (www.collegeboard.com)
• Free Scholarship Information (www.freschinfo.com)
• Scholarships.com (www.scholarships.com)
• AdventuresinEducation (www.adventuresineducation.org)
• CollegeNet (www.collegenet.com)
• Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies (www.einaudi.cornell.edu/funding/search.asp)

Just remember that while many online databases claim to have billions
of dollars in scholarships listed, they represent only a tiny fraction of what is
available. We have personally used nearly every free scholarship database on
the Internet and know from experience that none of them (including our own
at www.supercollege.com) lists every scholarship that you might win. Think
of these databases as starting points, and remember that they are not the only
places to fi nd awards.

Professional associations
There is an association for every profession you can imagine. Whether you
want to be a doctor, teacher or helicopter pilot, there are professional organizations
that exist not only to advance the profession, but also to encourage
students to enter that fi eld by awarding grants and scholarships.

To find these associations, contact people who are already in the profession.
If you think you want to become a computer programmer, ask computer
programmers about the associations to which they belong. Also look at the
trade magazines that exist for the profession since they have advertisements
for various professional organizations.

Another way to fi nd associations is through books like The Encyclopedia of
Associations. This multi-volume set found at most college libraries lists nearly
every professional association in the United States. Once you fi nd these associations,
contact them or visit their websites to see if they offer scholarships.

Professional associations often provide scholarships for upper-level college
students, graduate school or advanced training. But even high school
students who know what they want to do after college can fi nd money from
associations.

Big business
If you’ve never received a personal “thank you” from large companies like
Coca-Cola, Tylenol or Microsoft, here it is. A lot of these have charitable
foundations that award scholarships. Companies give these awards to give
something back to the community (and the positive PR sure doesn’t hurt either).
When you visit company websites, look for links to their foundations,
which often manage the scholarship programs.

Many companies offer similar types of scholarships. What if you’re a student
fi lm maker? Think about all the companies that make money or sell
products to you from cameras to editing software to tripods. Are you into industrial
music? What special equipment or instruments do you use? Consider
the companies that will benefi t from more people using their products and
services. Some companies also offer awards to attract future employees. For
example, Microsoft, the software company, sponsors a scholarship program
for student programmers. Be sure to investigate companies that employ people
in your fi eld of study—especially if it is highly competitive—to see if they
offer scholarships.


Colleges
You may think that checks only travel from your pocket to your college to
pay for tuition. But colleges actually give a lot of money to students. Some
of this money comes from the college itself while other money is from generous
donations of alumni. Every college administers a number of scholarships,
some based on fi nancial need and some based on merit. What many students
don’t know is that often a student’s application for admission is also used by
the college to determine if he or she may win a scholarship. This is one reason
it is worth the submission of any optional essay suggested on a college application.
Even if the essay does not impact your admission, it could be used to
award you some scholarship dollars.
Read More : Scholarship : Searching Beyond Your Backyard

Start Your Scholarship Search in Your Own Backyard

When we began looking for scholarships, we made what is perhaps the biggest mistake of the novice scholarship hunter—we started by looking as far away as possible. We were mesmerized by the big prizes of the large (and often well-publicized) national awards. We thought, “If I won just one of these national scholarship competitions, I’d be set and could end my search.” This turned out to be a big mistake and an even bigger timewaster.

It seemed that everyone and his brother, sister and cousin were also applying to these competitions. The Coca-Cola scholarship competition, for example, receives more than 100,000 applications each year.

It turned out that the last place we looked for scholarships was our most lucrative source. Best of all, this place turned out to be in our own backyard! What are backyard scholarships and where do you fi nd them? Think about all the civic groups, clubs, businesses, churches and organizations in your community. Each of these is a potential source for scholarships. (If you are already in college, you have two communities: your hometown and the city in which you go to school.) Since these awards are usually only available to students in your community, the competition is a lot less fierce.

You may be thinking, “What good is a $500 Lions Club scholarship when my college costs 20 grand a year?” It’s true that local scholarships don’t award the huge prizes that some of the national competitions do. You already know that we won over $100,000 in scholarships. What we haven’t told you is that the majority of this money came from local scholarships! We literally won $500 here and $1,500 there. By the time we graduated from Harvard and added up all the awards, it turned out to be a huge amount. Plus, some of

the local scholarships that we won were “renewable,” which meant that we received that money each year we were in college. So a $500 renewable scholarship was really worth $2,000 over four years.

If you still can’t get excited because these local awards seem small compared to the cost of tuition, try this exercise: Take the amount of the award and divide it by the time you invested in the application. For the $500 Lions Club award, let’s say that you spent one hour each night for three days to complete the application

and write the essay. Take $500 and divide it by three hours. That works out to a little over $166 per hour. (Now imagine that the award was for $1,000 instead. That would make it $333 per hour!) Not bad by any measure. If you can fi nd a job that pays you more than $166 an hour, then take it and forget applying to scholarships. If not, get back to applying for scholarships–even the little ones!

