Myth 1- My child’s college placement counselor will decide which scholarships to pursue.  College placement counselors are typically spread so thin that it is unwise to expect them to unearth all of the opportunities your child should pursue.  It is true that some scholarships require that applicants have their school’s nomination but there are thousands of opportunities a student can pursue independently.  It’s important that the counselor knows your student’s qualifications but the counselor should not be a scholarship hopeful’s primary resource.

The best starting point in a scholarship search is the internet.  There are many websites that allow a student as young as 14 to fill out a free profile which is then compared against a database of scholarships for the ones that are qualified matches.  The search results will list the amount of the awards, deadlines and links to the primary website.  Schoolsoup.com and Scholarships.com are two of the most popular and dependable sites for free scholarship searching.  Be careful.  Some sites run scams that guarantee scholarship awards if you pay them a fee.  Stick with the tried and true sites.  Do not give out a social security number in any of the search profiles.

 Myth 2- The best time to look for scholarships is the senior year.  At this point it is important to differentiate between the two types of scholarships.  Full, four-year merit scholarships, such as the Morehead-Cain to UNC and Park Scholarship to NC State, are awarded during students’ senior years and must be used to attend their respective universities.  However, there are thousands of non-renewable scholarships available as early as seventh grade which can be set aside for use at any college or university.  These individual scholarships are usually awarded through essay competition or creative video or audio submissions.  Civic clubs and veterans clubs are typical sources for the one-time awards.

 Myth 3- Scholarships are only for students with financial need.  Today’s scholarships have become about more than finances.  Many full scholarships often include educational travel, laptop computers, unique internships and job opportunities.  For example, Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson’s foundation provides full scholarships to Wofford College in Spartanburg and then allows the recipients to be involved with the team’s travels and activities.  His scholars also get to network with leaders of the industries in which they want to work.  (Students cannot apply for this scholarship directly but are chosen to compete for it when they interview for other funding to Wofford.)

Adventure-minded students should explore scholarships too.  For example, in addition to having all of my undergraduate and graduate school expenses funded through scholarships, I won scholarships to spend a summer studying coastal erosion at the Outer Banks, a winter tracking humpback whales in Hawaii and a year living in Canterbury, England studying law.  These are opportunities that I never would have encountered otherwise.  There are many other, equally exciting, scholarships available to those who are willing to go after them.

 Myth 4-  Only the very top students get scholarships.  Most scholarships do expect the applicants to have strong academic records.  Other factors play a role too, such as leadership, civic responsibility, athletic achievement and personal aspirations.  A well-rounded, ambitious and articulate student with a 1300 SAT will fare just as well, if not better, as the 1600 SAT student who has few outside interests.

Aside from academic-based scholarships, there is an emerging genre of scholarships available to students based on their community service activities.  Major awards are available to students who have shown particular commitment to a cause or outreach, especially if the student saw a need and created a service project to meet it.  Fastweb.com and Scholarships.com will provide information on the service-based scholarships as well as the academic ones. 

Other scholarships are available based on heritage, financial need, career aspirations, parents’ employment or union membership.

A word about interviews:  Most major scholarships will require an interview in addition to the written application.  It is very important that a student prepare and practice for the interview before the big day.  A scholarship coach or counselor should conduct mock interviews with the student to build confidence and presentation skills.  Parents frequently make the mistake of trying to be their child’s coach but it usually works much better to have a different adult in that role.  Students should study the background of the funding foundation and university, become knowledgeable on current events and think through common interview questions ahead of time. 

 Scholarships can open a world of funding and opportunity for ambitious students willing to put in the effort to pursue them.  Planning ahead and keeping a strong academic record will help the student make the most of this exciting time in their life.

Even the most accomplished students often choose not to apply to the Ivy Leagues because they assume it would be cost prohibitive.  Supporting their pessimism is the recent upheaval in the economy and tightening down on credit, causing experts to predict that student loans may be harder to get.  At the same time, college tuition increases annually at two or three times the rate of inflation.  CNN Money reported in August of 2008 that tuition has increased 439% over 20 years.

