<p>Has anyone explored or had success with scholarship websites like Fastweb, Niche, Zinch? They seem to have a large number of scholarships listed but the majority only give 1 a year so the competition must be steep. We're willing to put some time into the various essays required but not if it's a like playing the lottery - very slim chance for success. Any thoughts? Yes, we're suffering from sticker shock. :-S </p>
<p>Although I can’t get my S to actually USE the site, I continually hear recommendations for Fastweb. S seems to be too busy singin’ and dancin’ to worry about a little thing like money.</p>
<p>We were all over those websites when my daughter was applying to BFA schools last year. It was very disheartening, and a tell-tale sign of most of those scholarships I think, when we received a letter from the Nordstrom Scholarship board thanking her for her application for their $10,000 scholarship and how difficult it was for them to choose from 35,000 applications!!! I couldn’t believe it, and now that we’re close to the college application point with our second daughter, the wind has kind of gone out of our sails for those national scholarships. But then there’s always that little voice in my head saying “Yeah, but if your pole isn’t in the water, you can’t catch a fish!!!” ARGH!!! But we did have good luck with several local scholarships so that’s where we’re going to focus this time around.</p>
<p>I would ask your school’s guidance counselor about local scholarships. In our area (which is rural), there were a couple of arts-related scholarships that had zero applications in some years. It’s not a lot of money, but you might as well put your hand up. </p>
<p>Is it true that schools often offer less award money if you have these outside scholarships? So, if you get a couple thousand from an outside source, the colleges take off a couple thousand in award money from their end? I’ve often heard that, and it makes me not want to have my kids spend time and effort on these scholarships.</p>
<p>The ones that award need-based aid do. If you’re going to a school that requires an institutional profile, these are probably not going to help you much. We didn’t get going on this until fairly late, because I went to a school that met full need and didn’t think it was worth it, but in my S’s case, it definitely was. Also if you’re above the cut-off for need-based aid, these will help. </p>
<p>Jkellynh17 so the school your S attends will let you stack scholarships? I was trying to find that out on the website but didn’t see it. </p>
<p>@ikemom, at the school we’re talking about, outside scholarships have no impact on grants from the school itself. </p>
<p>Yippee! We’ll give it a shot. More essays! Sigh…</p>