Let’s get specific and look at all of the places in your backyard to find scholarships.

High school counselor or college fi nancial aid officer

If you are a high school student, start with your counselor. Ask if he or she has a list of scholarship opportunities. Most counselors have a binder fi lled with local scholarships. It’s helpful if before your meeting, you prepare information about your family’s fi nancial background as well as special interests or talents you have that would make you eligible for scholarships. Don’t forget that your own high school will have a variety of scholarships from such places as the parent-teacher organization, alumni group and athletic booster clubs.

If you are a college student, make an appointment with your school’s financial aid offi ce. Before the appointment, think about what interests and talents you have and what fi eld you may want to enter after graduation. Take a copy of your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as background

(www.fafsa.ed.gov). Mention any special circumstances about your family’s fi nancial situation. Ask the fi nancial aid offi cer for recommendations of scholarships offered by the college or by community organizations.

Also, if you have already declared a major, check with the department’s administrative assistant or chair for any awards that you might be eligible to win. It’s important whenever you speak to a counselor (either in high school or college) that you inquire about any scholarships that require nomination. Often these scholarships are easier to win since the applicant pool is smaller. You have nothing to lose by asking, and if anything, it shows how serious you are about fi nancing your education.

High school websites

You may not visit your school’s website daily, but when you are looking for scholarships, it pays to search the site for lists of scholarships. Most high schools post scholarship opportunities for students on their websites. (You may have to dig down a few levels to fi nd this list.)

Other high school websites

If your school does not post scholarship opportunities, surf over to the websites of other high schools in the area. You’ll fi nd that many offer a wealth of scholarship resources.

Nearby colleges

While your college has great scholarship resources, wouldn’t it be great if you had double or triple these resources? You can. Simply seek the resources of other local colleges. Ask permission fi rst, but you’ll fi nd that most neighboring schools are more than willing to help you. If you are in high school, nothing prevents you from visiting a local college and asking for scholarship information. Because you are a prospective student, the college will often be happy to provide whatever assistance it can.

Student clubs and organizations

Here’s a reason to enjoy your extracurricular activities even more. One benefit of participating may be a scholarship sponsored by the organization. Inquire with the officers or advisors of the organization about scholarship funds.

Bands, newspapers, academic clubs, athletic organizations and service organizations often have scholarships that are awarded to outstanding members. If the organization has a national parent organization (e.g. National Honor Society) visit the national organization website. There are often awards that are given by the parent organization for members of local chapters.

Community organizations

Maybe you’ve wondered why community organizations have so many breakfast fundraisers—one reason is that some provide money for scholarships. You usually don’t have to be a member of these organizations to apply. In fact, many community groups sponsor scholarships that are open to all students who live in the area. As we have mentioned, college students really have two communities: their hometown and where they go to college. Don’t neglect either of these places.

How do you fi nd these organizations? Many local government websites list them. Visit the websites for your town, city and state. Also visit or call your community association or center. You can use the phone book to look up organizations. Some phone books even have a calendar of annual events that are sponsored by various civic groups. Finally, don’t forget to pay a visit to the public library and ask the reference librarian for help. Here is a brief list of some of the more common civic groups to track down:

• Altrusa
• American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary
• American Red Cross
• Association of Junior Leagues International
• Boys and Girls Clubs
• Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts
• Circle K
• Civitan
• Elks Club
• Lions Club
• 4-H Clubs
• Fraternal Order of Eagles
• Friends of the Library
• Kiwanis International
• Knights of Columbus
• National Exchange Club
• National Grange
• Optimist International
• Performing Arts Center
• Rotary Club
• Rotaract and Interact
• Ruritan
• Sertoma International
• Soroptimist International of the Americas
• U.S. Jaycees
• USA Freedom Corps
• Veterans of Foreign Wars
• YMCA and YWCA
• Zonta International

Local businesses

Businesses like to return some of their profi ts to employees and students in the community. Many offer scholarships as a way to reward students who both study and work. Ask your manager if your employer has a scholarship fund and how you can apply. Some companies—particularly large conglomerates that have offi ces, distributorships or factories in your community—offer scholarships that all students in the community are eligible to win. Check with the chamber of commerce for a list of the largest companies in the area.

You can call the public relations or community outreach department in these companies to inquire about any scholarship opportunities. Visit the large department and chain stores in the area and ask the store manager or customer service manager about scholarships.

Parents’ employer

Your parents may hate their jobs, but they’ll love the fact that many companies award scholarships to the children of employees as a benefit. They should speak with someone in the human resources department or with their direct managers about scholarships and other educational programs offered by their company.

Parents’ or grandparents’ military service

If your parents or grandparents served in the U.S. Armed Forces, you may qualify for a scholarship from a military association. Each branch of the service and even specifi c divisions within each branch have associations. Speak with your parents and grandparents about their military service and see if they belong to or know of these military associations.

