Blog

by Alexis Mattera

Applying for scholarships requires hard work, creativity and time...not boatloads of cash, frustration and empty promises. Each year, however, students are duped into ponying up exorbitant application fees for scholarships they aren’t even guaranteed to win. This is just plain WRONG, people – scholarships are supposed to be free money for college! – and while we’re betting you’ve already checked out our pages on scholarship scam prevention, the Washington Post recently published some refresher info:

• Filling out the FAFSA is 100-percent free and you can do it either online or on paper. If you would like to fill it out online, be sure your search terms are correct: A seemingly small typo like "FASFA" can direct you to sites that ask you to pay to file...and the forms they have are sometimes the wrong ones.
• It's legal for for-profit companies to charge for providing scholarship information but it's illegal for them to collect fees but never provide the information, misrepresent themselves as government officials or guarantee they'll get the student full funding for college.
• Voice any concerns about an organization to a high school or college counselor; they've been there and done that and can point you to the truth.
• If you are alerted that you're a finalist for a contest you've never entered or if credit card/banking information is requested online, go no further unless you are positive the organization is legit.
• Don't give in to anything branded as a "limited time offer" or "exclusive opportunity." They're just high-pressure sales tactics.
• Investigate the success stories presented at seminars. These so-called "satisfied customers" could have been paid to give glowing recommendations so ask for a list of at least three local families who used the service and contact them directly to make sure the organization delivered on its promises.
• If you do find a legitimate organization that requires payment, get in writing how much the service costs, what exactly the company will do and the refund policy.

College is expensive enough so save those application fees for books and other college expenses: All Scholarships.com’s services – from the scholarship search and college matchmaker to financial aid information and college preparation tips – are available completely free of charge. You’re welcome!

by Alexis Mattera

Writing three sentences and banking $1,000 to put toward college may seem like a dream but it is indeed a reality with the Three Sentence Essay from Zinch. Though many essay scholarships have word count requirements in the hundreds or thousands, Zinch caps theirs at 280 characters – the equivalent of two Twitter postings – and requires applicants to respond to a prompt that changes on a weekly basis.

All high school and college students (including international students) are eligible to participate so go ahead and check out the prompt, think about it some and submit a concise yet thoughtful answer worthy of $1,000 by midnight tonight. And remember, Scholarships.com has thousands more scholarships to choose from…all you have to do is fill out a profile and launch a scholarship search today!

by Suada Kolovic

Everyone has a college story to tell. Whether yours has yet to begin, is ongoing or about to start a new chapter, we want to hear about it through our second Scholarships.com’s Short and Tweet Scholarship. This time around, we’d like you to sum up your college experience in 140 characters or less and possibly win $1,000 or a Kindle for school!

We first debuted the Short and Tweet Scholarship in April and received so many amazing replies that we knew we had to offer it again…with a twist. To enter, simply log on to Twitter (create an account if you don’t already have one), follow us, then @reply us and tell us your college story. It can be fiction, non-fiction, funny or serious, and the most creative college story will win a $1,000 scholarship (second- and third-place winners will receive one Kindle each).

Step 1: Follow Scholarships.com on Twitter.

Step 2: @reply us with a tweet sharing your college story in 140 characters or fewer. Once you do this, you are automatically entered to win a $1,000 scholarship or one of two Kindles!

Step 3: You may enter as many times as you want but please limit your tweets to a reasonable amount per day. Each unique tweet will be a stand-alone entry and tweets that are submitted by non-followers, exceed 140 characters, do not include @Scholarshipscom or are submitted after the July 31st deadline will not be considered. From there, the Scholarships.com Team will determine which tweet is most deserving of the award.

This scholarship competition is offered by Scholarships.com and is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter.

Starts: June 15th

Ends: July 31st

Number Available: 3

Amount: $1,000 for one first-prize winner; second- and third-prize winners will be awarded one Kindle each.

This scholarship competition is offered by Scholarships.com and is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Twitter.

For official rules, please click here.

by Jessica Seals

A typical soon-to-be college student’s priority list probably looks a little something like this:

• Step 1: Stay focused in high school by keeping a high GPA and doing as many extracurricular activities as possible.
• Step 2: Make a list of possible college choices and start on applications early.
• Step 3: Make a final decision on where to attend college.
• Step 4: Move into the dorms and get ready for four incredible years!