For the uninformed, the educational horizon could seem bleak.  But college hopefuls take heart; now there are more opportunities than ever to get a college education without facing burdensome student loans in the process.  Finding and accessing the available funds, however, can present a daunting barrier for those who do not know where to start.

Scholarships totaling over $24 billion are available each year through universities, foundations and civic organizations.  Students should first study the website of their preferred schools to find out the scholarships available, noting if a school nomination is necessary or if the student can apply for the scholarship directly.  Most school districts have a list of locally available scholarships posted on the district’s website.  Scholarship database websites such as FastWeb.com and Scholarships.com allow the user to create a profile to match the student’s interests and qualifications to possible scholarships.  There is never a need for a scholarship search site to require a student’s social security number or financial account information.  (If a site requests information that could be used in identity theft, the student should exit the site immediately.)

Adding to the pool of available funds, most of the Ivy League schools have recently initiated plans that cover tuition, and in certain cases, room and board expenses, for all four years.  As a result, other prominent schools have duplicated these programs.  Harvard, Yale, Brown, Stanford, Cornell and Princeton have announced programs geared to eradicate student loans and minimize or eliminate tuition and fees based on financial need.

To take advantage of these new programs, a student must first apply for admission to his or her school of choice.  The schools noted above typically claim a “need blind” admission policy, which considers all applications for admission without knowledge of financial need.  Once a student is admitted, the school then applies a tuition policy based on the student’s family income.  For example, at Harvard a family income of less than $120,000 will net a student free tuition for all four years.  If the family income is less than $60,000, room and board are also included.  Families earning $120,000 to $180,000 will see tuition capped at no more than 10% of their annual income.  (Note:  With the recent stock market decline, the specific income level requirements may change at each university’s discretion.)

Other prominent schools have introduced similar need-blind admission programs.  Stanford and Yale have announced sliding-scale tuition waivers for students with family incomes between $60,000 and $200,000.   Families earning less than $60,000 will incur no tuition costs.  Brown University announced in early 2008 that it would also waive tuition for all students with family incomes less than $60,000 and substitute grants for loans for families with incomes between $60,000 and $100,000. 

Ivy League schools and other heavily endowed private schools have gradually increased financial aid offerings over the last five years but only in the last two years have they implemented sweeping tuition waivers and no-loan policies.  As to the driving force behind the changes, the universities cite a desire to make education accessible and affordable to a greater percentage of the population but there has also been some governmental influence behind these decisions as well.  Universities with endowments over $1 billion have encountered mounting pressure from the Senate Finance Committee to pay out 5% of their endowments in the form of scholarships or grants to students.   NPR reports that Harvard’s endowment is currently around $34.6 billion. 

Students hoping to take advantage of the Ivy League “free tuition” offerings need to apply themselves wholeheartedly throughout their high school careers to maximize their chances of admission.  Applicants with superior grades, high SAT’s (between 1400-1600), community service, athletic experience and leadership roles stand the best chance of admission.  Harvard reports only a 10% acceptance rate each year from its pool of applicants. 

Students should also check the websites for each school on their “wish list” to research which standardized tests are required in order to be considered for admission.  For example, Harvard requires not only the standard SAT but also three Subject SAT tests of the applicant’s choosing.  Yale requires the SAT with two SAT subject tests or the ACT with the ACT Writing Test.  Students must take the necessary standardized tests by November of their senior year if they wish to be eligible for early action.