Your employer

Flipping burgers may have an up side. Even if you work only part-time, you may qualify for an educational scholarship given by your employer. For example, McDonald’s offers the National Employee Scholarship to reward the accomplishments of its student-employees. There is even a McScholar of the Year prize that includes a $5,000 scholarship. If you have a full- or part-time job, ask your employer about scholarships.

Parents’ union

Don’t know if your parents are in a union? Ask and fi nd out. Some unions sponsor scholarships for the children of their members. Ask your parents to speak with the union offi cers about scholarships and other educational programs sponsored by their union.

Interest clubs

Performing arts centers, city orchestras, equestrian associations and amateur sports leagues are just a few of the many special interest clubs that may offer scholarships. While some limit their awards to members, many simply look for students who are interested in what they support. A city performing arts center, for example, may offer an award for a talented performing artist in the community.

Professional sports teams

They may not have won a World Series since the 1950s, but don’t discount them as a viable scholarship source. Many local professional athletic teams offer community awards (and not necessarily for athletes) as a way to contribute to the cities in which they are based.

Church or religious organizations

Religious organizations may provide scholarships for members. If you or your parents are members of a religious organization, check with the leaders to see if a scholarship is offered.

Local government

Some cities and counties provide scholarships specifi cally designated for local students. Often, local city council members and state representatives sponsor a scholarship fund. Even if you didn’t vote for them, call their offi ces and ask if they offer a scholarship.

Local newspaper

Local newspapers often print announcements about students who win scholarships. Keep a record of the scholarships featured or go to the library or look online at back issues of the newspaper. Check last year’s spring issues (between March and June) for announcements of scholarship recipients. Contact the sponsoring organizations to see if you’re eligible to enter the next competition.

Read More : Start Your Scholarship Search in Your Own Backyard

Common Scholarship Myths

Now that we’ve cleared up some of the misconceptions about books and websites, let’s debunk some of the common scholarship myths. We hate these myths because not only are they untrue, but they often prevent students from applying for scholarships.

Myth: You need to be fi nancially destitute to be eligible to apply for scholarships.
Busted: While it is true that fi nancial need is a consideration for some scholarships, the definition of “need” varies considerably. Given the cost of a college education, many families who consider themselves to be “middle class” actually qualify for some need-based scholarships. In addition, there are many scholarships where financial need is not even a factor. These “merit-based” scholarships are based on achievements, skills, career goals, family background and a host of other considerations that have nothing to do with a family’s financial situation. You could actually be the son or daughter of Donald Trump and still win a “merit-based” scholarship.

Myth: You can only win scholarships as a high school senior.
Busted: It is never too early or too late to apply for scholarships. There are awards for students as young as seventh grade. If you win, the money is usually held in an account until it is time for you to actually go to college. But even if there are not as many awards for younger students as there are for seniors, it doesn’t mean it’s not important to look. Finding awards that you can apply for next year or even two years from now is a huge advantage. Keep a list of these awards since you are going to be super busy as a senior (think college apps and AP classes!) and you are going to be so thankful when you can just refer to your fi le of previously found awards and don’t have to spend time searching. At the same time, you also don’t want to stop applying for scholarships after you graduate from high school. There are many awards for college students. Once you are in college, you should continue to apply for scholarships, especially those geared toward specific majors and careers.

Myth: Only star athletes get college scholarships.
Busted: While star running backs receiving full-tuition scholarships are often what make the news, the majority of scholarships awarded by colleges are not for athletics. As you will see in this book, there are literally thousands of scholarships for those of us who don’t know the difference between a touchdown and a touchback. Even if you are an athlete, you might also be surprised to know that many colleges give scholarships to student athletes who may not be destined to become the next Michael Jordan. The needs of a college’s athletic program depend on the level of their competition. You may find that at one college your soccer skill wouldn’t earn you a place on the team as a bench warmer; but at another school, you might not only be a starter but also earn a half-tuition scholarship.

Myth: You need straight A’s to win money for college.
Busted: While straight A’s certainly don’t hurt, most students mistakenly assume that grades are the primary determinate for selecting scholarship winners.
This is just not true. Most scholarships are based on criteria other than grades and reward specific skills or talents such as linguistic, athletic or artistic ability. Even for scholarships in which grades are considered, GPAs are often not the most important factor. What’s more relevant is that you best match the qualities the scholarship committee seeks. Don’t let the lack of a perfect transcript prevent you from applying for scholarships.

Myth: You should get involved in as many extracurricular activities as possible to win a scholarship.
Busted: Scholarship competitions are not pie eating contests where you win through volume. They are more like baking contests in which you create an exquisite dessert with an appearance and flavor that matches the tastes of the judges. Scholarships are won by quality, not quantity. Scholarship judges are looking for students who have made quality contributions. For example, for a public service scholarship, the judges would be more impressed if you organized a school-wide volunteer day than if you were a member of 20 volunteer
organizations but did little to distinguish yourself in any one of them.


