Scholarship and Grant Help

by Amber Duncan
(Brandon, FL, U.S.)

Have no fear! Scholarship and Grant help is here! - College, it’s a big step! Paying for it? It’s seems impossible, but it’s not. The only obstacle between you and scholarship and grant help is YOU.

Most scholarships are so easy to apply for nowadays. All it takes is a lift of a finger and the urge to stop being lazy and to do something about getting money for college. If people just stopped complaining about how much money they don’t have for college they could be jumping for joy because they just got an email saying they won money! My answer? Simple, write those essays, stay persistent, and don’t give up hope! I never did and look where I am today I’m paying less for college.

Of course you’ll read this and say, “but what are my chances?” or “I hear these stories all the time I’ll never win”. This is your time to find out! Now! Get up, grab a computer and start applying to every scholarship you qualify for. Trust me I thought it was pointless but I ended up getting lots of cash and hey some cash is better than no cash! Be thankful!

Arrrrrggghhh!! Writing essays, “aren’t those for school”, “they take too long”, “I’ll just find something shorter where I don’t have to do as much work”. See I thought these same things! Just don’t call it an essay, call it expression. Through writing one vents feelings and emotions. It will take you not even an hour. Don’t worry about perfecting it. Just get the basic essay format down and be you.

Or do what I did and go to your English teacher for help. Trust me my teacher made me sound pretty smart. An essay is a lot shorter than spending a month or two trying to find a job, working countless hours at your new job and trying to pay money back. I don’t know about you but I much rather write an essay than work long, hard hours for something I could’ve done so easily.

People’s main obstacle? Pure laziness. So be the smart one today and write your expression.

Stay persistent! If it’s a site that you can go on every day to apply then apply every day. Treat it like your prized possession after all it is almost like you’re getting money for free. Treat it like Facebook, or that new Xbox 360 you just got… Whatever your preference treat it like you will die without it.

How simple is it to go on every day; it will keep you entertained when you have nothing else to do. Make it a habit to check your progress; after just 21 days you develop a habit.

Sometimes I would forget to do it and yes I was lazy at times but I set and alarm on my phone to have “scholarship time” for an hour every day. Go to your guidance counselor or even a financial aid agent at the college you’re attending and ask them what scholarships you qualify for. Ask more people like me what they have done to get scholarship money and grants. In a situation who are you going to remember more the person who talked once or the person who continually asked you questions.

Finally yes finally, before I bore you to death I will tell you that I have faith in you! You can do it, it is possible. Please do not give up hope. So many people have a college success story and now it’s your turn to standout. Your dedication to get money has already shown. I know this because you are reading this for help, for answers. Well here it is, my tactics, now it is your choice what to do with this information. There are so many scholarships out there now I want to hear which one you received. It’s as Vincent T. Lombardi said "The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will." Good Luck! And for more help here is a link to easy scholarships I applied for. Scholarship Contests

Read more Scholarship and Grant Help from other students and parents who have been through process.

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Comment from your friendly team at College Financial Aid Advice

Thank you Amber for your great tips about Scholarship and Grant Help. Best of luck to you.

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More Scholarships and Grant Help

Scholarship Money for College | Scholarship Contests | Easy Scholarships | Unusual Scholarships | Scholarships for Minorities | Federal Pell Grants | College Financial Aid Advice

Submit your entry in our College Essay Contest:

To share your entry in our scholarship contest, just click here.

Important Tips on Scholarship and Grant Search

by Krystal Humphreys
(Richmond, VA, USA)

As a single mother of one child and attending college as a traditional student full-time has been very challenging in the last three years. I am a rising senior and I feel as though you can never have too much financial aid! Attending private colleges usually have expensive tuitions so the first thing I would suggest:

1. For a first-time student, to find out if the institution of choice has scholarships and grants available and who qualifies for them. If the student qualifies then please apply for all.

2. As a returning student to the same institution, another great way to obtain financial support is to acheive and maintain a high GPA. (3.5 or higher). Having this extremely impressive GPA will help the student to become a primary consideration for many scholarhsips from the institution. (I received 6 institutional scholarships last year because I obtained a GPA of 3.6).

3. Check to see if your institution is a partcipating UNCF institution on uncf.org. If so, then go on the website and create a profile and apply for all available scholarships that your profile matches up with.

Many key tips in financial search, but most important is always stay connected with these available avenues and make sure the student always stay in contact regularly with the institution's financial aid department and make friends. Periodically check everyone and everywhere money is available. Deadlines are always approaching and new money is always becoming available.

Read more Scholarship Tips from other students and parents who have been through process.

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Comment from your friendly team at College Financial Aid Advice

Thank you Krystal for sharing some Important Tips on Scholarship and Grant Search. Your institution (college or university) is a great source of scholarships and grants, especially if you keep a high GPA to show you are a good candidate for the funds. Good luck to you.

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More Tips on Scholarship and Grant Search

Scholarship Money for College | Scholarship Contests | Oddball Scholarships | Merit Based Scholarships | Easy Scholarships | Scholarships for Minorities | Federal Pell Grants | College Financial Aid Advice

Submit your entry in our College Essay Contest:

To share your entry in our scholarship contest, just click here.

Do What You Love

by Janice Pang
(Davis, CA, USA)

Are you tired of writing “personal” scholarship essays that are anything but? Has the lack of scholarships tailored to your interests – to you! – gotten you down?

Well fear no more!

I have a simple, and surprisingly practical, piece of advice: Do what you love.

The key to obtaining scholarships is not necessarily to apply to every single one you can (although this doesn't hurt your chances), but to narrow down the ones that address subjects in which you are truly interested. It's simply a matter of looking!

More often than not, scholarships tailored to your interests are listed elsewhere other than the major scholarship-finding sites. For example, I obtained $400 to fund my Design schooling by presenting my t-shirt design at a local music festival. No matter what you are into, you can be certain that people before you have shared your interests and are now willing to give scholarships out to people like you – people who are passionate about what they do.

So, what is YOUR passion? Is it chemistry? Soccer? Painting? If it is, then show it! But note that the focus should NOT be on the subject, but on what the subject reveals about YOU.

Show your love of discovery through each novel hypothesis and careful calculation. Show your competitive side through detailed descriptions of the adrenaline rushing through your veins before a soccer game. Show your creativity through a mixture of wild blotches and fine brush strokes.

Do what you love and you cannot fail.

Allow me to explain: Of course, you can't win them all. You have to understand that there are others who share the same passions as you, who have the same goals. You will win some and you will probably lose more. I had submitted eight other designs to eight other scholarships before I had won the $400. Had I lost hope after my first rejected design, I would have gotten nowhere. But you cannot give up; as long as you keep doing what you love, and you truly care about your subject, it will show through your work and it will be recognized.

Read more Scholarship Tips from other students and parents who have been through process.

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Comment from your friendly team at College Financial Aid Advice

Thank you Janice for sharing your inspiring essay “Do What You Love”. Your passion will show and make you a winner, especially for scholarships that depend on an inspiring scholarship essay. Good luck to you.

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More Scholarship Tips

Scholarship Money for College | Scholarship Contests | Merit Based Scholarships | Easy Scholarships | Scholarships for Minorities | Federal Pell Grants | College Financial Aid Advice

Submit your entry in our College Essay Contest:

To share your entry in our scholarship contest, just click here.