<p>Hi Everyone,</p>
<p>Im only a sophomore now but I've recently had the college talk with my parents and they have made it clear that they won't be able to foot the whole bill at any of the private universities I dream of attending. Rather than resign myself to that fact now, I was wondering if there is anything I could do to start collecting scholarships now as a sophomore. Im thinking that maybe if I can collect enough money in scholarships (since we don't really qualify for merit aid) I will still be able to attend my dream school.</p>
<p>That said, what scholarships out there are available that will let me apply as a high school sophomore? Also, should I sign up for fastweb or anything like that?</p>
<p>Don't fret just yet. And do you really mean you don't qualify for "merit aid" or "need based finaid"?</p>
<p>Most scholarships are for seniors because the places just pay them out to the colleges. The only contests I can think of for sophomores are the Ayn Rand essay contest, and perhaps other essay-type contests for 9-12 kids. Oh, your junior year, apply for the Discover Card Tribute Scholarship, which is just for juniors. Then you can go all out senior year.</p>
<p>And applying to scholarships soph year isn't very practical because you haven't built up the credentials just yet. Sign up for Fastweb, sure. It's not a hassle or and doesn't cost anything. So right now, focus on your actual high school experience :)</p>
<p>Yes I meant need based financial aid, not merit aid. sorry about the typo!</p>
<p>ok, thanks. I will look into the ones you mentioned. I really feel uncomfortable about relying solely on senior year to gather money because what if I am not able to accumulate enough that one year. Them, I am out of time. so if you or anyone else has any other options for me, please share!</p>
<p>I'm sure a lot of kids are "uncomfortable" about the situation, but that's the way it works x/ There's nothing you can do, other than build up your ECs and such so that your chances of winning scholarships later on will be better. Not very many people are going to "accumulate" enough scholarship money for an entire school tuition + extras (except for those full tuition scholarships)</p>
<p>Also, I have to reiterate again that scholarship places send the checks to colleges directly (95% of the time that I've found). If you get any sophomore year, where are they going to send it? It's not like you can defer on a scholarship (at least, I've never heard of it).</p>
<p>I think you need to do some more in-depth research, not just to find scholarships, but on how the whole process works, before freaking out. But if you choose to continue your premature stress session, ask your counselor about it. She'll probably know more since there are probably some unknown local scholarships in your area (although again, probably for seniors).</p>
<p>I have seen a couple scholarships for sophomores - where do they send those?</p>
<p>Um, you should probably check that specifically with each one. I wouldn't know since I don't know which ones you're referring to. I'm not saying 100% of scholarships are sent to colleges (yeah I even mentioned that...), some may just hand you a check. But those are few and far between.</p>
<p>I have never heard of the Discover Card Tribute Scholarship, so can anyone provide me with some info?</p>
<p>Google first result --> <a href="http://www.discoverfinancial.com/data/philanthropy/tribute.shtml%5B/url%5D">http://www.discoverfinancial.com/data/philanthropy/tribute.shtml</a>
Juniors this year, the deadline has already passed.</p>
<p>There are 9 winners from each state who get $2500, then there are 9 national winners (from the pool of state winners) who get bumped up to $25,000. Okay, well the website says different numbers now, but that's how it was back when I applied lol. They have specific sections of qualifications that you should be strong in (best to be strong in all of them). I think there are 4 areas including obstacles overcome, community service, leadership and such.</p>