Myth: If you qualify for fi nancial aid, you don’t need to apply for scholarships.
Busted: Financial aid and scholarships are not mutually exclusive but complimentary.
You need to do both—apply for fi nancial aid and scholarships at the same time! Relying only on financial aid is dangerous. First, financial aid is “need based” which means if you’re a middle or upper middle class family, you may not receive any free money (i.e. grants) but only student loans which you need to pay back. Even if you do qualify for grants, it may not be enough. The maximum Pell Grant, for example, is $4,050 per year,
which is still far short of what tuition plus room and board costs at most schools. While financial aid is important, we consider scholarships to be far superior. With few, if any, strings attached, scholarships represent free cash that does not have to be paid back and which you can use at almost any school. Best of all, you can win scholarships regardless of your family’s income!

Myth: You should apply to every scholarship that you find.
Busted: When you turn 35, you technically are eligible to run for President of the United States. This hardly means you should start packing your bags for the White House. Let’s apply that same logic to scholarships. Just because you are technically eligible for a scholarship does not mean you should start filling out the paperwork for it. Why? You have a limited amount of time to spend on scholarship applications. It is necessary to allocate your time to those that you have the best chance of winning. You may find that you are eligible for 500 scholarships. Unless you’re willing to make applying to scholarships your full-time avocation, it’s unlikely that you can apply for more than several dozen awards. Thus, you need to be selective about which scholarships fit you the best. One caveat: This does not mean that you should only apply to two
or three scholarships. You should still apply to as many scholarships as you can—just make sure you have them prioritized.

How a Solid Scholarship Strategy Helps Win You Money Back in high school, Kelly applied for a scholarship from her father’s employer. She was confident she would win since academically she had both
high grades and test scores—which she diligently listed on the application. After turning in her application, she eagerly waited for the check to arrive.

But the check never came. In fact, when Kelly found out who did win, she was surprised to learn that he had lower grades and lower test scores. What happened? How did this guy win instead of Kelly?
The answer was that Kelly relied solely on grades and test scores to win while the other applicant clearly used the entire application to stand out. That was when Kelly learned the importance of having a strategy.

So what does it take to win a scholarship?
The answer is that scholarship winners are not superstars. Rather, they are the students who have prepared—those young men and women that have invested the time to create applications that highlight their strengths. It’s really sad to see students who don’t apply for scholarships because they mistakenly assume that they don’t have a chance to win.

Unlike a lottery, scholarships are not based on luck. To win scholarships, you need to show the scholarship judges how you fit the award. Often this is through the scholarship application, essay and interview. In fact, almost all scholarship competitions come down to one key factor—how well you can show that you fi t the purpose of the scholarship. In this respect, you have power over the outcome. Through what you choose to highlight (and ignore) in the scholarship application, you are able to construct a case for why you
deserve to win.
Read More : Common Scholarship Myths

How to keep your scholarship?

If you talk to almost any coach in the country, he’ll tell you that it isn’t that difficult for a student to keep his or her athletic scholarship. Give your best effort each day at practice and in games, work hard in the classroom, and keep a positive attitude. Oh, yeah, and stay out of trouble!

Many student-athletes believe that, after they’ve been awarded a scholarship for the year, it can’t be taken away regardless of behavior, performance, or outside circumstances. This is not true. In reality, a scholarship may be revoked during the period of award for a number of reasons, including:

•  Ineligibility for intercollegiate competition
•  Fraudulent misrepresentation on a school application, National Letter of Intent, and/or financial-aid statement
•  Misconduct warranting substantial disciplinary penalty
•  Voluntary withdrawal from the team

If your scholarship is reduced or cancelled for one of the preceding reasons, you’re entitled to an appeal hearing. However, the chances of a committee overturning your coach’s decision if you’re engaged
in one of these activities generally fall in the slim-to-none category unless there are some strong mitigating circumstances. For example, you quit the team because you needed to focus on your academics so you wouldn’t be suspended from the university — the coach allowed you to keep your scholarship for the remainder of the year but did not renew it for the next year.

You can’t accept a scholarship, quit the team, and then continue to receive the scholarship. Your grades, behavior, and commitment to the team are all extremely important factors in whether or not you will receive a scholarship for four or five years — or be dropped after one.

Unfortunately, injuries are a part of athletics, and sometimes those injuries are severe enough to end a student-athlete’s career. Be sure to ask your coach if you’ll continue to receive your scholarship if you suffer a career-ending injury or illness. The scholarships that are awarded to student-athletes who will never play again due to injury do not count toward the team’s maximum limitations.

