by Kayla Edwards
(Brunswick, GA, United States)
Are you planning on going to college but have just kept putting everything off and telling yourself that you’ll eventually get to it? Well if you keep telling yourself this, college will creep up on you before you even realize it and you’ll be so overwhelmed by everything. It’s in your best interest to get a head start! No, this doesn’t mean that you’re being an over-achiever-beaver, it just means that you’re taking responsibility for your life and your future. I’m here to tell you some things that no one told me and if they had, it would have made things a lot more simple and easy for me in the long run. This may look like a lot to read and you don’t feel like reading it right now so you’re just going to move onto the next website, but trust me, YOU WANT TO READ THIS!
by Sandra Tijerina
(San Antonio, Tx)
Something that is asked a lot by high school seniors is, “how do I start applying for college? How am I going to pay for college?” Have in mind that the journey of preparing for college starts actually in your freshmen year, and sadly many seniors did not realize how much they missed out on until it’s too late.
As a freshman, some of us might have not taken college seriously, thinking that we have four years to decide what we want to do with our lives, and how we are going to get there. Do not think that as a freshman you can slack off and easily pick up your junior or senior year, because you will just make your life difficult. Freshmen year is about change, and we become caught up in the thought that we are attending a “big kids” school and that nothing is going to stop us. What you are supposed to be doing instead is making goals for yourself and make sure your grades are high enough. Make the most out of your freshmen year by doing community service hours because it will haunt you later on.
Your junior year is probably the most crucial year regarding academics. During your junior year, you should have been taking the SAT and ACT, and taken rigorous classes, (they look great in your college applications!) By this time, you should have done enough community service hours, been active in clubs and organizations, and have taken responsibility with leadership roles. Why is this important? Unfortunately if you are not in the top ten percent of your class, you will not have the privilege of having automatic admission to any public and/or several private schools. However, if you were active in school clubs and worked a creditable amount of volunteer hours, you could still be very likely to be accepted into the college of your dreams. The point is that during your junior year, begin to organize all the leadership roles you held, note all the hours you served, and keep your grades up at all times.
The summer right before entering senior year should be productive. Sign up for college visits, get a part time job, re-take the SAT and ACT if possible, begin drafting your college essays, and most importantly, start looking for scholarships. There are many great websites out there that contain a variety of scholarships, all you need to do is look for them. Many people wait until the very last minute to sign up for colleges and scholarships, not realizing what they missed out on. This is why senior year is ALL about DEADLINES! You will have multiple scholarship and application deadlines, not considering keeping up with your academic work aside. Become your counselor’s best friend, they will guide you and provide the knowledge that you will need to know to apply for colleges. Visit school websites and note on a calendar when the deadlines are.
I completely understand how stressful it can be for someone that has so much desire to be accepted by the college of their dreams, but they can’t either because they did not reach the academic standards, or because they cannot pay for college. There’s a solution for everything, you just have to keep pushing yourself to reach the standard. Understand that you can automatically qualify for financial aid depending on your income, that there are many odd scholarships out there that you may qualify for. Some schools, especially private schools offer money to you just for attending their school. There’s no reason why you should give up on college when all you have to do is look around and ask around, after all, how much desire do you hold within to start your new beginning?
Read more Financial Aid Opportunities from other students and parents who have been through process.
by Kara Delemeester
(St. Petersburg, FL, USA)
Advice from a Veteran Applicant - As my final days of high school and my first days of college draw nearer, the overwhelming number that is the totally cost of my college education looms over me. Scholarships have become few and far between as deadlines for the 2012-2012 school year pass. Just as they become sparse, I’m making the mad dash for applying for scholarships, just like every other student in my class in schools around the country. When your final year of high school starts, you have a lot to be thinking about and accomplishing. Scholarships should be at the forefront of your mind.
Scholarships are free money. You send in an application, write a little essay, and then wait. If you win, you just received free money. However, scholarships don’t fall into your lap. You have to look for them and work for them. So start looking for them as soon as possible. If you start your applications early enough you get more time to work on it and perfect it before the deadline rears its ugly head. Also, most students are going to wait until the last minute to start applying. The earlier you are applying for scholarships, the less competition you have.
When filling out your application make sure to include any award or club you’ve ever received or been apart of. Scholarships are one of the only places where bragging is perfectly acceptable, and even encouraged. If you build a resume that includes all of that information, you can use it for multiple scholarship applications which takes out an extra step. If you don’t know how to format your resume, try searching “Student Resume ” for some examples.
More often than not, the scholarship you’re applying for will require an essay. A lot of prompts are very similar or even have an “Use an essay your wrote for another scholarship” option. Save every essay you write because, chances are, you might be able to use it as is or modify it to fit another prompt. However, whether you use an old essay or write a new one, have a couple of other people read it over. Not only will they find spelling and grammar mistakes you might have looked over, they might see that a sentence or paragraph isn’t necessary, or that you need to add a little more to it.
Regardless of when you start applying for scholarships, or whether you take any of my tips above, take this one word of advice with you. Never get discouraged. Applying for scholarships can be very disheartening. You can apply for hundreds and not get a single one. Don’t take it personally, don’t be offended, and don’t let it bring you down. As long as you apply, you’re not left wondering, “what if?” Never give up, and never let rejection make you feel like your not good enough. Now get out there, and get applying.
Read more Scholarship Essay Samples
Scholarships for 2023 - It is never too early or too late to work on your scholarship searches. If you are part of the high school class of 2023, you should work on your scholarship and college search now. See our list of Scholarships for High School Seniors
FAFSA - The official 2023 - 2024 FAFSA is now available. See information about FAFSA.
Scholarship Lists An overview of the different types of Scholarship Money for College.
Grants Learn more about grants, the other free money for college.
Need Tuition Help? Reduce the cost of tuition with these college Tuition Assistance Programs.
Tax Credit Claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit.
College Savings Plans Save money for college with these College Savings Plans.
Need a Student Loan? Yes, you qualify for these college Student Loans.
Scholarships for High School Students