Blog

by Alexis Mattera

Are you a high school senior who is committed to giving back in unselfish ways, embodies service over self and is already making a difference in society? If so, add this Scholarship of the Week from Coca-Cola to your application list.

The Coca-Cola Scholars Program scholarship is an achievement-based scholarship awarded to 250 high school seniors each year. Fifty of these are four-year, $20,000 scholarships ($5,000 per year for four years), while 200 are designated as four-year, $10,000 awards ($2,500 per year for four years). The scholarships must be used at an accredited U.S. college or university and the deadline for this year’s contest is October 31st.

Winners are selected based on a balanced consideration of leadership, character, achievement and commitment both inside and outside of the classroom. Coca-Cola Scholars are characterized by their ability, perseverance, determination and motivation to serve and succeed in all endeavors; they are a diverse group of individuals representing every ethnic group and all 50 states. To find out if you qualify, visit the official scholarship website here or find the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation Four-Year Award for Seniors in your Scholarships.com scholarship matches. Don’t have a Scholarships.com account? Create one and conduct a free scholarship search today!

by Suada Kolovic

When it comes to preparing for standardized tests, everyone seems to have an opinion. Whether it’s the “when in doubt, choose C” mantra or that SAT/ACT prep courses are the only way to guarantee a high score, it’s important to note that while test tips are well-intentioned, they don’t necessarily translate into good or even practical advice. But don’t fret, the U.S. News & World Report has debunked seven popular standardized test myths to get you through the stressful process. Here are a few of our favorites:

Myth 1: Taking both tests will double your chances of doing well.

If you are remarkably better at one test, it should become evident pretty quickly after some practice. If it doesn't, then you are probably like most kids and will do equally well on either. Pick the test you feel more comfortable with and put your efforts into that test.

Myth 2: The ACT is an easier test than the SAT.

The ACT is a different test, not better or easier. In fact, most kids will get similar scores on both. Note though that most doesn't mean everyone—and might not mean you.

Myth 3: The SAT is more coachable than the ACT.

Familiarize yourself with both. Take a practice test of each. Then, compare not just your scores but also your relative strengths and weaknesses on each test. Which areas of weakness are likely to be the easiest for you to improve?

Myth 4: You should take the SAT or ACT as often as you can.

Unless you plan to start on the varsity SAT team, you are probably better served by taking the SAT and ACT only a couple of times.

For the entire list of debunked myths, click here.

by Suada Kolovic

• According to PoP’s website, 100% of online donations go directly towards educational programs. How is the organization able to make such a huge contribution? At PoP we know how important it is for supporters to know where their contribution is going. We promise that 100% of all funds donated or raised online will go directly towards education programs, 0% towards overhead. We separately raise the funds necessary to cover our operating expenses through private and offline donations. This system allows supporters to exclusively impact the lives of those they seek to empower.
• Are there any exciting campaigns launching soon that you can share with Scholarships.com’s readers? There’s an exciting opportunity for Scholarship.com readers this fall. Pencils of Promise is awarding scholarships to The Impossible Ones – the dreamers audacious enough to believe they can change the world and hungry enough to actually do it. PoP is awarding $5,000 in scholarships to students that join The Impossible Ones movement by fundraising to build schools in the developing world. Students who fundraise over $100 will be entered to win scholarships ranging from $500 to $1,000. Additionally, each student who fundraises more than $1,000 will be entered to win a full Semester at Sea scholarship to travel the globe and earn 12-15 college credits. Students can sign up at www.impossibleones.org until October 31.
• How can our readers get involved with PoP (donation, volunteer, internship, etc.)? There are many ways to get involved with PoP. If you’re looking to be part of the PoP family, we always have internship opportunities at our NYC headquarters. If you want to make a direct impact by fundraising, you can set up your own personal fundraising page on www.impossibleones.org. Students everywhere are doing incredible things to fundraise for PoP, like donating their birthday or taking on a physical challenge. The scholarships available through The Impossible Ones just makes getting involved that much more exciting.
• How did Justin Bieber get involved and how is he using his star power to raise awareness about PoP? Justin Bieber’s manager, Scooter Braun, is PoP founder Adam Braun’s brother. Justin has been an invaluable spokesperson for PoP. He uses his voice to advocate for global access to education, and encourages his fans to get involved as well.

by Suada Kolovic

Scholarships.com readers, you saw it featured as one of our Scholarships of the Week but are you familiar with the grassroots movement Pencils of Promise (PoP)? If not, you’re in luck! We recently had the opportunity to interview PoP’s community engagement coordinator Rachele Aidala and asked her everything from how the organization was started and projections for the next year to how one of the world’s biggest pop stars – the Biebs – got involved. Check out what she had to say below:

