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Scholarships. Where to look for additional outside help to pay for school . Tips from College Board.com with additional supplements. Where to begin. Apply for FAFSA Apply for CSS Profile (some schools) Apply to schools Speak to financial aid officers at your schools.
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Scholarships Where to look for additional outside help to pay for school Tips from College Board.com with additional supplements
Where to begin • Apply for FAFSA • Apply for CSS Profile (some schools) • Apply to schools • Speak to financial aid officers at your schools
Sample Questions to Ask a Financial Aid Officer • From collegeboard.com • These are good questions to ask in order to determine how much outside help to seek. • Examples: • Average total cost? • Priority deadline for financial aid? • Offer need-based and merit-based financial aid?
How to Begin Your Outside Scholarship Search • Recognize that most financial aid comes from: • college grants • federal loan programs
It take times… Searching for scholarships takes time and energy, but remember: It's free money. If you spend five hours applying for scholarships and receive only one $500 scholarship, that's the same as earning $100 an hour! ~Sallie Mae Foundation
How to Begin Your Outside Scholarship Search (continued) • If you decide to search for outside scholarships: • It will be a timely process • Personalize and narrow your search – Do I meet the criteria for this scholarship? • Look at local scholarships • Research employers (both yours and your parents) and membership organizations • Use recently publishes scholarship books • Use online scholarship search engines * • Look at ISAC scholarships • Research institutional scholarships • Make an organized list of where you are applying
Narrow Your Search • Basic narrowing points include: • School year, citizenship, state of residence, religion, ethnic background, disability, military status, employer and membership organizations • Other questions to narrow your search include: • What do I want to study? • What kind of career do I want to pursue?
Good Questions to Ask • What is the application process? • Submission form • Interview • What materials are required? • FAFSA and/or CSS Profile information • Transcripts • Essays • Recommendations • Is the scholarship renewable?
Look Locally • Scholarships for students from your high school • Chicago scholarships • Cook County scholarships • Illinois scholarships
Your Job (and your parents’ too) • Large companies have scholarships and tuition programs for employee’s children • Tell your parents to ask the Human Resources Office • Look at your own job for possible scholarship opportunities • Fast food chains • Department stores • Grocery stores
Membership Organizations • Many membership organizations offer scholarships • Include: • Alumni clubs • Professional organizations • Community service organizations • Religious organizations • Sorority and Fraternity organizations
Good Books • Each year, new books are published with scholarship listings. • Go to your local bookstore or library to find these books. • Make sure the publication date is recent, to be sure the scholarships are still available.
Books recommended by the Sallie Mae Fund • How to Get Money for College, by Woodburn Press • Cash for College, by NASFAA • How to Pay for College: A Practical Guide for Families, by Gen and Kelly Tanabe • The A's and B's of Academic Scholarships, by Anna Leider and Anna Schimke • The Black Student's Guide to Scholarships • The Scholarship Book, by National Scholarship Research Service • The Scholarship Advisor, by Christopher Vuturo • Winning Scholarships for College: An Insider's Guide • Peterson's College Money Handbook • Paying for College without Going for Broke, by KalmanChany and Geoff Martz • Peterson's Winning Money for College
Books • scholarship books to browse
Illinois Scholarship Programs from ISAC • Scholarships administered by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission • Depends on the amounts allocation the Illinois General Assembly and Governor every year
Good & Free Scholarship Search Engines to Try • CollegeBoard.com • Petersons.com • WhatsNextIllinois.com • ScholarshipExperts.com • FindTuition.com • PrincetonReview.com
Can narrow the search • Profile includes school information to narrow it • Student can provide additional information
Scholarship finder • Make a profile to refine your search
Sign up for free • Fill out an extensive profile to narrow your search when you first log in • List scholarships by deadline dates
Scholarship search is currently being updated, so unavailable for now
Gates Millennium Scholars http://gmsp.org/
Scholarships for Hispanic Students • HSF.com • TheSalliemaeFund.org • Latino College Dollars
Scholarships for African-American Students • UNCF.org • TheSallieMaeFund.org • Black College Dollars
Scholarships for Asian Students • APIASF.org
Scholarships for Undocumented Students • MALDEF.org
Other Websites • FastWeb.com • FastAid.com • Scholarships.com
Institutional Scholarships • Automatic scholarships for GPA or ACT/SAT scores? • Usually included in your financial aid package if factors in financial need with the merit-based portion • Some schools have application processes • After investigating, ask how and where to apply.
Tips from College Board • Start looking early • Read eligibility requirements carefully • Organize your materials • Transcripts • Test scores • FAFSA and/or CSS Profile • Parent’s tax return information and other financial info • Essays • Recommendations • Proof of eligibility
Tips from College Board (cont.) • Proofread the application and essays • Leave no blanks • Follow all instructions • Make sure it is legible • Make copies of everything you send • Send it in early!
More Tips for Searching • Start looking early • Use all of your resources • Know which scholarships you meet the eligibility requirements • Complete the requirements on scholarship application • Be confident, yet polite in your application • Do not pay for scholarship searches
How will outside scholarships affect your financial aid package? • Talk to a financial aid office member and ask • Individual schools handle outside scholarships differently • Often, university need-based grants are reduced first • Other times, outside scholarships may be applied to other costs, such as room and board or books
Good luck! Thank you for listening to this presentation!