Scholarship Search Fact Sheet
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Let’s face it, when you think of paying for college, the first thing that often comes to mind is, “How can I get a scholarship to help pay for school?” Everyone dreams of winning some of the billions of dollars of “free” scholarship money that is available each year for college. Here are some steps to help you achieve this goal:
Make a Plan
• Decide where you want to go and what career you might want to follow.
• Think about how you want to make a mark on your community, industry, or area of interest.
Make a list of steps you’ve taken or plan to take to reach your goal:
• Classes you’ve taken and grades you’ve received
• Extracurricular activities
• Jobs and volunteer efforts
• Books, blogs, newspapers, magazines, and other works you’ve read
• Portfolios of art or written work
• Videos of athletics, dance, drama
• Major and/or career interest
• List of people to ask for letters of recommendation
• Topics for essays
Begin your search
• High school website or counseling office
• Parents’ employers
• Neighborhood businesses
• Other local high school and community college websites
• Churches or religious organizations
• Service organizations (Lions Club, Rotary Club, etc.)
• Colleges of interest
• Professional organizations (i.e., American Institute of Architects)
Take action! Complete the applications with these points in mind:
Understand Yourself
What are your strengths, weaknesses, values, goals, and dreams? Have you overcome any obstacles? Have you had any unique experiences? Do you have any special qualities? Be GENUINE and avoid sounding arrogant.
Understand Your Audience
Remember that judges are looking for certain characteristics: effort, passion, perseverance, initiative, and teamwork. Is the scholarship presented by a school, a corporation, a local business, or a social organization? Why would they want to award a scholarship?
Decide on a Focus or Theme
Examples include: Are you someone with exceptional or unusual talent or artistic gift? Are you active in politics or social change? Are you deeply passionate about community service or working with animals?
Action Steps:
- Download and review the Scholarship Search fact sheet.
- Upload the fact sheet to your Unit 8 folder.