Students whose academic records fall short of Ivy League standards are not left without options.  Policies for waiving tuition and eliminating loans have “trickled down” from the Ivy League trendsetters to many smaller private schools; making affordable education available to even more students with modest family incomes.  Williams College (ranked #1 in the country by Forbes rankings), Duke, Vanderbilt and many others all promise to meet all of the unmet financial need a student presents without resorting to student loans.  Prestigious Davidson College, a highly selective private college in Davidson, NC was one of the smallest colleges to adopt a similar policy.  Davidson claims that in 2007 it was the first national liberal arts college to eliminate student loans from its financial aid packages.  Tuition and fees to Davidson College exceed $42,000.  Once it is determined what a family can afford to put towards tuition and fees, all of the remaining costs are covered through grants and student employment.  Davidson is not alone; many selective private schools have similar policies.  As students make application to their colleges of choice, they should ask each financial aid officer if their institution has similar need-based policies in place. 

Thanks to these aggressive new policies, students from all economic backgrounds can gain access to the best educational opportunities in the nation.  Even in the midst of a faltering economy, with the right preparation, hard work and research, good students have more reasons than ever to be hopeful and aim high.

While it is ultimately up to a student to pursue the best grades and SAT scores possible to position for college admissions and scholarships, there are a number of things parents can do to help their students succeed. 

Get informed and active early-  Parents and students need to know that they cannot wait until the senior year to try to become that perfect candidate for scholarships.  Starting in 9th grade students should track their activities, awards, community service, job shadowing experiences, summer camps and other activities while also keeping their grades as strong as possible. When applying for scholarships and admission, colleges want to see a student’s length of history in these areas; not that that they just started being engaged in them the other day!  Parents need to provide students with a notebook and pocket folder by 9th grade to track all of this information.  Keep it in an accessible place like the family’s home office or by the computer where it can be checked and updated often.  As parents and students set up id’s and passwords on some of the many sites they’ll use throughout this process, they need to log them all in this book for easy retrieval later.  (ex.  www.CollegeBoard.com to register for the SAT, www.ACTstudent.org to register for the ACT, www.eligibilitycenter.org to register with the NCAA clearinghouse to be eligible for sports scholarships)

Know which types of scholarships and aid will probably fit the student best and position for those-  Most people assume that scholarships are only for the best and brightest.  That’s not necessarily so.  There are certainly many academic merit scholarships for the gifted student but there are other types of scholarships the more average student can pursue.  Parents need to help their students identify their options for scholarships and equip them to pursue them.

Community Service Scholarships- For example, many corporations give out generous scholarships for students who have good grades (not only straight A’s, though) who have shown a real commitment to community service while in high school. Coca Cola, Toyota, Kohl’s and many others award substantial sums to students who have actively participated in community service as a youth.  Recently even universities have started factoring in community service into their scholarship considerations and some now give full rides based almost solely on that qualification alone.  So, good students who want to increase their chances for college money should get involved early.  There is even a network of colleges who participate in the Bonner Scholars network (www.Bonner.org) which awards generous sums to students who are willing to continue community service throughout college.

Ethnic heritage-based scholarships-  Students from minority backgrounds can benefit from scholarships awarded to students sharing their ethnic background.  Parents can assist students by doing some of the research into scholarship funds that match the family history.  (www.hispanicfund.org, www.gmsp.org (Bill Gate’s scholarships), www.naacp.org,)

Career-based scholarships-  There are scholarships available to students wishing to pursue a variety of majors such as engineering, health care, teaching and more.  Do a web search for ones that you can pursue even while in high school and also inquire at your future college about scholarships within your major.  Sometimes students fare better in pursuing scholarships within their majors as they become further accomplished in their major, perhaps into their junior or senior year of college.  There are especially generous scholarships for women pursuing science or engineering.  (For example, I already had a full ride to college but was still awarded another full ride for my junior and senior years because I was the top student who was majoring in business.  I had to give the money back but I kept the other perks that came with it.)

