What opportunities are available?

How do I find them?

What can I realistically expect out of applying for scholarships?

What are my chances of winning a scholarship?

What do people who win scholarships excel at?

Scholarships are a wonderful way to help reduce the cost of attendance, but the field is such a fractured and competitive space that many opt out of competing entirely. This post attempts to break things down so that you can assess if it may be worthwhile to invest time in applying for scholarships and, presuming it is worthwhile, how to maximize the return on your time investment.

Where to start?

You should start by looking at your Student Aid Index to see what your family will be expected to pay each year for your college. You can check out our Financial Aid primer to learn about the relevant terminology here: Intro to Financial Aid. Once you have determined what your family can expect to be on the hook for on the Federal Student Aid Estimator, you should speak with your family about how you can come up with the funds to pay. Do you have a 529 plan? Do you have access to a college tuition benefit through work? Can other family members chip in? Do you have the available cash or investments to liquidate?

These discussions are difficult but are vital to going into college with a solid plan. Unfortunately, the college space is riddled with people who overextend their financial position and graduate from college owing a substantial amount of money. Federal student loans have been all over the news in the 2020s, but the debt cancellation policy is not likely to persist beyond the Biden Administration. Private student loans are increasingly costly as they add a substantial premium above the federal rates. That debt load often drives decisions after graduating that may not be the recent graduates’ ideal. Compromises on the job field, delaying graduate school, moving back home, etc. are commonplace. Planning on the front end can help you make the right financial and educational decision.

Once you understand your financial situation, you’ll know the amount of money that you’d like to raise via scholarships. A good rule of thumb is to you apply to at least 5x as much scholarship money as you want to raise.

Scholarship Types

Type	Institutional	Local	Private
Pros	Often renewable and larger than other types	Simple. Limited competition	Numerous & varies in what they’re looking for
Cons	Availability Varies by institution	Generally lower quantities of money	Can feel like a lottery
General Timeline	Nov – Feb of Senior Year	Nov – Apr of Senior Year	Aug – May of Senior Year
How Many?	1 for each college that you apply for	As many as you’re eligible for	As many as you like
Where are they?	Look at your college’s financial aid website. Search the school name then “freshmen merit scholarship”, “resident scholarship”, or “nonresident scholarship”	Your high school counselor’s office or website. Look at other local high schools too. States have a higher education website may have scholarships listed	Start with an organization or company that you are affiliated with. Job, club, etc. Otherwise, find them online

Institutional scholarships are often won by the top 5-15% of the accepted students, by people with tremendous specific talents, and by schools that have generous merit aid policies. Often those generous merit aid policies come from private schools with a substantial endowment. Public schools will sometimes offer an out-of-state discount if you meet a GPA and/or standardized test criteria. Some schools may invite promising applicants or partner with your high school counselor for nominations. Other schools may have a separate scholarship application that runs concurrently to or after you apply.

Good candidates for local scholarships include students who are involved in their community or that organization, have good academics, can demonstrate their financial need, and are willing to write or interview for the program.

Private scholarships are very time-intensive, require a team mentality, a persistent nature, and a talent for writing. Often there will be an essay required so if you’re good at writing or recycling a common template to customize to each program you will be a good fit for private scholarships. The odds are likely steeper and failure, no matter your resume, is likely. You’ll need to apply to many.

Finding Scholarships

When searching for private scholarships, start by thinking about the demographic qualifiers that describe you. I.e. first-generation, Pell-eligible, California, child of a veteran, immigrant, and anything else that you can think of. Pair those nouns with scholarships and you’ll find a decent batch that is targeted towards people like you. If you have a parent or guardian who can assist you, it can help to have them focus on identifying the scholarship opportunities and passing them off to the students to complete.

If you’re a junior or younger, join your local Rotary club. They are well-known for funding scholarships and many have more money than applicants.

Prioritizing Scholarships

If you are prioritizing scholarships, I’d recommend starting with the nearest deadline, how good of a fit you are, and lastly the dollar amount. While it may be appealing to prioritize the high-dollar value private scholarship that is advertised on ESPN during the entirety of the college football season, your chances of winning are slim to none. By focusing on local and institutional opportunities first, you’ll have a higher conversion rate and likely be able to stack a couple of smaller wins to meet your needs.

Tips for Applying

Have copies of your essays that you’ve written in class. Create a folder for any of your college essays as well. This will help you quickly find a first draft that you can customize to the prompt. Give specific and enthusiastic answers.

Create a resume.

Have a copy of your transcript available.

Ask for letters of recommendation in the first few weeks of your Senior Year. Once those are written, your teacher, coach, or manager will have an easy time forwarding to another location. They may even share it with you to make it even easier.

Use a shared spreadsheet to keep track of deadlines and your priorities.

Apply early. You never know if the website will crash minutes before the deadline.

Using Scholarships

Those of you who are with some of the nuances of scholarships may have questions about scholarship stacking and displacement. If a scholarship stacks, it doesn’t reduce your “demonstrated need”, which is the gap between the Cost of Attendance and your Student Aid Index (a.k.a. the amount that your family can pay). If a scholarship displaces, your school may displace some of the loans, work-study funds, or grants by the amount of the scholarship. Generally, if a scholarship displaces, it starts with the highest interest items, unsubsidized loans, and works its way down. Each school’s stacking or displacement policy is determined by its financial aid office and varies from year to year. Reach out to them if you have any specific concerns.

Bottom Line

Scholarships come with a significant amount of work. Spending a little time upfront targeting specific scholarships where you have a personal connection or an above-average candidacy will significantly impact your likelihood of success. Book some time with us if you want to learn more!