Minority Scholarships... Sometimes it pays to be in the minority
Monday, December 10, 2007
When you are searching for scholarships, it's important to consider all the ways you may be eligible for scholarship money. Are you majoring in accounting? There are scholarships for that. Considering a career in journalism? There are scholarships for that. One area where there are a number of scholarship award opportunities is for minority students. Minority scholarships may target African-American students, Hispanic students, Asian-American students, Native American students, or all of the above.
To help you get started on your scholarship search, we've highlighted a number of scholarship awards aimed at minority students.
Gates Millennium Scholars Program
Bill Gates gave $1 billion to start this incredible scholarship program. It's open to all minority students and will basically fund college so you can graduate debt-free. This scholarship isn't for all minority students, though... you need to have significant financial need to be eligible and good grades (3.3 GPA or higher).
Don't wait too long to apply. The Gates Millennium Scholarship has a fairly substantial application process, which even requires you to be nominated and to get recommendations.
More info: Gates Millennium Scholarship
Ron Brown Scholarship
The Ron Brown Scholarship seeks to identify African-American high school seniors who will be the leaders of tomorrow and make contributions to society. There are no restrictions on a recipient's major or school choices. This isn't just a scholarship, though... even if $10,000 a year for 4 years is a lot of money. The Ron Brown Scholarship Program makes a big effort to build a network of program alumni that encourages mentorship and collaboration. Again, academic achievement is an important factor in winning this scholarship.
More info: Ron Brown Scholarship
Hispanic Scholarship Fund
If you are Hispanic, you should make sure not to miss the deadline for the Hispanic Scholarship Fund. The Fund has worked with a number of companies to create scholarships for Hispanic high school, college, and community college students. What's great is that a number of programs also feed into internship programs... so you not only get scholarship money for college, you can get great work experience as well.
More info: Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program
Another great scholarship program for Hispanic students is the Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program. They've partnered with top-notch companies including Google, Lockheed Martin, and Hilton to provide these scholarship opportunities and to help Hispanic students gain access to careers in business, finance, engineering and the sciences. In 2006, they gave away $2.4 million to more than 600 students.
More info: Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program
Accenture Undergraduate Scholarships
Accenture has partnered with the American Indian Graduate Center to fund scholarships for Native American students. These scholarships are awarded to the very brightest American Indian and Alaska Native students who are attaining a professional, teaching, social services, high technology or business degree.
More info: Accenture Undergraduate Scholarships
APIASF Scholarships
For Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF) could be a great place to start your scholarship efforts. Founded in 2003, the organization has awarded over $1 million in scholarships to hundreds of college-bound students.
More info: APIASF Scholarships
More Minority Scholarships
These are just a few of the great award opportunities out there for minority students. Try searching for scholarships on College Toolkit to uncover additional award opportunities.
Labels: african american, asian american, hispanic, minority, native american, scholarship search, scholarships
Don't Let the Small Scholarships Get Away
Monday, October 15, 2007
We did a survey a while back about the smallest scholarship amount that our users would apply for. What we found surprised us a little. More than a quarter of respondents wouldn't apply for a scholarship worth less than $5,000, and more than two-thirds wouldn't apply for a scholarship worth only $100.
Hey, we hope you all win your share of $5,000+ scholarships. We, at CollegeToolkit.com, chipped in, offering own $10,000 scholarship. Unfortunately, there aren't as many of those out there as we'd like to see. So why turn your nose up at that $100 book scholarship?
First off, any money you win in scholarships likely means less money you have to take out in education loans or pay out of pocket for college. Sure, it can be a lot of work to apply for a scholarship. Let's break it down, though. Let's say you spend 5 hours to apply for a $500 scholarship. If you win, that equates to $100 an hour. I doubt you'd be able to find a job that pays you $100 an hour... especially if you don't have a college degree. Spending 5 hours to win $100 is still a good deal (that's $20 an hour).
Secondly, the smaller scholarships tend to be much less competitive. Just like you, most high school students are enamored with the idea of winning one big $10,000 scholarship, often neglecting to apply for that $100 scholarship. We wanted to find out for ourselves just how competitive some of the large national scholarships are... so we called one up and asked. The Coca Cola Scholars Foundation awards 250 scholarships every year and each award ranges from $10,000 to $20,000. In total, they are giving away $3 million this year in scholarships. Don't get me wrong... that's a lot of money. However, they told us they receive over 100,000 applicants a year, meaning that fewer than 1 in 400 applicants actually wins a Coca Cola Scholarship. That's 0.25 percent of applicants. Compare that with Harvard, which received 22,955 applicants for its Class of 2011 and accepted 2,058, just under 9 percent.
