Simple Steps to Winning Scholarships
There is a huge amount of college scholarship funds available
to high school students. But how do we get that money to
benefit our teens?
A college admission advisor once said, “Students should write
college admission letters, but parents should write the draft for
scholarship applications.” Shocking, but sensible advice.
Teens simply don’t know how to “sell themselves” to
scholarship boards. They don’t understand their own selfworth or value their unique talents enough to be able to write a
scholarship application. However, parents clearly see their
worth. So, you had best plan on doing some of the work if you
want to tap into free money for your teen’s education. Here are
some simple steps to winning scholarships.
Start Searching Early
Scholarships typically pop up repeatedly, year after year. Most are due by December for the
following year’s college enrollment. So, start searching in the summer of their senior year.
There are specific scholarship search engines online to aid you in this task, including:
www.fastweb.com
www.gocollege.com
www.collegeboard.com
www.petersons.com
www.collegenet.com
www.brokescholar.com
You can search for scholarships online based upon a unique attribute. For example, is your
teen a member of a minority group, have a unique skill/talent, an active volunteer, the first in
your family to go to college, etc. It does take time to search through the available sites, so try
to start searching early. Some parents even begin their search during their teen’s junior year.
You can also sign up for the online scholarship community: www.diversityscholars.org, a
program designed especially for students who are from an ethnic minority, receive
free/reduced lunch or have no biological parent who graduated from a 4-year college.
Connect with Colleges
Did you know that each college offers scholarships? You can call different colleges to learn
about their specific packages. Listen closely to the advice of colleges’ financial aid officers as
they know a great deal. One subject they will all talk about is FASFA - a free, federal
financial aid application form. This is the only way that your teen can apply for federal/state
grants. Apply online (www.fasfa.ed.gov), as soon as possible, every year.
Plan Ahead
Once you find a potential scholarship, focus on the deadline date. You will want the following
critical information available weeks before that deadline:
1) A comprehensive list of your teen’s accomplishments. Think long and hard
about everything your teen has done in school and within the community that
shows commitment, compassion or strength. Include attendance, academic and
sports awards, volunteer work, and extra-curricular activities. List each item by
date so scholarship panelists can visualize your teen’s history of growth over
time. You want to paint a clear, positive picture of your teen.
2) Identify any specific obstacle your teen has overcome or unique program they
spearheaded. This reflects personal development and helps them stand out
from the crowd of applicants. It can be any type of challenge they have faced
and surmounted or any program they have worked on to benefit others. Large
or small, it will matter and enhance their chance of receiving money.
3) Two outstanding letters of recommendation from non-family members. Give
the writers several weeks to pen those letters. The writers should know your
teen fairly well, but also give them the comprehensive list of your teen’s
accomplishments so it is easier for them to write a detailed, supportive letter of
recommendation.
4) Official transcripts from their high school guidance counselor. Again,
obtaining this critical document takes time, so contact the high school early.
Be Positively Persuasive
Scholarship boards will ask why your teen should receive their money or what they will do
with a college degree. (This tells them if your teen is a good investment.) Sit back, think for
awhile, and then put a positive spin on everything possible. Try to write with hopeful passion
and genuine belief in your teen’s value and their potential future contributions to society.
Always keep in mind that you are writing a springboard draft for your teen. Your teen should
read what you have written and edit it to make it their own voice before they compose the
final document. Don’t be surprised if they make major changes to your draft, but at least they
will have a solid foundation of ideas to work from and a clear understanding of their value.
Pull it all Together
Finally, help your teen complete the total package: their letter, the official transcripts, the list
of accomplishments, the letters of recommendation, and any other documents required by the
scholarship panel. Make certain it is mailed out at least one week before the deadline as most
scholarship boards will not accept late arrivals.
On to the Next Application
Don’t stop now! Once you have finished that first scholarship
package, the next one will be a lot easier. Although you will
probably still be doing all of the searching for new scholarships,
you can do a lot of cut and paste at this point. Just remember to
tweak each application to align with the unique requirements of
each scholarship panel.
It may seem like a lot of work at first, but once your teen receives
a scholarship award, the time and effort on your part will be well
worth it!
Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School
4965 South 20th Street Milwaukee, WI 53221
Phone: 414/304-6100  Fax: 414/304-6115  rrhs.schoolwires.net