Q. How to find the little known scholarships for college-bound kids?
A. We have shared before the well known places to find scholarships. Here are 6 little used ways to find scholarships:
1. Look for private scholarships on Twitter
Search for awards on Twitter using the hash tag #scholarships. Students and parents will find tweets and links about private scholarships from scholarships providers, counselors, schools and others.
Also try other related hash tags such as #meritscholarships, #financialaid and #privatescholarships.
When you locate people who are providing valuable information about scholarships, start following them. Also check to see whom these people are following.
In particular, check if these scholarship sources have created lists of individuals who are also helpful dispensers of scholarships information. This is an easy way to broaden your search for scholarship leads.
2. Seek out scholarships that require an essay
If your child wants to search for scholarships that are less popular, they should check out contests that require an essay. The WOW Writing Workshop maintains a list of private scholarships that require an essay.
3. Write a scholarship essay that stands out
Just like college admission essays, too many of these writing samples are boring and written like a standard high school English paper, which is not what scholarship sponsors want. Sponsors want teenagers to write an entertaining essay with a great opening line that shares the writer's genuine voice.
4. Think twice about pursuing large national scholarships
The best-known and most generous scholarships are inundated with entries. Students' chances of winning the Coca- Cola Scholars award, for instance, are 25 times worse than the odds of gaining admission into Stanford, which rejects the vast majority of its students. Teenagers will usually experience better luck by applying to local scholarships.
5. Understand the limitation of scholarship search engines
Many large databases routinely pelt students with ads and often generate scholarship suggestions that are mismatches. You can learn more about this phenomenon by reading this post, "Do college scholarship search engines work?"
6. Check out institutional scholarships
MeritAid.com is an excellent search engine that you can use to find merit scholarships from colleges and universities, which are usually bigger than the standard private scholarships. Families should also look at a college's admission and financial aid sites to find a list of their scholarships.
A. We have shared before the well known places to find scholarships. Here are 6 little used ways to find scholarships:
1. Look for private scholarships on Twitter
Search for awards on Twitter using the hash tag #scholarships. Students and parents will find tweets and links about private scholarships from scholarships providers, counselors, schools and others.
Also try other related hash tags such as #meritscholarships, #financialaid and #privatescholarships.
When you locate people who are providing valuable information about scholarships, start following them. Also check to see whom these people are following.
In particular, check if these scholarship sources have created lists of individuals who are also helpful dispensers of scholarships information. This is an easy way to broaden your search for scholarship leads.
2. Seek out scholarships that require an essay
If your child wants to search for scholarships that are less popular, they should check out contests that require an essay. The WOW Writing Workshop maintains a list of private scholarships that require an essay.
3. Write a scholarship essay that stands out
Just like college admission essays, too many of these writing samples are boring and written like a standard high school English paper, which is not what scholarship sponsors want. Sponsors want teenagers to write an entertaining essay with a great opening line that shares the writer's genuine voice.
4. Think twice about pursuing large national scholarships
The best-known and most generous scholarships are inundated with entries. Students' chances of winning the Coca- Cola Scholars award, for instance, are 25 times worse than the odds of gaining admission into Stanford, which rejects the vast majority of its students. Teenagers will usually experience better luck by applying to local scholarships.
5. Understand the limitation of scholarship search engines
Many large databases routinely pelt students with ads and often generate scholarship suggestions that are mismatches. You can learn more about this phenomenon by reading this post, "Do college scholarship search engines work?"
6. Check out institutional scholarships
MeritAid.com is an excellent search engine that you can use to find merit scholarships from colleges and universities, which are usually bigger than the standard private scholarships. Families should also look at a college's admission and financial aid sites to find a list of their scholarships.
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