Scholarships are one way to reduce the cost of college, and aren’t awarded only to high school valedictorians or students with significant financial need.
“Apply, apply, apply,” says Diona Brown, director of school services with the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. “Most scholarship awardees are not at the top of their class. And I think that’s a misconception amongst a lot of students — they just don’t apply because they assume that they’re not going to be awarded (a scholarship) because they don’t have a 4.0.”
Here’s what students and their families should know about the college scholarship application process.
What’s the Difference Between Scholarships and Grants?
Both scholarships and grants are considered “gift aid,” which means the money doesn’t have to be repaid.
[Read: An Ultimate Guide to Understanding College Financial Aid.]
Scholarships are need- and/or merit-based, such as for academic or athletic ability. Students can also win scholarships based on their identity or for their hobbies and interests, community service involvement or chosen area of study.
Grants, on the other hand, are typically awarded based only on financial need — such as the federal Pell Grant for lower-income students — at the federal, state or college level. To be eligible, students often must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.
What Do Scholarship Applications Require?
Scholarship requirements vary, but you may be asked to submit a transcript, essay, personal statement, video response and/or recommendation letter.
?”The relationships that you’re building within your school community or in your community at large are really important,” says Jatae Daly, director of the CollegeBound Initiative at Student Leadership Network, a nonprofit that works to advance educational equity.
Recommendations letters are not only “for the college application process, but also for the scholarship process,” she says. “Practice those skills now and make sure that you’re creating those connections now because you’re definitely going to need it in the future.”
Before submitting an application, pay attention to whether the scholarship is a one-time award or renewable for multiple years. For renewable awards, there may be stipulations to remain eligible, such as maintaining a certain GPA or staying a member of a club or organization.
“If it says each semester you have to submit this or reach out to this person for the award to be renewed, make sure you’re doing that early,” says Nia Baiyeroju, founder of Nia Knows Finance, a platform that aims to help Gen Z with financial decisions and scholarship strategies. “And don’t let scholarships that are not renewable stop you from applying, because even those awards do add up.”
When to Start the Scholarship Search
It’s never too early to look for scholarships — students can start the process in their high school freshman or sophomore year, Daly says.
Doing so “allows them to start forward planning, which we think is so very important for them to say, ‘OK, I might be a sophomore now, but I see that these four scholarships are available to rising seniors or juniors,'” she says. “Then they can create a game plan within their family to say, ‘Here’s my Excel spreadsheet, these are the scholarships that are most interesting to me or align with my career interest.’ When they reach their senior year, it’s really about which ones (they’re) applying to and when, versus having that discovery later on in their high school careers.”
[READ: Avoid These 7 Mistakes When Applying for Scholarships.]
The scholarship search should begin by at least junior year, experts say.
When you start to fill out applications, don’t procrastinate — try to submit the application at least three days before the deadline to avoid missing out on award money simply because you missed the application deadline, Baiyeroju says. “Something will always happen if you wait until the day of. The website is going to crash. Your laptop is going to shut down. The Wi-Fi is not going to work.”
To stay on top of deadlines, she recommends setting reminders on your phone or laptop, or putting sticky notes on a bedroom wall or mirror.
Where to Find Scholarships
With thousands of scholarships available, the search process can be overwhelming. To start, students should work with their school counselors to pursue local scholarships, such as through their religious organization, parents’ employers or community organizations.
Local scholarships have less competition, so applicants have a “higher likelihood of getting those scholarships,” Brown says.
National scholarships can be found on websites like the College Board, Scholarshipamerica.org and Fastweb.com, or even on social media. Avoid scholarships that charge applicants or request detailed financial or identity-based information, experts say, because those often are fraudulent.
Can College Students Still Apply for Scholarships?
The scholarship search process shouldn’t end once you get to campus. Look for scholarships within your university.
“With the cost of college continuously being on the rise, we want to make sure that students are being fiscally responsible, and that is just keeping your eye out for additional scholarships and applying to them,” Daly says. “Because if you are able to finance your college degree with grants and scholarships — and you don’t have to pay that back — that is far more preferred than a loan. There are so many scholarships out there that are open to college students and grad students.”
Another option is to pursue internship opportunities — which may include a stipend or scholarship — to “help pay down your college as well as get professional experience and potentially get a full-time job offer after you’ve graduated,” Baiyeroju says.
[Read: Applying for Large-Dollar Scholarships? Here’s What to Know]
Strategies to Stand Out in Scholarship Applications
Scholarship awards are not guaranteed just because you apply — any that claim to be are a scam.
There are still ways to create strong scholarship applications, however, including avoiding spelling or grammatical errors and catering answers “directly and precisely to what the organization is asking,” Brown says.
“Some students will try to use the same answers for a variety of scholarship applications,” she says.
Whether in an essay or interview, it’s important to remain authentic, Daly says.
?”When it comes to this scholarship process — or even the college application process in general — sometimes students feel like they have to tell someone else’s story,” she says. “But really the most powerful story they can tell is their own.”
Scholarships aren’t always won on the first try. And while it can be disheartening to receive rejection after rejection, don’t give up, Baiyeroju says.
Most students “quit too soon,” she says. “They’re like, ‘I’ve applied to 10 scholarships and haven’t heard any feedback. It’s not worth it or it’s all a scam,’ which is not true. The funds are out there … Reframe your mindset and just keep trying. These lessons you’re learning with applying to scholarships, you’ll be able to apply to so many other areas of your life, like when you are applying for internships or getting your first job or networking.”
Trying to fund your education? Get tips and more in the U.S. News Paying for College center.
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How to Find and Win Scholarships for College originally appeared on usnews.com
