“How to find scholarships for College?” is a big question that we all face one way or another.
Whether a parent of a prospective college student or a future student yourself, finding the right scholarship to fund your college is a big deal.
With the average cost of a college degree rising above $35,000, it is necessary to figure out how to fund that cost without running into crippling student debt.
What Kinds of College Scholarships Are There?
There are many types of scholarships. If you are trying to apply for one, you need to know what your needs are and what kind of scholarship is the real deal for you. Here are some basic types of scholarships offered to US students:
College Grants
College scholarships come in many different forms and with different requirements.
While some insist only on your financial need, some may have other requirements, such as a certain success in college or high school or simply being creative or sporty enough.
The first type of scholarship is called a grant and is available to those who may have issues financing their college in the first place.
College Scholarships
The second type is scholarships proper, and they require a specific skill set or a specific background for you to apply.
If you are aiming at the second type of scholarship, you should find a custom research paper writing service that can help you write an application letter that is difficult to reject.
Before that, however, you need to find the right scholarship to apply for.
Financial Aid
Besides grants and scholarships proper, financial aid is also available to students who meet financial difficulties.
The best examples are COVID-19 financial aid programs which enabled hundreds of thousands of students to come up with solutions to their current financial difficulties.
As ⅔ of US students work and study, and as COVID-19 saw the temporary closing of most of the service sector (which employs those same students), financial aid provided much-needed relief to many.
Institutional Scholarships
Unlike the previous kind of scholarships covered, there are also scholarships that are offered by colleges themselves.
These scholarships usually require students to show academic maturity, good grades, and involvement in extracurricular activities.
Colleges can use these scholarships to develop specific departments. For example, to renew interest in sports, there are equestrian scholarships for those who are passionate about horseback riding.
They also help students pursue their dream while establishing the college as a sporting center.
Alumni Scholarships / Private Scholarships
This type of scholarship is usually offered by the alumni of a specific University.
This type of scholarship can significantly reduce tuition costs, and all the information you need can be found in the alumni network of a specific University or college.
Alumni scholarships are usually merit-based, but not always. Alumni scholarships for students of a specific ethnic background are more need-based than merit-based, for example.
Freshmen Scholarships
Freshman scholarships are awarded to first-time students and are meant to increase the enrollment rate at a specific college.
Additionally, they may also help to drive in specific ethnic groups and other underrepresented social groups.
Highly attainable, these scholarships offer enough funds to cover the first tuition year, and you may not be able to reapply for the same scholarship in consecutive years.
Conclusion
Applying for a scholarship can help you grow your funds available for the school year. When applying, please bear in mind that sometimes combining different scholarships does not mean that you can use all of them.
In fact, some colleges and universities will reduce their own scholarship amount if you get another scholarship, so always be cautious and informed.