Military scholarships-  Often overlooked ROTC scholarships can be a tremendous asset for students who want to avoid loans and who are willing to fulfill the requirements that come with this scholarship.  There are also scholarships which don’t necessarily require active duty, such as National Guard scholarships.  The army’s HPSP scholarships will fully fund the cost of medical school, dental school or veterinary school while also paying a generous living allowance.  The service academies (West Point, the Naval Academy and Air Force Academy) offer some of the highest ranked educations in the country and cost nothing for those who attend.  If a student is interested in considering an ROTC scholarship, encourage them to talk with a college student currently in the program and with someone who is actively in the military.  Perhaps schedule a tour of a service academy.

 These are only a few types of scholarships out there so there is still plenty of reason for the B student to be hopeful!

 Choose challenging courses but be realistic-  Some parents and students think it’s better to have all A’s than to take the harder courses and get the occasional B.  Not true.  Any college admission rep will tell you they are much more impressed by the student who continues to challenge him/herself throughout high school by taking honors and AP classes.  Colleges have on hand a profile of each high school and they check to see how many honors and AP courses a student took and compare their choices to how many were available at the high school.  However, play to your strengths and don’t sabotage your transcript by taking AP courses that are far too challenging.  A student gifted in English but mediocre in math should take AP Language or Lit but perhaps stick to Honors Algebra.  Parents need to be actively involved in their student’s course choices each year and attend the meeting with their guidance counselor. 

Learn to communicate effectively-  The big scholarships are often won or lost in the interview.  Before the interview, identify the most unique or meaningful things about yourself that you want to convey to the judges and think of ways to work those facts into the conversation.  It’s not the judges’ job to ask you the right questions; it’s your job to give them the right answers.  So if a student wants to make sure they bring up their trip to Madagascar last summer, then they could be ready to answer a question such as “Tell us about a time you had to face a fear.” with a response like, “I’m deathly afraid of needles but last summer, when I was planning to do a marine biology project off the coast of Madagascar, I had to learn to give myself malaria shots in the leg every day.”  Now she’s directed the conversation to that experience.  Students should practice interviewing with someone outside his or her family who can give them good advice and honest feedback.  There’s no substitute for good eye contact, a firm handshake and a genuine smile.  If a student has poor communication skills, parents can encourage them to join the teen chapter of Toastmasters (called the Gavel club) to learn public speaking, suggest they pursue a part in a school play to overcome fear of being in the spotlight and especially encourage them to get on the school’s debate team.  At home, parents should encourage their students to converse with them using complete sentences, not with one-word answers. For example, in our house it is not allowed for any child over the age of 5 to answer us with one word answers.  We want them to converse with us.  So, when we ask my 12 year old son, “Hi Nate, how was your day?”, we get an answer like, “I had a great day, mom. Thanks for asking.  How was your day?”  rather than the typical 12 year old’s response of “Fine”.  We made a game of it when they were little but now full sentences flow naturally and conversations with adults are not as painful for the Hartley kids as for some of their peers.

Maximize your SAT and/or ACT scores-  Don’t just role in and take these tests, hoping for the best.  For most colleges and scholarships, these scores equate to opportunity and, in many cases, money.  Use some good practice guides from your bookstore, access the SAT practice questions and free practice tests on www.Collegeboard.com and/or use the free online tutorials available on www.number2.com.  Eat a protein-heavy breakfast the morning of the test to help you stay focused and alert.  Don’t hesitate to take either test 2-3 times if needed.  Princeton Review and Kaplan, the two leading companies in the country for helping students prepare for these tests, offer prep courses but also offer free practice tests and feedback.  Look them up in your area and take advantage of their free offering.  Books that use cartoons to teach SAT vocabulary words are fun and effective ways to boost the critical reading score.  If your SAT scores remain less than remarkable, look into colleges who have agreed not to ask for them.  Visit www.fairtest.org for a complete list of these four year schools.  Parents need to equip their students with the right resources to get their scores as high as possible, beginning in the 10th grade or in the summer leading into their 11th grade year.

