<p>As a low-income student, I have had many challenges financially and have worried about my colleges choices for a long time. On top of financial difficulties, I am also a competitive runner. I have been actively recruited by top schools to run, which I thought was a good ticket to get into the colleges I wanted to with an athletic scholarship. With this in mind,I have a couple of general questions concerning college money and scholarships. I am planning to run in college, but running, college, and working really drain a lot of time. I am researching different options to lift my financial burden and allow my two dreams of running and attending a top university grow.
(1) For those of you out there who did not receive many scholarships, what alternative paths did you take to earn money for college? Besides working during the school year and the summer, did any of you find some good programs or contests that did not reward scholarship for tuition, but cash award?
(2)Is there anyway to use scholarships for book expenses, private materials, and travel? I know there are certain stipulations on scholarships, and that once you get a full tuition scholarship any other scholarships are used to fund THAT scholarship, but are there any grants or awards that are not purely for academic tuition?
(3) Is there any way to get track money and a full-MERIT-BASED scholarship? For example, you get a full-ride for academics and decided to play a sport and you are not a walk-on but ranked high on the roster?</p>
<p>I know my questions might seem a tad weird, but here is my situation: I received a Questbridge scholarship ( full-tuition and board, can not take out loans) and it requires summer work and probably working during school. Before I got my scholarship, I was also a track recruit for the school. I am planning to work during summers, but I was wondering if there are ways for me to make more time( aka not have to work during the year) in order to pursue running. Thank you all!</p>