How to Find College
Scholarhips
By James Pipkin
With college
costs skyrocketing, more and more students and their families are scrambling to
find scholarships to help ease the burden of paying for college. There are basically two different types of
college scholarships: those awarded by
the college itself and those distributed by outside sources.
Scholarships Awarded by the College
The best and
typically most valuable scholarships are available from the college
itself. These scholarships may or may
not be funded by outside sources, but they are handed out by the college. These scholarships are usually based on merit
or need, or a combination of both. If
they are based on merit, then they are usually based on a combination of the
student’s GPA and SAT or ACT score. Usually
when parents find out about these scholarships, it is too late for the student
to raise his or her GPA, but it may not be too late to raise the SAT or ACT
score, if a higher score would result in a larger scholarship. Many colleges publish their requirements for
scholarships on their websites. For example,
Baylor University describes their different scholarship levels and their
requirements on the following website
: http://www.baylor.edu/admissions/index.php?id=82212
. Baylor also provides a scholarship
calculator that allows students to enter info about themselves and then get an
estimate of the awards for which they would qualify. Likewise, The University of Texas at Arlington
provides very clear and specific information about the different levels of
scholarships available and the criteria for qualifying on the following website
:
http://wweb.uta.edu/ses/fao/content/scholarships/
National Merit Scholarships
Another type of scholarship that can come from the college
itself is the National Merit Scholarship.
While it’s true that some corporations give scholarships to National
Merit Finalists, many colleges do too.
It fact, many colleges give full rides to National Merit Winners. Both Baylor and OU give very generous
scholarships to National Merit Scholars.(See links at bottom of article). To
compete for National Merit Scholarships, students must earn a qualifying score
on their PSAT test, which is given in October of their 11th grade
year. Students compete with others in
their home state. In Texas, qualifying
scores typically range from 215 to 219.
Being prepare for your junior PSAT is essential if you want to have a
chance at these scholarships. I have had
several top students who I worked with after their PSAT who earned SAT scores
that would have qualified them for National Merit Awards had they posted these
scores on their PSATs. Parents need to
be aware of how important the Junior PSAT is in trying to get some of the best
scholarships available. I recently had a
parent of a National Merit Finalist tell me that she never realized how
important the PSAT was until she got to her 4th daughter’s turn to
take the test. She did not realize this
with her 3 older daughters.
Scholarships from
Private Foundations and Corporations
Scholarships are also available from outside foundations and
corporations that require you to apply for them
individually. There are several
ways to go about finding these. First,
make it a point to visit your child’s school website for an updated list of
available scholarships. Most schools
and/or districts will provide a list of local scholarships for which students
can apply. These lists are usually
updated on a monthly basis so make sure you visit these sites at least once per
month. Another resource for finding
scholarships are websites such as
www.fastweb.com
and
www.scholarships.com . Students begin by answering a series of questions about their background
and academic record. The sites will then
match you with scholarships that best fit your resume. Both of these sites will generate more
scholarships than most people will have time for which to apply. Go through and narrow your list to the ones
that are more local and specific. If
time is an issue, you can eliminate the scholarships that require the student
to write an essay or enter a contest.
This will help to ensure that you’re applying to the ones that your
child has a better chance of getting. I
would encourage parents to begin searching for scholarships as early as your
child’s junior year. In fact, I have
seen some scholarships that require the application to be turned in during the
junior year. Set aside some time every
couple of weeks or so to send in applications and to check the scholarship
websites for new scholarships. Or
encourage your child to spend some time every month or so completing and
sending these applications.
Although this process of searching for scholarships can be
time-consuming, it can be very rewarding, especially if you are diligent and if
your child has demonstrated merit. Good
Luck and if I can be of assistance to you, please feel free to contact me!