Who decides if you get to keep your scholarship?
Ultimately, the decision as to whether you’ll keep your scholarship and for what amount is made by the head coach. Most coaches have individual meetings with players toward the end of the spring semester and let them know their status. This way, it isn’t a surprise when you receive the financial-aid agreement (or a letter
telling you that you aren’t receiving a scholarship) in the summer.

Although the coach is the one who makes this decision, you have the power to make it a “no-brainer” decision. If you stay away from the four ways your scholarship can be immediately cancelled that we discussed in the preceding section and adhere to the following tips, the chances of your keeping your scholarship for four or five years will increase to nearly 100 percent:

• Go to every class unless you have an away game or are sick. Take a schedule to your professors the first week of class, and let them know the days you’ll be gone for away games.
• Try to schedule your classes around your practice schedule as often as possible. Just don’t do this at the expense of your ultimate goal: to get your degree.
• Show up on time (or early) for practices and games.
• Dress appropriately for practice. Don’t wear torn T-shirts and your hat on backward.
• Dress appropriately to travel to away games. When you’re on the road, you’re representing your team, your school, and yourself!
• Work out on your own in the off season to try to improve your skills and get in better shape. Talk to your coach to find out the areas in which you need to improve.
• Stay focused and pay attention during practices and games.
• Don’t talk to your teammates about the frat party later that night. During games, avoid waving to your buddies and family in the crowd. If you’re on the bench, stay ready to play at any time.
• Keep a positive attitude even if you aren’t playing a lot (or traveling) as a freshman or sophomore. More than likely, there are juniors and seniors on the team who went through the same experience.
• Be respectful of your coaches, teammates, and professors. As corny as it sounds, treat them the way you want them to treat you!

Even though there are events that can happen beyond your control, in which you may have your scholarship reduced or cancelled (for example, your coach quits, or an unexpected star transfers to your school), following these tips will make a coach want to keep you on scholarship and as part of the team!

If your scholarship is reduced or cancelled, the school must notify you of this in writing and give you the chance to appeal the decision if you think it’s unfair. If you want to appeal this decision, a committee made up of members outside the athletic department (for example, the director of financial aid, the dean of students, faculty members, and so on) will hear the appeal, and their decision is final. If you have specific questions about this, the director of compliance on campus should be able to help you.
Read More : How to keep your scholarship?

Funding Plan Development

Starting the plan development process

You’ll likely develop your funding plan with your organization’s board of directors or with an executive committee (president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer). Or you might develop the plan with the board’s designated funding committee (board members and program staff volunteer for this committee).

Typically funding committees aren’t short-term commitments. This type of committee meets forever and ever. Why? Your organization’s need for dollars never stops; grantseeking is a continual process. Think of a gerbil on a running wheel — it just keeps running and running after some unknown target. At least your funding committee will plan, plot, and then chase the known targets.

I used to suggest that organizations plan a retreat for the board of directors (or whoever is creating the plan) to jump-start the funding development plan development process. However, in today’s economy and with everyone working different days and hours, it just isn’t practical to think that funds or member availability will allow you to sneak off for a night or two. However, if you have the time and money, feel free to go the retreat route. Just know that you’ll get comparable results by simply finding a large room, closing the door, and cranking out your funding development plan. I recently helped a small nonprofit organization create a funding development plan in a board treasurer’s dining room. That plan is now being implemented. And to think that it

took all of five hours on a Saturday morning!

No matter where you’re developing your funding development plan, you have to maintain everyone’s focus or else you could waste precious time. To do so, apply the following basic rules when you’re ready to start brainstorming and writing your plan:

• Make sure that everyone participates. Explain at the outset that everyone needs to bring something to the table that will assist your organization in identifying priorities for programs and services and finding ways to fund them. It’s important for administrators and front line staff to be strongly encouraged to participate in the funding plan’s development. After all, those at the top of the organization see programs and services in an entirely different light than the staff working with clients on a day to day basis. Everyone’s opinion should be incorporated.
• Plan your meetings carefully so that you aren’t rushed through the process due to time constraints. Rushing through this process will only cause you to make mistakes and overlook important items. To avoid rushing, remember that the funding committee (or the group that’s convened to develop the funding plan) will likely need to meet at least four hours the first time and then for a couple of hours or more monthly thereafter.
• Poll every member to find out the best day and time for everyone to meet. Go with the majority rule theory. If 75 percent of the members can meet on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 25 percent can’t, choose Saturday morning. And it’s perfectly fine to alternate the meeting day and time every other meeting to accommodate the other 25 percent. If you can’t alternate days and times, look for replacement committee members who can meet on the selected day and at the set meeting time.
• Give homework assignments. Most times, your meetings won’t give you enough time to finish all the tasks that need to be completed. To avoid falling behind, you need to assign funding research tasks to each funding committee member. Give the assignment, set a deadline, and express — with urgency — the need for each committee member to bring his or her completed assignment back on its due date. Using the homework approach enables the meetings to be kept short. Isn’t that every working person’s goal?

