Legitimate College Scholarships?

[LuckyRobin]

Does anyone know where I can even begin to look for legitimate college scholarship information on the internet? So much of it is scams and/or loans. I'd rather not waste hours wading through it all if some of you have already done it and know where to direct me. My daughter is a high school junior so we still have a bit of time yet, but I don't want to put it off much longer.

[MoneyTips4U]

Where to Find College Scholarships

Hi there,

I'm a freshman in college, and so I just went through ALL of this last year.

As far as scholarships, there are great places to look. An obvious one is, of course, online. Sites like Zinch and Cappex are both great scholarship sites and easy to get started on. They are 100% legitimate and you can find some good scholarship opportunities there.

Aside from online, I can almost bet that your daughter's high school has some sort of list of scholarships available for college. Simply ask the counselor and there should be something available.

A huge scholarship for colleges are Academic (aka Merit-Based). These are based almost purely on GPA and ACT/SAT. A 4.0 and 30 or above on the ACT will guarantee at least some sort of scholarship at a public college. I would recommend that the ACT be taken more than once for the highest score possible. I took it 4 times. I got the same score 3 times, but scored higher once; it was worth it.

Another option (one that I am currently utilizing), is an ROTC scholarship, which is based on academics, high school activity, ACT, etc. These are, of course, military ROTC scholarships. I would recommend any branch of ROTC, because if you receive a scholarship right out of high school, you can try it out for one year and see if you like it or not (of course check the particular branch to find out the policies). If you do not like it, then you do not have to keep participating and you will not be held liable for any of the fees already paid for the scholarship.

Hope this helps. Scholarships are out there, a lot of them; just gotta work a bit to find them. Good luck!

-MoneyTips4U

[moneybags]

The best scholarships available come directly from the colleges. If she has a particular college in mind, check their website to see what scholarships they offer. This can be tricky at times, since some are not openly listed on their sites. As the previous poster stated, many are based on ACT, etc. and specific qualifications may or may not be given on a college's site. Also, if she has taken the SAT or ACT already, you have a gauge of her chances for money at a particular school. Schools list their middle 50% ACT/SAT range for accepted students, for example a school's ACT range may be 25-30. If you are in the top 25% (above 30 in this example), then you would be a desirable student for the school and more likely to receive scholarship money (if they give scholarships).

In terms of other scholarships, your best chances are at local scholarships. Check with your high school counselor, they should have a list. There are national scholarships out there, some big and some small. The problem with these is that there are many people competing for them. Your local pool of competitors will be smaller.

Finally, did your daughter take the PSAT? In my opinion, scoring high enough on the PSAT to become a National Merit Scholar is the quickest route to scholarships (of course, it is not an easy thing to do). You can only qualify in your junior year and the test is held in October. Many colleges offer full rides to National Merit Scholars.

I did a lot of research and had success with the process. My DD has a friend that was a good student, but didn't have a stellar GPA or ACT and got a few great scholarship offers by picking the right schools

A good website with forums full of knowledgeable people is collegeconfidential.com. If you want good info on college, you can find it there, just ignore the many of over-achievers and their parents that post there . There is a specific thread on scholarships.

[disneysteve]

Sites like Zinch and Cappex are both great scholarship sites and easy to get started on.

Thanks for this info. My daughter is a junior so we're entering this process now. I will definitely check them out.

OP, be sure to contact any organizations you or your spouse belong to: professional organizations, unions, social organizations, Lions Club, Masons, religious organizations, etc. Some will have scholarships available. Some will have low interest loans available. Also, have your kid join any professional organizations that are applicable to her field of interest. For example, my daughter wants to go into engineering so we are looking into the engineering societies like the National Society of Professional Engineers. They have a scholarship program.

[jpg7n16]

My college had a department of financial aid. It was essentially their job to help students find scholarships and ways to pay for classes.

If you have a school in mind, I'd start there.



Another thing to consider is that if you're able to go to a lower tuition school, that's kinda like getting a scholarship too. One that everyone is approved for. University A for $24k/year vs University B for $16k/year = $8k/year "scholarship"

[disneysteve]

My college had a department of financial aid. It was essentially their job to help students find scholarships and ways to pay for classes.

If you have a school in mind, I'd start there.

Definitely do that once you are accepted, but still search on your own as there are lots of sources for scholarships that the school may not have access to.

Another thing to consider is that if you're able to go to a lower tuition school, that's kinda like getting a scholarship too. One that everyone is approved for. University A for $24k/year vs University B for $16k/year = $8k/year "scholarship"

Yes and no. More expensive schools often have deeper pockets when it comes to aid packages. You can't just look at the posted tuition price. That 24K school may actually end up cheaper than the 16K school if they give you better financial aid. A private university with a huge endowment, for example, might not cost any more than your local state school that has seen funding cuts every year due to budgetary pressures.

[phantom]

Yes and no. More expensive schools often have deeper pockets when it comes to aid packages. You can't just look at the posted tuition price. That 24K school may actually end up cheaper than the 16K school if they give you better financial aid. A private university with a huge endowment, for example, might not cost any more than your local state school that has seen funding cuts every year due to budgetary pressures.

This was exactly how it worked in my case. The private school I ended up going to offered enough scholarships that it came out to be the exact same price as the the state school I applied for. The state school didn't offer any special scholarships.

Steve, if you haven't already, look for scholarships specifically for women in engineering for your daughter. As a female computer science major, I remember qualifying for a women in engineering scholarship. People really like to give money to women who want to study science. I find it a bit sexist, but if someone wants to give me money for something I was going to do anyway, I tend to take it.