But wait!!! With all of the excitement of starting college, students can forget to get their finances together to pay for it all! Many students don’t realize that they can eliminate student loan headaches simply by starting the scholarship application process early. By doing so, students have more time to get their application materials together and apply for more scholarships because they are not rushing to submit everything on deadline day.

From my own personal experience, I found it advantageous to apply for scholarships early. I joined websites like Scholarships.com so that I could keep track of deadlines and scholarships that I qualified for. I sent it all of my materials early and when I started receiving letters that began with “Congratulations!” it made the time that I spent applying for scholarships worthwhile.

Another bit of advice that I found helpful was applying for scholarships even if the amount seems small. During my freshman year of college, I applied for the new member scholarship for the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society despite the fact that the award amount was $300. Nothing could make my smile turn into a frown that day because winning the scholarship meant that I wouldn’t have to pay out of pocket for books in the upcoming semester.

My final advice: Apply for as many scholarships as possible because you might just be what the scholarship committee is looking for. Even the smallest award can help pay for something!

Jessica Seals is currently a senior at the University of Memphis majoring in political science and minoring in English. At the University of Memphis, she is the secretary of the Pre-Law Society, the philanthropy chair of the Phi Kappa Phi Student Council and a member of Professional Assertive United Sisters of Excellence (PAUSE), Golden Key Honor Society, Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Sigma Alpha Lambda Honor Society, and Black Scholars Unlimited. She also volunteers to tutor her fellow classmates and hopes to attend law school in the near future.

by Suada Kolovic

Sure there are tons of scholarships out there for the egghead, the jock, the feminist, the free spirit, and even the average student. But what about those of you with strange talents? Those talents that really make you stand out in a crowd are the same talents that could potentially earn you loads of cash for college!

Unlike your typical scholarships, where the selection pool is humongous, a specific criterion – like having the name Zolp – is required for unique scholarships. There are tons of wacky, unusual and just plain weird scholarships out there. For instance, can you call ducks? Seems like a strange question but if you can, check out the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest; with a grand prize of $2,000, that’s sure to ruffle a few feathers. Do you have a sweet tooth? Who doesn’t, but unlike the rest of us who just sit around and enjoy those tasty treats, you’re interested in creating the next Snickers, making the National Candy Technologists Scholarship the perfect outlet for you to put those taste buds to good use. (The rest of us will be indebted to you!) Are you someone with a knack for fashion and have creativity coming out of your ears? Then take on the Duck Brand Stuck at Prom Scholarship Challenge and create your entire prom attire out of Duck tape.

Remember, if you have an unusual talent, there may just be an equally unusual scholarship out there. For a complete list of wacky, unusual, and just plain weird scholarships, conduct a free scholarship search at Scholarships.com and put those talents to good use!

by Agnes Jasinski

It can’t be a good feeling to know that you could have been a contender for a generous scholarship but for the one piece of the application you failed to send to the award provider. Or that you were this close to winning an award to help pay for college but missed the deadline on providing supplementary materials. We can’t stress enough how important it is to follow the rules on each scholarship you apply for exactly, because one small misstep will not only send you to the bottom of the pile, it will most certainly take you out of the running for an award.

Thanks to free scholarship searches like ours, it’s easier than ever before to find scholarships. The harder part is obviously applying, but don’t assume you’re eligible for an award after a casual glance over the requirements. Take a close look at what each scholarship requires of you, and, if available, the official rules of each award, to make sure you meet all of the criteria. If you need to request an application through the mail, write a formal letter that you’ve proofread for any errors. Once you’re ready to submit your scholarship application, take a look at everything again, or have a fresh pair of eyes look over your materials. Most scholarships have quite a few applicants vying for that same award you’re applying for, so don’t give the scholarship provider a reason to deny you your chance.