Structuring your plan

Too many nonprofit organizations function in crisis management mode all the time. They frantically write grant proposals to pay for programs and projects that are already in the 11th month of an existing one-year grant

award. I often refer to this situation as working on the downside of funding cessation. Everyone is always in a panic, and the threat of layoffs and program closures is a routine fire call. Being proactive in grantseeking and grant writing is extremely important because it saves a group from always running in a reactive mode.

Laying out a funding development plan is the first step to becoming proactive. The following list describes the parts of an all-purpose funding development plan (in the order in which they should appear):

1. Mission statement: Maybe your mission statement creates more confusion than clarity. Take a long look at your existing mission statement and ask yourselves whether it reflects your vision. If not, figure out how you can rewrite the mission statement to make it clear and impactful.
2. Assessment of funding needs: Ask yourselves “What programs and services do we want to offer? Where is the funding coming from, internal or external sources?”
3. Funding goals: Ask yourselves “How much money do we need to raise from external funding sources for each program or service?”
4. Funding objectives: Ask yourselves “What benchmarks do we want to set to assure we reach our funding goals?”
5. Action plan: Ask yourselves “What are the annual tasks, over three to five years, that must be completed in order to make our funding development plan a reality?”
6. Monitoring and evaluation of funding objectives: Ask yourselves “How can our organization track and prove that the project’s measurable objectives were met and at what levels? What are our evaluation tools?”

After you write your funding development plan, stick to it. Before writing any grant requests, first make sure that the grant fits into your plan. If you’re asked to pursue something outside your plan, meet with your administration and other stakeholders and explain that going after every available dollar and making off-track grant requests will come back to haunt you — and them. Be organized, stay focused, and follow your funding plan’s road map to success and stability.

For-profits also can benefit from creating a funding development plan. As a small business owner, I know that determining expenditures and identifying how those expenses will be covered are key components in the funding development plan. Think about what new products and services you want to offer and where the funds will come from to launch your new endeavors. You can use the funding plan’s structure to capture the funding road map components needed to carry out your plans.

Read More : Funding Plan Development

What - How - Where to Find Scholarships

Education is will be the one of your most important investment in your life, because education one of your important component for your better life in the future in rule to have a great job and a good salary. 

Nowadays, to have a good education need a cost that is very expensive, that’s why not many people able to afford a college education. This make many students around the world working so hard in their academics in order to grab a college scholarship and the others try in sport achievement.What is a scholarship?

Most students and their parents are still confusing about term of “scholarship”. Their thoughts about scholarships associate with term such free tuition, students' loans, fees, plus grants.

Basically, scholarships are monetary grants for education purpose only given by: the state government, charitable foundations, organizations, public and private institutions, institutions, college, guilds and the like. Scholarship is not student loans, the scholarship gives the money off without repaying it and student loans there’s agreement about repaying.

Type of scholarships

Basically, there are 3 grants types of college scholarship that you have to consider: Athletic scholarship aid, academic scholarship aid and departmental aid.

But you can expand your searching about scholarship with this below “keywords” list:

* National Merit Scholarship
* Athletic Scholarship
* Career, Pro, and Trade-Association-Sponsored Scholarships
* Academic Merit Scholarship
* FASFA
* Work Study
* Special Scholarships
* Religious and Ethnic Scholarship
* Alumni Legacy Scholarship
* Transfer Student Scholarship
* Community Organization Sponsored Scholarship

With these “keywords” scholarships, now it become quite clear for students to recognize the scholarship that would fit to their qualifications.

Scholarships Hunting – Tips:

Start your search the earliest possible

Do it now, Don't wait until you are in senior year, and make a little comparison observing then mark the target and prepare everything you need to reach your scholarship target.

Don’t stop looking for free scholarships. Never!!

May be your scholarships target only offered for a year or two but a new scholarship will be announced every year that could be fit to your search so never stop looking.

Make better and better your skills and interests.

Some scholarships grantees focus on a person’s skills, ethnicity, athletic, particular interest and extracurricular achievements or religion. So there are a lot of ways to reach your free scholarships.

Note the deadlines

Note it or all your efforts become useless.

Grab every chance.

Apply for every scholarship aid program that you might consider that you perhaps dispose for. You perhaps not try all of them, but at least you have other options.

Beware of scholarships scammers in the Cyberspace; if a website is charging you, it is a sign of scam. Keep your money from them!!

What do you know about Fellowship , Scholarship and Government Grant?

If you are students with great achievement and good grade, you eligible to grab free fund to continue your study from some sources such as education government aid, private organizations scholarships, etc. This is free money for education purpose only that you should not and never to repaying! To find out these you will often meet words such as: Scholarships, Fellowships and Grant that have a similar meaning but you should clearly understanding about this to avoid misplace in your application. Here are the definitions and meaning of each term that you must clearly understand:

Fellowships
Is the financial grant by a university or foundation or other agency made to a fellow in a college or university for advanced study or research. If you are fresh graduate this is not for you, this is only applied to post graduated studies.

