Scholarships

College finances are all over the news and it’s not a secret that many people are saddled with the burden of student loans. Scholarships, although desirable, seem to have their own secret mystery about them... How do you find them? How do you win them? How many should your child apply for? There’s no perfect number of scholarship applications. The answer is a very unsatisfying “it depends”. As a college counselor for many years, I’ve seen students apply to over…

When it comes to scholarships, your junior in high school can never start the search too early. It's a great idea to help them put a plan in place now, especially if the pandemic has left them with extra time in their schedule. But they could also start the process this summer when they have more downtime. Their scholarship plan should include a calendar where they can set reminders about starting tasks and alerts for due dates. Alerts on a…

Once you’ve filed the FAFSA and are awaiting financial award letters from colleges, students should take some time to pursue what are commonly referred to as third-party scholarships, or money awarded from organizations other than the colleges themselves. Third-party scholarships, also known as outside scholarships or private scholarships, can help fill unmet need that's not covered by your financial aid package. However, it's important to check colleges' policies on outside scholarships because different schools treat them differently. Here's what you…

Merit-based aid financial aid (typically scholarships) is financial aid that colleges give to students based on their grades and test scores. Maximizing merit-based financial aid is particularly important for middle-income families who don’t qualify for most of the need-based aid that’s available. Here are five ways to increase your student’s chances of qualifying for more merit-based financial aid. « Learn more about scholarships 1. Get good grades in college prep classes Having good grades (and a good grade point average)…

As an independent college career counselor, I hear lots of scholarship myths. Here are the most common: 1. Everyone has a scholarship. This scholarship information is not true. Most money comes from the college itself in the form of grants or loans. Most people do not apply for, nor have scholarship money. Schools often use the word “scholarship” in reference to many different things, even things like a “tuition discount.” Beware of the use of the word “scholarship.” 2. You should…

Have you ever wondered if you could earn extra money for college through scholarships?  No matter how good your grades are or how much money your parents make, you may qualify for hundreds of scholarships.  To improve your odds of winning a scholarship, you can start by learning about the different types of scholarships for college. The three main types of scholarships for college are merit, need-based and other.  Here is a brief description of each one and some little-known…

A lot of families have been discouraged from pursuing outside scholarships for reasons I have already discussed in a previous blog--that the colleges will not use them to fill unmet need. Spending hours pursuing outside scholarships--that is, scholarships that are from private organizations separate from your school-- that are only going to reduce the financial aid you would have gotten otherwise, is not the way you want to spend your time. A number of colleges across the country, however, have…