Finally, winning a scholarship isn't just about the money. It's a great achievement and looks really good on your resume. This is especially true when you apply for that internship after your freshman year and are a little short on work experience. When you win a scholarship, the scholarship committee is identifying you as a student with promise. Organizations want to give their money to students who will take advantage of the opportunities that come with the entire college experience.
We're not saying you shouldn't go for that Coca Cola Scholars Award. You should if you believe you have a shot at it. Just don't miss your chance to scoop up those $100, $250, and $500 scholarships along the way.
Labels: Coca Cola scholarship, scholarship search, scholarships
Effective Strategies for Winning Scholarships
Monday, October 8, 2007
Looking to get your share of the scholarship pie? Wondering how you can improve your chances of winning some scholarship money for college? We share a few tips that can help you with your scholarship search efforts.
Start Early
Applying for scholarships will likely require a significant investment of time. In addition to filling out a scholarship application form, you often have to write essays, secure recommendations, and provide financial information to apply for a scholarship. The earlier you start, the less stressful the scholarship application experience will likely be. You can avoid feeling rushed and eliminate careless mistakes on your scholarship application.
Getting an early start on your scholarship search also ensures that you won't miss any great opportunities to win some money. Not all scholarship deadlines fall after the college admissions deadlines. There are a number of scholarship awards given away in the fall of the academic year. There are even some scholarships for sophomores and juniors in high school.
Stay Organized
Each scholarship has its own eligibility criteria, its own application form, and its own deadline. It can be confusing to keep everything in order. It is a good idea to start a folder dedicated to scholarships. First, in your scholarship folder, you should keep a list of all the scholarships you qualify for... that means scholarships for which you meet all eligibility criteria. You should also save application forms for these scholarships in the folder. It's also a good idea to save "A" papers, 1st place ribbons, and other documentation of your accomplishments throughout high school and college. These will help you when you need to list out activities and awards. You might also be able to adapt a really great paper for school to use as the basis for a strong scholarship essay.
Having all this information in one place can be a huge timesaver when it comes time to actually apply for scholarships. It may also help you avoid careless mistakes on scholarship applications.
Focus Your Efforts
You should concentrate on completing quality scholarship applications not on applying for as many scholarships as you can in the shortest amount of time. You want to target scholarships for which you are well-qualified and have the greatest opportunity for winning. In other words, you want to give yourself the best chance of winning the scholarships you are most likely to win.
Labels: scholarship search, scholarships, tips
The Search for Scholarships
Friday, October 5, 2007
So I'm sure you are fully aware that college isn't cheap... in fact, college is one of the biggest expenses you are likely to encounter during your entire life. If you are like most college students, you are trying to minimize your out-of-pocket expenses and student loan burden. This is where scholarships can come into play. Scholarships are your source of "free money"... that is, money you don't have to pay back.
So your next question is probably "Where can I find scholarships?" Unfortunately, most scholarships won't just fall into your lap, but that doesn't mean there isn't scholarship money out there for you.
Scholarship Search Stop #1: Colleges
The first place to search for scholarships is by checking with the college you are attending (or hope to attend). Often times, the admissions application itself serves as the scholarship application. In some cases, schools have a separate scholarship application you may need to fill out. You also want to check with the various departments because they may have their own major-specific scholarships as well. If you're lucky, your school could even have scholarships you automatically win based on your SAT, ACT, or GPA. Some schools use scholarships like this to attract top-notch students who might otherwise go elsewhere.
Scholarship Search Stop #2: Local Organizations
Okay, so now you are off and running with your scholarship search. Where to next? Check for scholarships that are focused on your geographic area. Stop in at your counselor's office and see if there is a list of scholarships for students at your school. If you have a community foundation in your area, they often have scholarship programs for local students. Other community organizations that often fund scholarships include Lion's Clubs and Kiwanis Clubs.
Scholarship Search Stop #3: Member Organizations
Now you've really gotten the ball rolling and are looking for the next stop on your scholarship search... it's membership organizations. Often times, clubs, unions, or other membership organizations offer scholarships to both their members and children of their members. If your parents are part of a professional organization like the Society for Manufacturing Engineers or an AFL-CIO union, ask them to inquire about scholarships. Do you work for a large corporation like McDonald's? Did you know they offer scholarships? Your parents' employers may offer tuition assistance programs as well.
Scholarship Search Stop #4: Internet and Scholarship Search Engines
Finally, you shouldn't forget to use the internet and scholarship search engines like College Toolkit to help you track down scholarship opportunities. Scholarship search engines typically require about 5 minutes of up-front effort completing a scholarship profile to help you find a personalized list of scholarships.
So there it is. You now have a roadmap for your scholarship search. Good luck! I hope you track down lots of free money!
Labels: financial aid, scholarship search, scholarships