Scholarships
Generally defines as undergraduate awards that be funded by a university or foundation or other agency. Oftentimes, you have to qualify to have a scholarship by having good grades and SAT scores. But if you are not qualified enough at grade and SAT score you still able to have a scholarship with your excellent skill in sport because there are several scholarships which award students for their excellence skill in sports or you may try many unusual scholarships that available for students with various other qualifications that perhaps match with your qualification.

Government Grants
It is grants for college are authorities finances set content to support fill in upbringing finances for down. There is numerous government grants which students able to take but each grant have special requirement even commonly their rules are the same.

As you can see, there are several terms that you should know well to avoid fundamental mistake. Scholarships and government grants are available to help you go to the college. All you need to do is due diligence, a bit of paperwork and perhaps some little research and you will reveal more funding options than you knew existed to pay your college.

Paying for College: The Aid is Available and Save

Families are not alone in paying the costs of college: every year millions of students apply for and receive financial aid and almost half of all students who go to college receive some kind of financial aid. Because college represents an investment in our most precious resource - our children - no child who wants to go to college and is willing to work hard should be prevented by financial need. Here's what to do:

• Start saving early. Saving money is the best way to prepare for meeting the costs of college. Set aside money each month, starting now, to build a college fund. Think about where your child might attend college, how much that type of college might cost, and how much you can afford to save. The earlier you and your child begin saving, the smaller the amount you will have to set aside each month.

• Apply for financial aid. All needy students can apply for federal, state and other student financial aid to help them pay for college. The two major types of aid are grants or scholarships, which do not have to be repaid, and loans, which are available to students and parents and, like a car loan or a mortgage, must eventually be repaid.

Where Can You Apply for Financial Aid?

The federal government supplies $46 billion annually in student aid, about 75 percent of all student aid.

• Pell Grants are the most important form of student financial aid for the nation?s neediest students. In 1999-2000, almost 4 million needy students received Pell grants. The size of the grant depends on the student?s need. In 2000-2001, the maximum grant will be $3,300.
• The Work-Study Program lets students work during the summer or part-time during the school year to help pay for college. Colleges help find jobs for students, and the federal government helps pay the salary. Work-Study jobs give students valuable work experience and are often related to the student?s classes or future career?in addition to helping pay the costs of college. The new additions to the Work-Study program, the America Reads Challenge and America Counts, let students work as reading and math tutors for young children?helping students give back to the community and pay for college.
• Federal Loans are available to both students and parents. Stafford Loans for students are either subsidized, for needy students, where some of the accumulated interest is paid by the government, or unsubsidized, where the student pays all of the accumulated interest. PLUS Loans are loans to parents for any costs that are not paid for by other aid.

A quick word about student loans

Students usually do not have to start repaying their loans until after they finish school, and the interest rate is usually lower than for other kinds of loans. Many students are hesitant to take out loans, but remember: college graduates usually make a good deal more money than people who do not have a college education, so paying a loan after graduation will be easier than it might seem. Nevertheless, it is important that both students and parents understand the terms of the loan before agreeing to them and know when repayment will begin and how much their payments will be. There are many different education loans, so before taking out any loan, be sure to find out what the exact conditions of the loan are.

Other Forms of Aid Include:

• Federal aid administered by colleges including Perkins Loans and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOGs)?the U.S. Department of Education gives aid to colleges, who decide which of their students need it most.
• HOPE Scholarships, Lifetime Learning tax credits, and other tax benefits for higher education?The HOPE Scholarship tax credit provides a maximum of $1,500 (100 percent of the first $1,000 of tuition and required fees, and a 50 percent credit on the second $1,000) for each of the first two years of college. The Lifetime Learning tax credit provides a maximum $1,000 tax credit to help college juniors and seniors and graduate and professional degree students, as well as adults who want to go back to school. For detailed information on who is eligible for these and other tax benefits, it?s best to refer to your Internal Revenue Service (IRS) forms and publications which are available at www.irs.gov.
• Many states and colleges offer financial assistance directly to individual students based on need or merit. Merit-based aid, usually scholarships or grants, is given to students who meet requirements not related to financial needs?like doing well in high school or displaying artistic or athletic talent. A notable example of state aid is the Georgia HOPE Scholarship, which guarantees students free college as long as they have earned a B average and stayed off of drugs. Call or write your state?s higher education agency or college financial aid offices to request information about these opportunities.
• Other Assistance. Organizations, foundations and other groups offer scholarships to academically promising students, minorities, women and disabled students. To learn more about these scholarships, speak with your school guidance counselor or go to the reference section of the public library.
• Serve Your Country. Many opportunities exist for students to pay for all or part of a college education by serving their country during or after their college years. Service in Americorps, the Merchant Marine Academy, the country?s domestic Peace Corps or in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) entitles students to scholarships of varying amounts to cover educational expenses. The U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force each has its own military academy (a four-year college and a commission in the military after gradua-tion), where tuition is free, but only the most highly qualified students are admitted. Local armed forces recruiting offices can provide more information. Call 1-800-94-ACORPS for more information about Americorps?a way to serve your community and pay for college.