Your work’s not quite over once you’ve submitted your application, even if you’ve followed the guidelines of that award to the letter. Your work may not even be over after you’re told you’ve won a particular scholarship. Take our own Area of Study Scholarships as an example. If you’re chosen as a winner of one of the 13 scholarships, based on the field of study you provide when you fill out a Scholarships.com profile, you’re expected to follow through on a few steps to help us determine whether you’re truly eligible to receive the award. Follow the rules we provide and respond by the deadline we give you, and we’ll send you a check for $1,000 to help cover your college costs. If you fail to reply, we’ll pick another lucky winner in your place. If you reply after we’ve already chosen another winner, you’re out of luck.

It sounds simple, but there have been instances where scholarship winners forfeit their prizes because they fail to follow-up after an award is announced or miss important deadlines. Scholarship providers are in the business of helping you with your college costs, and the best thanks you could give is following directions and being timely with your responses. Good luck out there!

by Agnes Jasinski

If you have a talent for video and already make short films for fun, you should look into video contest scholarships that could reward you with more than a reel of your movie-making abilities. This week’s Scholarship of the Week is one such award, offering $5,000 to those who come up with the most creative clips on promoting auto safety.

The Safety Scholars Video Contest by Bridgestone asks applicants to come up with short clips to serve as public service announcements on auto safety and what the youth set can do to drive more safely. Winners don’t only get scholarships; their videos run on television stations across the country, which could give you quite a bit of exposure. Don’t limit yourself if this video contest isn’t for you though. There are a number of awards out there for you aspiring filmmakers, and will probably be less competitive than awards that ask for a more traditional but less involved application. If you’re interested in this one though, get that camera out and start filming. (June is National Safety Month, after all.)

Prize:

Eligibility:

Deadline:

Required Material:

Applicants are judged based on the concept/idea, effectiveness, and creativity of their video entries. Entries must be original videos of 25 to 55 seconds in length on one or more issues or topics related to auto safety and improving auto safety for drivers ages 16 through 21. Applicants must also complete an official entry form on Bridgestone’s Safety Scholars website.

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.

by Alexis Mattera

We’ve seen it in movies and read about it in books: Someone unearths a time capsule buried long ago and learns something vital from its contents. Does it happen in real life? Sure but for this Scholarship of the Week – the Big Dig Scholarship – you’ll only need a metaphorical shovel and a way with words.

The Big Dig Scholarship asks students to find an item currently available for purchase for under $500 that will have immense value in the future. Applicants must then write a 500- to 1,000-word essay detailing their decision to be in the running to win a $3,000 scholarship for college. Interested? Here are the questions each essay must answer:

• What is the item you are going to bury?
• Where could you purchase this item today?
• How much does this item cost?
• What made you choose the item?
• Why do you believe that the item will have immense value 200 years from now?

Essays will be graded primarily on originality and depth of content but grammar, punctuation and spelling will also be taken into consideration. Applications are due June 1st and the winner will be selected and notified by July 15th.

For more information about this award, complete a free scholarship search today!

by Alexis Mattera

When most people start a new job, it takes a while for them to find their way and perfectly arrange their tchotchkes before they feel truly comfortable. Not Susan Herbst: She took over as president of the University of Connecticut just 22 days ago but she’s already made a huge impact on campus and beyond.

Herbst, the former executive vice chancellor of the University System of Georgia, and her husband, marketing consultant Douglas Hughes, have announced they will donate $100,000 to create a scholarship for needy UConn students pursuing degrees in the arts and humanities. "In these difficult times, UConn desperately needs increased private funding of student scholarships, faculty research, and building projects in order to become the top flagship university the state of Connecticut and its citizens deserve," she said in a statement.

The aptly-named Susan Herbst and Douglas Hughes Family Scholarship will be based on academic achievement and need and will be awarded for the first time next spring. Does this financial aid opportunity have you considering spending your college years in the Constitution State?

by Alexis Mattera

Were you ever the new kid in class? What about the new kid in class in an unfamiliar country or culture? If this sounds like you, apply for our Scholarship of the Week: Clements International’s Expat Youth Scholarship!

This unique contest is for expat students who spend their childhoods moving between different countries and cultures. Simply create a two- to three-minute video explaining your favorite thing about your host country and its culture (if you have lived abroad in more than one country, please only select one), upload your video to YouTube then visit Clements International’s website to submit your entry by the May 13th deadline.

For more information on this and other scholarship opportunities, complete a free scholarship search today!