Scholarship and Financial Aid

Remember to pay careful attention to the due dates and be sure to double-check the due date on the scholarship’s website.

Scholarship Search Tips

1. Start early! Finding scholarships takes time and effort.
2. Check with your parent’s employer (and yours!) for scholarships offered only to family members of employees. These are often not advertised elsewhere.
3. Check with any clubs or organizations you and/or your parents/grandparents belong to—once again, they may have member specific opportunities.
4. Read the fine print for applicant qualifications—for some scholarships you may NOT need to be a member of the offering organization.
5. Brainstorm about any unique talents or hobbies you may have and do an internet search for information about scholarships in those areas.
6. Specific career goals (such as teaching, construction, accounting, health care, etc) may also lead to scholarship opportunities.
7. Remember that the definition of financial need is variable. Some organizations will include money needed for travel to and from school, a computer and other items in their calculations.
8. The specific college you want to attend is always the best source of information.

Scholarship Application Tips

1. Be organized! Keep a calendar with deadlines and a checklist of things to do for each scholarship (recommendations, sending test scores, essay, etc.)
2. Follow directions exactly—for example your essay should conform to the specified number of words!
3. Meet deadlines! Pay attention to postmark versus received by deadlines.
4. Keep copies of anything you submit—just in case.