More Information on Federal Aid

For the most up-to-date information about student aid supplied by the U.S. Department of Education, call the Federal Student Financial Aid Information Center at the U.S. Department of Education toll-free at 1-800-4FED-AID. You can also get a copy of the federal financial aid form, which is required to apply for all federal financial aid, by calling this number. You can also obtain the guide to federal financial aid for students, called The Student Guide, which provides an extensive and annually updated discussion of all federal student aid programs. You can obtain the Guide by writing to the following address:

Federal Student Aid Information Center
P.O. Box 84
Washington, DC 20044

To apply for other aid in addition to federal aid, you may need additional forms. High school guidance counselors can tell you more about applying for financial aid, including where to get forms you might need for state aid. College financial aid offices can also be of help to you.

More Information on Other Topics Discussed in This Handbook
For the latest Department of Education publications on topics related to college-going, call 1-877-4ED-PUBS toll-free or visit www.ed.gov/about/ordering.jsp.
Information on planning for college early can be found on the Department of Education?s Think College Early Web site, with special sections for students, parents and educators, at www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/thinkcollege/early/.

A Final Note

A college education is a major ingredient for success in the world today?and by taking the right courses and working hard your child can be prepared to go to college. Building a strong foundation of high-level classes, starting with algebra I and geometry by the eighth and ninth grades, and continuing to take rigorous courses through high school will better prepare students for college admissions tests and college course work. By saving for college and taking advantage of financial aid from the U.S. Department of Education, colleges and states, you can change college from a dream into a reality for your children if they are willing to take the challenge to do their best in school from the start. The U.S. Department of Education.

Parent Guide to getting Financial Aid for Their Children

Education is one of parent’s responsible for their children, it’s should and must done obligations also one of the deepest desire as a parent. But the education financial problem is one of the most headache problems for all parents especially for the parents with not enough financial to support such expenses or in the same time have to pay off their financial obligations. That’s why parents need a way out that is a scholarship.

Here some tips for parents to start searching the college financial aid for their beloved children:

• Plan together with your children, Ask them where and what subject they going to go after graduate from high school. This will make your searching more specific.
• Start searching when your children on high school, search potential universities that offer college scholarships for fresh graduate students.
• First, you must consider scholarships application funded by your Federal government that could be available around your city this is importance to lifter about living cost and controlling.
• Once you find a prospective targeted scholarships announcement, observe them deeper and collected all information as much as possible.
• Tell your children about it and make interesting discussing but as parent you should accept all their aspirations and thoughts. Give them clear information and understanding about that, don’t push them to follow what you want.
• Take all procedures clearly and prepare all scholarships requirements that should be completed, help your children to make it and do monitoring from the start until end process.

Scholarship is need parents hand help so ensure you have done the best for your children and care their bright future with prepare their best education by scholarship. Wish you be wonderful parent for your own children.

Tips for Finding Unique Scholarships With Easy Way And Most Work

Scholarships is a great option to have a good education, it can make your dream come true to have better education for better life in the future. You may be has a consideration that they are only achievable for the qualified students.

Lucky you that you are wrong!! Because you less information about what is exactly scholarship and how to find the great one. Not all scholarships are academic scholarships which require only the straight A, honor-roll students. There are many scholarships with interesting requirements that you able to try even may be you not good enough at grade.

Yes, they are real. May be not easy for you to find even actually you have try to looking for the information that suit with your conditions. How to find it? Here are 3 simple tips to search unusual scholarships online that you can try and please comment here if you have try:

Search Engine:
They are your best friends, use special keywords and unique such “left hand scholarships” if you are left handed or you can use “Afro American Scholarships” if you an afro American. Just insert various and unique keywords and try find them on net.
I suggest you to using Google to explore the net.

Scholarships Database
There are many free scholarship databases online in the internet and you can use them for complete and specific information. These databases usually hold a fairly comprehensive list of available scholarships and if you can’t find any try paid databases online.

Visit message boards and forums
Use search engine for "scholarship forum" or "scholarship message board" will likely offer you with a wealth of resources. If you still did not find the information you need, just make communicate with others members and ask them about the information that you are looking to. This is a great way to exploit the information from network which has same activities with your searching.

With a little bit effort and time, you can expose the truth of scholarships which you are looking to, unusual and quirky scholarships just a matter of time to find. You will reach million treasures information about scholarships by doing this 3 tips.