• Let’s start with introductions: What is Pencils of Promise and what is your role within the organization? Pencils of Promise (PoP) believes every child should have access to quality education. We create schools, programs, and global communities around the common goal of education for all. Since 2008, PoP has built 67 schools in Southeast Asia and Latin America. We’ve educated over 4,500 children and positively impacted 65,000 lives. PoP founder Adam Braun was moved to create the organization after his experience traveling around the world. He encountered a young boy in India and asked him what he wanted most in the world. The child answered “a pencil.” It was then that the dream to build a school was born. Here we are, nearly four years later, on track to build 100 schools by the end of the 2012. Sixty-one million children around the world don’t have access to primary school education, so we have a lot of work ahead of us. I’m the Community Engagement Coordinator, which means I get to work with all of our incredible supporters. You wouldn’t believe the power of our students across the country. They’re in their schools and on their campuses rallying their peers around education for all. They run clubs, host awareness events, and fundraise to build PoP schools. It’s a huge privilege to work with such passionate dedicated supporters.
• How pivotal was social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) in the growth of PoP? As an organization that works for and with youth around the world, we know the importance of communicating on their platforms, on their terms. For most youth and Generation X professionals, that form of communication is social media, be it Facebook, Twitter or blogging. We are best able to engage with the PoP community over social media, which greatly contributes to our growth as an organization.
• What earned PoP the largest social media following of any nonprofit in the last four years? When you’re a lean non-profit that’s also a scrappy startup, you don’t have a big advertising budget. For PoP that meant focusing our time and energy on digital. With an online community of more than 300,000 members, it’s now paying off. Some people are obsessed with photos of kittens, I’m obsessed with photos of PoP kids in schools around the world. Social media allows us to connect our supporters with those students. The excitement of sharing photos of a newly-inaugurated school never gets old.
• PoP’s built 67 schools to date – what are the projections for the next 12 months? Over the next 12 months, PoP is looking to expand its programming and geography. We’re working to expand our reach to new countries and expand our programming to incorporate teacher training and student scholarships abroad. An immediate goal of ours is to break ground on our 100th school in 2012. With 67 completed schools and nine ongoing builds, that will be a challenge, but at PoP we’re all about overcoming the impossible.

Stay tuned for the second part of our interview (oh, and those Bieber details) with Rachele tomorrow!

by Alexis Mattera

A new academic year has begun and there are countless things high school students have resolved to do between the first and last day of classes. In addition to picking up a new extracurricular activity or making the honor roll, another bulleted item on to-do lists should be entering Scholarships.com’s annual Resolve to Evolve Essay Scholarship...but hurry – the deadline is quickly approaching!

The Resolve to Evolve Essay Scholarship is about more than just making resolutions – it’s about creating change and furthering our evolution as individuals and a society. R2E is an opportunity to move beyond finger-pointing and offer constructive criticism and workable solutions for problems facing an administration or an organization. The applicant who submits the best overall essay will receive a $2,000 scholarship; one (1) winner will also be selected from each grade level (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior) and will receive a $1,000 scholarship each. For this year’s prompts, official rules and submission form, check out our official R2E page.

Remember, this scholarship is open to ALL high school students – even freshmen and sophomores. Your chances of winning could be better than you think so make sure you submit your entry before the September 30th deadline. Best of luck and, as always, you can learn more about this award and others by conducting a free scholarship search today!

by Radha Jhatakia

Everyone struggles with keeping up a healthy diet and fitness schedule in college, especially if you work part time or are involved in organization on campus in addition to taking classes. Here are some simple tips that could help you squeeze in some time to work on your fitness.

• It’s all about scheduling the time and making the commitment. I know at the end of a long day, we just want to get those extra 20 minutes of shut-eye but most likely, that time isn't going to make you feel more rested. (It’s like hitting snooze every five minutes in the morning – it won’t do anything but make you late!) Instead of crawling into bed, head over to the rec center or embark on a walk or run around campus for at least 30 minutes a day.
• There are websites that have amazing and healthy recipes. Womenshealthmag.com and eatthis.menshealth.com are just a few sites that offer quick and easy work-out routines and meal plans you can follow. The latter website also has restaurant guides so you can enjoy a meal outside your own kitchen or dining hall and still maintain a balanced diet.
• When you buy your groceries, plan out meals for the week before you go. Also, don't hit the store when you're hungry because you'll end up buying a lot of junk food and other items you don't really need. It’s alright to indulge in that one pack of cookies while you’re studying – trust me, we all get the late-night studying munchies – but don’t overdo it.
• And last but not least, get a work-out buddy! Having a friend with you every step of the way is a great motivator for both parties involved. Find a buddy who has similar goals and plan gym days or grocery shopping trips so you can help each other stay on track. I’ve started doing that this semester and it’s going great: We haven’t missed a day at the gym yet...though we may get a little carried away with our shopping lists!