[disneysteve]

Steve, if you haven't already, look for scholarships specifically for women in engineering for your daughter. As a female computer science major, I remember qualifying for a women in engineering scholarship. People really like to give money to women who want to study science. I find it a bit sexist, but if someone wants to give me money for something I was going to do anyway, I tend to take it.

Thanks. We did know that. That is definitely true in engineering, a very male-dominated field. We're hopeful she'll get money from somewhere because of that.

[Gina23]

I was the recipient of a full NCAA D1 scholarship for four years.

If your kid is at all talented at sports, don't sell yourself short. Just don't become the "my son/daughter" is going to be a major leaguer and you'll be fine. There are more D2, D3, and NJCAA scholarships out there than you can imagine. It was the kids who thought they were better than they really were who really missed out on the college money and free tuition, honestly. I realized I was a girl very early on in my career - and girls don't go pro in anything, so the ones who thought they were really something are still chasing the dream in their 30's not worried about retirement or a career.... I'm doing a lot better if I say so myself and it's all because I didn't have any student loans out of the gate.

[moneybags]

I was the recipient of a full NCAA D1 scholarship for four years.

If your kid is at all talented at sports, don't sell yourself short. Just don't become the "my son/daughter" is going to be a major leaguer and you'll be fine. There are more D2, D3, and NJCAA scholarships out there than you can imagine. It was the kids who thought they were better than they really were who really missed out on the college money and free tuition, honestly. I realized I was a girl very early on in my career - and girls don't go pro in anything, so the ones who thought they were really something are still chasing the dream in their 30's not worried about retirement or a career.... I'm doing a lot better if I say so myself and it's all because I didn't have any student loans out of the gate.

Excellent choice for you or anyone else that is talented enough, but it is easier to get an academic scholarship than an athletic one.

And FYI - D3 schools are not allowed to give athletic scholarships. Also, the Ivies do not give athletic scholarships.

[jpg7n16]

Yes and no. More expensive schools often have deeper pockets when it comes to aid packages. You can't just look at the posted tuition price. That 24K school may actually end up cheaper than the 16K school if they give you better financial aid. A private university with a huge endowment, for example, might not cost any more than your local state school that has seen funding cuts every year due to budgetary pressures.

This was exactly how it worked in my case. The private school I ended up going to offered enough scholarships that it came out to be the exact same price as the the state school I applied for. The state school didn't offer any special scholarships.

I guess my experience was different then. My final decision was between one of the better private schools in Texas, Baylor, and a smaller private school.

I had great scholarship offers lined up to go there. By far, the scholarships at Baylor were more money (prob from the deep pockets), however even after scholarships, it would have been more than the total cost of the school I ended up choosing (not even considering scholarships there).

I was offered more in scholarships at Baylor than total tuition at the school I went to, and it still would have cost me more overall.

[FrugalTexan75]

Another source are the books out there listing the available scholarships. One book which I've heard is a pretty good resource is The Ultimate Scholarship Book. The 2013 edition is available on Amazon for $16.43. Of course you also might want to check at your local library.

[LuckyRobin]

My main problem is that my daughter is only a 3.0 student. It's not that she's not smart, she's just a social butterfly, so does enough to get good grades, just not great ones, although she aces her foreign language classes. So I don't know that she'd qualify for academic scholarships. And again, athletically she's good at everything, the PE teacher keeps trying to get her to go out for basketball, soccer, volleyball or softball, but she doesn't care about sports and hasn't since she quit playing on teams after 6th grade. That seems to be where most of the scholarships are.

She is good with languages, has learned passable Spanish on her own, knows a bit of Russian and a bit of one of the local Native American tribe's unwritten language, has learned excellent Japanese at school, and is currently teaching herself Korean and Italian with the Rosetta Stone. She wants to take Mandarin in college. I don't really know what to do with that as far as possible scholarships go.

[moneybags]

That seems to be where most of the scholarships are.

She is good with languages, has learned passable Spanish on her own, knows a bit of Russian and a bit of one of the local Native American tribe's unwritten language, has learned excellent Japanese at school, and is currently teaching herself Korean and Italian with the Rosetta Stone. She wants to take Mandarin in college. I don't really know what to do with that as far as possible scholarships go.

Most scholarships are not athletic, but are academic in nature. I'm not sure about specific scholarships for her interest, but it does give her a uniqueness when applying to college. Has she taken the SAT or ACT yet?

[MoneyTips4U]

My main problem is that my daughter is only a 3.0 student. It's not that she's not smart, she's just a social butterfly, so does enough to get good grades, just not great ones, although she aces her foreign language classes. So I don't know that she'd qualify for academic scholarships. And again, athletically she's good at everything, the PE teacher keeps trying to get her to go out for basketball, soccer, volleyball or softball, but she doesn't care about sports and hasn't since she quit playing on teams after 6th grade. That seems to be where most of the scholarships are.

She is good with languages, has learned passable Spanish on her own, knows a bit of Russian and a bit of one of the local Native American tribe's unwritten language, has learned excellent Japanese at school, and is currently teaching herself Korean and Italian with the Rosetta Stone. She wants to take Mandarin in college. I don't really know what to do with that as far as possible scholarships go.

It sounds like your daughter is wonderful with languages. The military loves that. She could possibly get a great scholarship through ROTC if she applied for a Language Field. Trust me, with Mandarin Chinese under her belt, she won't have trouble finding a job.

I'm taking Arabic right now, and while that is my major in college, the military (AFROTC for now) gives bonuses just for me taking Arabic. Foreign languages are great, and we need linguists.

-MoneyTips4U