Where to look for additional outside help to pay for school
Tips from College Board.com with additional supplements
Slide 2
Where to begin Apply for FAFSA Apply for CSS Profile (some
schools) Apply to schools Speak to financial aid officers at your
schools
Slide 3
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?
Slide 4
How to Begin Your Outside Scholarship Search Recognize that
most financial aid comes from: 1. college grants 2. federal loan
programs
Slide 5
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
Slide 6
How to Begin Your Outside Scholarship Search (continued) If you
decide to search for outside scholarships: 1. It will be a timely
process 2. Personalize and narrow your search Do I meet the
criteria for this scholarship? 3. Look at local scholarships 4.
Research employers (both yours and your parents) and membership
organizations 5. Use recently publishes scholarship books 6. Use
online scholarship search engines * 7. Look at ISAC scholarships 8.
Research institutional scholarships 9. Make an organized list of
where you are applying
Slide 7
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?
Slide 8
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?
Slide 9
Look Locally Scholarships for students from your high school
Chicago scholarships Cook County scholarships Illinois
scholarships
Slide 10
Your Job (and your parents too) Large companies have
scholarships and tuition programs for employees 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
Slide 11
Membership Organizations Many membership organizations offer
scholarships Include: Alumni clubs Professional organizations
Community service organizations Religious organizations Sorority
and Fraternity organizations
Slide 12
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.
Slide 13
Books recommended by the Sallie Mae Fund How to Get Money for
College, by Woodburn Press How to Get Money for College Cash for
College, by NASFAA Cash for College How to Pay for College: A
Practical Guide for Families, by Gen and Kelly Tanabe How to Pay
for College: A Practical Guide for Families 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 Kalman Chany and Geoff Martz Peterson's Winning
Money for College
Slide 14
Books scholarship books to browse
Slide 15
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
Slide 16
Good & Free Scholarship Search Engines to Try
CollegeBoard.com Petersons.com WhatsNextIllinois.com
ScholarshipExperts.com FindTuition.com PrincetonReview.com
Slide 17
Slide 18
Can narrow the search Profile includes school information to
narrow it Student can provide additional information
Slide 19
Scholarship finder Make a profile to refine your search
Slide 20
Sign up for free Fill out an extensive profile to narrow your
search when you first log in List scholarships by deadline
dates
Slide 21
Slide 22
Scholarship search is currently being updated, so unavailable
for now
Slide 23
Gates Millennium Scholars http://gmsp.org/
Slide 24
Scholarships for Hispanic Students HSF.com TheSalliemaeFund.
org Latino College Dollars
Slide 25
Scholarships for African-American Students UNCF.org
TheSallieMaeFund. org Black College Dollars
Slide 26
Scholarships for Asian Students APIASF.org
Slide 27
Scholarships for Undocumented Students MALDEF.org
Slide 28
Other Websites FastWeb.com FastAid.com Scholarships.com
Slide 29
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.
Slide 30
Tips from College Board Start looking early Read eligibility
requirements carefully Organize your materials 1. Transcripts 2.
Test scores 3. FAFSA and/or CSS Profile 4. Parents tax return
information and other financial info 5. Essays 6. Recommendations
7. Proof of eligibility
Slide 31
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!
Slide 32
More Tips for Searching 1. Start looking early 2. Use all of
your resources 3. Know which scholarships you meet the eligibility
requirements 4. Complete the requirements on scholarship
application 5. Be confident, yet polite in your application 6. Do
not pay for scholarship searches
Slide 33
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
Slide 34
Good luck! Thank you for listening to this presentation!
