Don’t go with the laptop if you hope to be successful. My committee considers laptop, printer, smart phone, tablet etc. to be discretionary expenses and we’re not in the business of funding a kid’s discretionary expenses. And since most of us have our own kids, we know that the laptops get heavy use watching reruns of Friends and cute kitten videos on YouTube.
Nothing wrong with this- but that’s not our mission.
Stick to basic and core pedagogical needs- lab fees for a science student. Books for any student. To bridge the gap between your billed tuition and your financial capacity (I realize in your case you don’t have such a gap).
No scholarship committee is in the business of supporting Best Buy and reading that our scholarships will be going for ordinary consumer products means the application goes in the “sorry” pile.
Did you tell them Harvard is going to reimburse you up to $2,000 if you buy a laptop? Since students can earn ~$3k over the summer, scholarship committees may think you can earn the money to buy a laptop on your own. You’d still have a laptop, but you wouldn’t be losing anything because Harvard would give you the money back, and they can give their money to a student who doesn’t have that option.
Okay well things have changed. I still don’t know if can work. Companies issue, not mine. I’m just waiting for an okay to start, nothing actually about me.
But I’ve made 2800 in scholarships this week, in addition to the 2000 I’ve made and I am still waiting for a couple.
@blossom thanks for the advice. I didn’t consider things like that when applying. The scholarship is a cash scholarship, so I assume they are more aimed at indirect costs. But your advice has been very eye opening.
So you have $5800 in outside scholarships? That should do it, right? Can you still do work study even though you are approaching that $6000 mark (I’m assuming you are reporting these scholarships to Harvard as required).
There are plenty of non-work study jobs at the Student Employment Office. Those won’t be available to you over the summer, obviously, but they will be during the school year.
You might not get the job you anticipated, but I would urge you to work this summer anyway. If you get almost $5,000 in scholarships this year, save the excess you don’t need for next year. Usually these scholarships are a one-time award.
Looks like this thread has now deviated away from the original question, but anyway…
Yes, not having community service hours is a huge problem. Even for low income students. It’s unfair, but also the truth. Lots and lots and lots of scholarships are autograded on a points system for the first rounds, and not having those hours can take you out.
Your stats are fine. It’s not that.
Essays are also a huge part of the equation. I’ve read some truly terrible essays this year – from really interesting students. It’s all about how you represent your story; “neutral and not whiny” isn’t always the best. Lots of scholarships are looking for emotionally compelling stories.
But at the end of the day, who knows. I’ve won uber competitive scholarships and been rejected for $300 ones with 3 applicants. There isn’t always a rhyme or reason. Just a law of numbers thing.
Also, just throwing this out there for future applicants –
Against the common advice of this forum, with your stats, I would’ve targeted some of the big national programs. JKCF, Gates, etc will overlook lack of community service if it’s offset by other talents. Programs with huge numbers look scary, but most applicants aren’t truly qualified – they’re applying because their guidance counselor told them to. If you have above average - high stats and an interesting story, the odds aren’t super crazy.
Remember, most scholarships have limited awards (usually 1 or 2 for small and local ones). You may not be the only applicant with similar stat and background applying to it. Also, different scholarships may have a different emphasis in criteria. I know many local scholarships would like to see specific activities in your resume.
Update: blessed to win a 1000 dollar scholarship today. Thanks for the input everybody and I have advice.
For me, the best scholarships are state scholarships or national scholarship that are obligated to give people in each state some scholarship/ As in it’s not like they give one or none another year to students, but maybe they give ten to each state. My state is smaller, so that means the competition for these scholarships is perfect. Local scholarships don’t give out enough awards, and these typically go to people the committee knows or really matches up with the activity they are about. But state scholarships reduce the competition (especially smaller northeastern states) somewhat, and tend to have multiple awards.
If you are super low income and accepted to Harvard, you shouldn’t have any worries about funding. I would imagine you are getting a full ride. What is the problem?