Know yourself and your goals-  Students who explore their interests early and identify their goals early can truly endear themselves to scholarship committees.  When I’m interviewing students for a scholarship, I often have an applicant who claims an intent to become a doctor.  However, when I ask him why he wants to be a doctor, I typically get the forgettable response of, “Well I’m good at math and science and I like to help people.”  This does not make me think he’s really given it much thought.  However, a student who says, “I was alarmed when I found out that in the USA we represent 5% of the world’s population but we consume 85% of the world’s drugs.  However, when the World Health Organization ranks the health of all the industrialized nations, we’ve fallen to the bottom of the list.  My kids, when I have them, can’t expect to live as long as I do.  This tells me that in the last 50 years or so we’ve lost track of what real health is and how to obtain it.  I want to be a doctor so that I can help steer my patients back into a true state of health and well-being.”:  At that point, it does not matter to me one bit if this second student’s SAT scores were 100 points lower than the guy who was good at math and wants to help people.  I want to invest in this guy.  Know not only what you want to do but especially why you want to do it.  Parents can help students explore career options by discussing ideas over dinner (but not dictating to the student that they are going to be a doctor or lawyer), allowing students to explore various careers yet change their minds as their interests evolve, help them set up job shadowing days or internships in different fields, encouraging them to interview people in various professions by networking with friends and even by allowing the student to attend a summer academic camp hosted by a college.  Clemson University, among many others, offers a variety of engineering camps for high school students who want to explore that field.  Sewanee University offers a camp in Enviromental Science and also in a variety of writing specialties.  Appalachian State offers an in depth anatomy camp for would-be doctors.  Exposing students to career options early can help them enter college with more defined goals and greater focus.

In the end, there is no reason for a student to not have an assortment of options and (hopefully) scholarships by the time they must commit to a college.  To have the most options, however, planning early is essential.  If parents use some of these tips, they can help prepare their students for college success.

Private College Prep Coaching by Elizabeth Hartley

“College Bound Essentials”  3-Hour Private College Prep Session or Workshop

Families can either choose to enjoy a one-time “College Bound Essentiials” consultation, lasting 2-3 hours or, if they seek more  guidance, to engage in an ongoing level of support through a “concierge” package.  All  sessions will be held at the Scholarship Gold office in Lake Wylie, SC (south of Charlotte, easily accessible from I-85 and I-77)  The one-time session is economically priced to keep this essential information affordable and accessible to as many families as possible. 

Workshop option- The same content covered in this meeting is accessible throughout the year in the small College Bound Essentials workshops.  Students receive the same resources and handouts and we cover much of the same material.  The difference between the workshop and private session is simply that the session is not quite as customized.  However, it is more economical (only $75 per student, parents come along for free).  Email Elizabeth Hartley to discuss having a workshop offered at your school or organization.  She’ll bring all the material and resources and present it in your space.

Not from NC or SC?  Clients who live too far for a meeting in-person can enjoy the same session through a pre-scheduled conference call.  You will receive your resources in advance, followed by the same personal and customized session you would enjoy sitting in the Scholarship Gold office.

 ”College Bound Essentials” consultation: $195 for a 2-3 hour session and a College Planning binder full of valuable resources. This one-time session includes parents and students and covers:

• Current strengths/weaknessesof student and how to address them
• Standardized test scores and prep methods to bring them up
• Review and profile all colleges in which the student is interested and discuss other schools the student may not have considered
• Essay topics for the application process (if student is a senior)
• How to get great letters of recommendation
• How to pursue scholarships and navigate financial aid
• How to fill gaps/weaknesses in leadership, community service and physical fitness/athletics
• Identify scholarships for which the student might be uniquely qualified
• Helpful websites and resources for career planning, college and scholarship searches and financial aid

A binder full of useful resources, forms and articles that support the items discussed in our meeting will be provided to each student.  For a more comprehensive and ongoing level of support, please consider a “concierge package”.

Email Elizabeth Hartley to discuss setting a date and to determine whether a private session or a workshop would fit your needs best.