For Upperclassmen, Back to School Means Starting Scholarship Search
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009By Kevin Ladd, Vice President, Scholarships.com
I know this may seem premature, but for some of you, school is only seven weeks away and you just know that time is going to fly by, don’t you? The beginning of a new school year means a lot of things for students, but if you expect to continue your education beyond high school and you are in your last or next-to-last year in school, you really need to start thinking practically about college. In other words, you need to figure out how you are going to pay for your post-secondary education.
Too often, students wait until they are accepted to a college before it occurs to them that they don’t have sufficient funds to get them through the first year, much less four-or-more of them. Following right behind that little revelation is often the realization that the university to which they have been accepted has a fairly strict policy about being paid in a timely manner. May is not the month to begin your scholarship search, believe me. While there will still be scholarships available to you, and you should still seek them out if that is your situation, there are far fewer opportunities for scholarships in May than in January and your options have now become much narrower as a result of the delay. Allow yourself more time to be selective and apply for more scholarships, thereby increasing your chances of landing one, or even several (do I hear “dozens”?) scholarships.
September is just around the corner, believe me. And, before you know it, it will be Thanksgiving break and, soon after, the end of your first semester. Start researching now and make sure you are seriously searching for scholarships by winter break to give yourself the best chance at finding free money for college. On January 1st, by day’s end, you should have your FAFSA completed and submitted and you should already have a working list of scholarships for which you will apply. For my next instalment, I will tell you where to go from there. For now, though, enjoy the rest of your summer and just keep this information in the back of your mind. You still have some pleasant, summer weather and at least a few more weeks of free time.
These are just a few ways you can improve your chances of balancing everything you are trying to do at the end of your high school career and still find money for college. For more, check out http://www.scholarships.com.
Kevin Ladd is a Vice President at Scholarships.com. His essays and tips have been published on many websites, as well as print, video and audio form. He has been interviewed and/or featured on CollegeWeekLive, Kim Stezala’s book, “Scholarships 101: The Real-World Guide to Getting Cash for College” and the website for the National Scholarship Providers of America, among others. Check out some of Kevin’s other musings and other financial aid information resources at http://www.scholarships.com.
