Scholarship Search Strategies

QW: What is something special or unique about you?

When it comes to searching for scholarships, think about it as a part time job. If you spend 10 hours searching for and applying to scholarships, and you end up receiving $1000 in scholarships, you just made $100 per hour. Where else are you going to (legally) be able to make that much? Of course, there's no guarantee you're going to receive a scholarship, but if you don't apply, you're sure to not get anything.

Where to look:

There are a number of places you can look for scholarships. Below are some suggestions to get you started.

1. Start local

Research scholarships offered by local community organizations and businesses. These often have less competition that the larger regional, state, and national scholarships. Scholarships are often offered by local Rotary clubs, banks, businesses, etc. Alana has a list of scholarships each year that include many local scholarships. You can find that list here. 

1a. The biggies in our region:

The two major scholarship programs in this region are the McConnell Foundation Scholarship and the Ford Foundation Scholarship. The McConnell scholarship is $7500 per year, renewable for 4 years. The Ford Family Foundation Scholarship will cover 90% of your unmet need, but can only be used in California. Both of these are need based; if you qualify, you should definitely apply!

2. Scholarship search sites

There are number of websites where you can search for scholarships. For some of these sites, you may find a lot of scholarships that are either junk or not applicable to you, but there may be a few gems hidden in there, and it may be worth your time to look. Here are some that I've found to be good:
College Greenlight 
Big Future 
Niche 

3. Your institution

Most colleges and universities have their own scholarships. Sometimes the scholarship application is included in the admission application, sometimes it is a separate application. Do not wait until you know if you are admitted before completing the scholarship application; you might miss the due date. Once you know you are planning to apply, complete the scholarship application. Check out the website, and also the various departments within the college. That is, if you are planning to study engineering, see if there are specific engineering scholarships that the school offers.

4. Professional organizations in your intended career

Again, if you are planning on studying engineering, check out the national society of professional engineers, and see if they have any scholarships. Also check out other national engineering societies, as well as state organizations. The same goes for any other industry sector.

5. General Google search

If you want to study sociology, Google "scholarships for sociology". You might pick up something you missed in the other steps above. This is also where you tie in the topic from your quick write - what is something unique about you? If you play the tuba, search for scholarships for tuba players. If you're vegan, search for vegan scholarships. There aren't necessarily scholarships for every possible unique characteristic, but you won't know if you don't look.

OK, you've found some scholarships, now what?

Once you've identified your scholarships, you'll need to complete the applications. Know your due dates and give yourself plenty of time. Applications may include essays you need to write, transcripts, letters of recommendation, etc. Be sure to plan ahead, so you're not scrambling for an official transcript during a time your school is closed or on vacation.

Similarly, give the people you are asking for letters of recommendation enough time to write you a good one. It also helps to give them some background information on the scholarship, you are applying to, including the selection criteria, so they can write the best possible letter for you. If you have extracurricular activities that relate to the scholarship criteria, make sure your recommender knows about that. Finally, let them know the name of the person to address the letter to, as well as the due date.

Finally, enlist your family, friends, counselor, and/or English teacher to look over your essays and give you feedback. Obviously, it needs to be your work, but they might catch some errors or point out ways you can make your essays stronger.

Assignment:

Create a plan for your scholarship search. Complete the following, and turn in to your EF:

• List at least 2 places you will look for scholarships. 
• Identify the people you will ask for letters of recommendation. 
• Identify at least 3 scholarships you plan to apply for. Provide the scholarship name, link to the application, and due date
• Create a timeline for your scholarship application plan