Getting fit shouldn’t be a chore – have fun with it and you will enjoy the results even more!

Radha Jhatakia is a communications major at San Jose State University. She's a transfer student who had some ups and downs in school and many obstacles to face; these challenges – plus support from family, friends and cat – have only made Radha stronger and have given her the experience to help others with the same issues. In her spare time, she enjoys writing, reading, cooking, sewing and designing. A social butterfly, Radha hopes to work in public relations and marketing upon graduation.

by Alexis Mattera

Though taking a gap year has yet to win mass societal approval, it is getting a pretty big endorsement from one NYC school: Admitted students who opt to take time off between high school and college will now earn a full year of academic credit.

Eugene Lang College for Liberal Arts and Global Citizen Year have partnered to offer incoming students who have been admitted to both programs the opportunity to earn 30 college credits as they support development projects in other countries. Participating students will spend their seven-month "bridge year" living with local families and bettering their host communities by teaching English and working as peer mentors; instead of being one year behind students who started traditional classes the previous fall, they’ll enter Lang as full-fledged sophomores. "There are a lot of worthy learning experiences in life but we don’t give academic credit for them," said Stephanie Browner, the Lang dean overseeing participating students. "I think this is the right way to launch yourself into college."

Lang is the first school to join forces with Global Citizen Year but founder Abby Falik is eagerly anticipating the impact her program will have on college campuses across the country. Would you take advantage of this opportunity at your school? Why or why not?

by Lisa Lowdermilk

Like many students, you’re probably wondering how on Earth you’re going to pay for another semester of college, especially if you’ve either a) missed the deadline for your school’s scholarships or b) don’t feel like writing an essay, filling out forms, etc. But fear not: There are plenty of less traditional scholarships available throughout the year. And let me tell you, some of the scholarships out there are strange.

To illustrate what I mean, take a look at the Eileen J. Garrett Scholarship. This scholarship is specifically for students studying parapsychology, the study of near-death experience, psychic powers, reincarnation and more. I had no idea you could get a scholarship in parapsychology, let alone major in it!

Equally bizarre is the Gatling Scholarship at North Carolina State University. This scholarship requires that your last name be Gatling or Gatlin (no other variations will be considered) in honor of North Carolinian entrepreneur John Gatling. And no, you can’t legally change your last name to be considered for this scholarship – a copy of your birth certificate is required.

And since we’ve all heard about students who get scholarships based solely on their sports performance, here’s one to level the playing field for the less athletically inclined: the Gertrude J. Deppen Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded at Bucknell University in varying amounts each year to students who not only do not participate in strenuous athletic contests but also abstain from tobacco, liquor and narcotics. I don’t know about you but this is the first time I’ve heard of a scholarship which awards you for not doing something!

So, while some of the scholarship deadlines may have already passed, remember that there are hundreds, even thousands of other scholarships and grants out there. And if you have your heart set on one scholarship but the application deadline has already passed, at least now you’ll have months to prepare for it. Good luck!

Lisa Lowdermilk is a soon-to-be published author (her first novel is a murder mystery for young adults set in the future), an avid video gamer and an artist. She enjoys watching thrillers, trying different restaurants and attempting to breakdance. Lisa completed her Associate of Arts degree entirely online and is now majoring in professional writing at the University of Colorado Denver.

by Alexis Mattera

Application forms. Transcripts. Essays. Letters of recommendation. With so many components that go into an average scholarship application packet, it may seem like earning money for college is impossible...but that couldn’t be further from the truth. There’s a scholarship out there for everyone and our latest Scholarship of the Week – Pencils of Promise’s The Impossible Ones – could be the one for you!

Pencils of Promise is awarding scholarships to The Impossible Ones – the dreamers audacious enough to believe they can change the world and hungry enough to actually do it. Pencils of Promise will award $5,000 in scholarships to students that join The Impossible Ones movement by spreading awareness about the global education crisis and fundraising to build schools in the developing world. Students who fundraise over $100 will be entered to win scholarships ranging from $500 to $1,000 weekly until October 31st. Additionally, each student who fund-raises more than $1,000 will be entered to sail around the world on Semester at Sea and receive 12-15 college credits.

Want to make your college dreams possible? Visit The Impossible Ones’ website to learn more and apply. As always, you can find additional scholarship information by conducting a free Scholarships.com scholarship search today!