<p>Our son has begun his freshman year in college having received some limited financial aid from the school and a small scholarship from my employer. He had great HS grades, perfect (1600 SATs) and is enrolled at a top tier institution.</p>
<p>Can anyone give experiential advice on seeking out scholarships once a student has begun their college career? I hate to think that it was a one shot opportunity during his senior year.</p>
<p>The overwhelming majority of college scholarships are for graduating h.s. students and for students entering their senior year in college. </p>
<p>Most students who get scholarships get them from the college that they decide to attend. This includes merit scholarships. The colleges uses merit scholarships to attract students to their institutions. (See the spotlighted thread "Everything you thought you knew about college admissions" that's on the Parents Forum).</p>
<p>The most generous financial aid awards that colleges give also are given to freshmen. That's because colleges want to attract the students, and freshmen tend to have fewer resources than do upperclassmembers since freshmen can't earn as much $ by working. When it comes to need-based scholarships, the percentage of aid that's given in loans typically rises as the student approaches senior year. Colleges have learned that if students remain until junior year, they're unlikely to transfer even if their aid package isn't as good as it was initially.</p>
<p>The next time that scholarships are available is for rising college seniors. Those scholarships tend to be for students who are stellar and are entering majors that are related to fields which need more people. The best options are: science and math related fields, business, and to some extent education (if your S's school has an education major) and journalism (if the school has a journalism major).</p>
<p>Typically the best way for college students to get extra money is by working during the school year and the summer. Depending on their skills and majors, they may be able to make a fair amount of $ while also increasing their marketability when it comes to post college job opportunities.</p>
<p>I agree with NSM. Getting a job is a great way to gain skills, get your foot in the real world, and make some cash. A job also looks good on your college/scholarship application. </p>
<p>Another good way for high school freshmen and sophomores to make money is through writing contests. I know this sounds a little strange, but it you really enjoy writing, then you can really gain from doing this. I will be an English major at Emory University, and I won a lot of money through writing contests. I used about 1/5 of the money that I won to buy my books this semester.</p>
<p>...after freshman year, though not necessarily from the school. One of my kids (NOTE: NOT a rising senior!) just got one totalling $25,000 from NOAA and last year got one for $2,500 year (renewable solely based on gpa) from Carpe Diem - total $7,500. There are scholarships available from businesses, from the government, from private foundations....my kids get regular emails from their schools telling them about ones coming up (the Udall, the Goldwater, etc). All my kids got FAR MORE money - and I mean FAR MORE - for the sophomore, junior and senior years than they got in high school!</p>
<p>nedad,
Please provide more info about what those scholarships were and what they required. Did it help to be in certain majors, for example? What did your kids do that made them stand out so much in presumably very competitive pools since those scholarships appear to be nationwide?</p>
<p>A quick Google allowed me to find out some info about the scholarships nedad mentioned.</p>
<p>I am guessing that there are more scholarships for students who are in math/science fields than those who are in fields like government, English, psychology or the arts. I also think that it's far harder to get these kind of national scholarships than it is to shop for scholarships when students are h.s. seniors. That's because many colleges offer 4-year scholarships to students whom they want to recruit. The easiest scholarships to get are ones offered directly by colleges as part of their recruitment strategies.</p>
<p>Udall: "In 2006, the Foundation expects to award 80 scholarships of up to $5,000 and 50 honorable mentions of $350 on the basis of merit to sophomore and junior-level college students who:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Have demonstrated commitment to careers related to the environment;</p></li>
<li><p>Have demonstrated commitment to careers related to tribal public policy or health care, and are Native American or Alaska Native."</p></li>
</ul>
<p>NOAA scholarship:
he National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Ernest F. Hollings (Hollings) scholarship program is designed to:*(1) increase undergraduate training in oceanic and atmospheric science, research, technology, and education and foster multidisciplinary training opportunities; (2) increase public understanding and support for stewardship of the ocean and atmosphere and improve environmental literacy; (3) recruit and prepare students for public service careers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other natural resource and science agencies at the federal, state and local levels of government; and (4) recruit and prepare students for careers as teachers and educators in oceanic and atmospheric science and to improve scientific and environmental education in the United States.
*
Eligible undergraduates studying biological, life, and agricultural sciences; physical sciences; mathematics; engineering; computer and information sciences; social and behavioral science; and teacher education are encouraged to apply.
*
The scholarship provides:
* Up to $8,000 of academic assistance per school year for full-time study during the junior and senior years..."</p>
<p>Carpe Diem:
"Eligibility: The Carpe Diem Foundation of Illinois is committed to helping students who have demonstrated outstanding achievements, exceptional leadership ability and a serious commitment to community service.
Award: between $2000 and $5000
Email: <a href="mailto:glevine@carpediemfoundation.org">glevine@carpediemfoundation.org</a>
Website: <a href="http://www.carpediemfoundation.org%5B/url%5D">www.carpediemfoundation.org</a>
Priority is given to those whose families have demonstrated a committment to public service, meaning students whose parents are or have been employed in education, local, state or federal government, social service, public health (including medical providers), the administration of justice and the fine arts. Student must have a B average and have experience in community service."</p>
<p>Goldwater:
"Established by Congress in 1986 to foster and encourage excellence in science and mathematics, the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation operates an educational scholarship program designed to provide opportunities for American undergraduate students with excellent academic records and outstanding potential.<em>Goldwater Scholarships support study in the fields of mathematics, engineering and the natural sciences as preparation for careers in these areas.</em>The Foundation will award up to 300 Goldwater Scholarships to students who will be college Juniors or Seniors during the 2006-2007 academic year.<em>Awards are made on the basis of merit.</em>Yale College is invited to nominate four Sophomores or Juniors to the national competition.</p>
<p>Each award covers eligible expenses, including tuition, fees, books, and room and board, up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.*Goldwater Scholars are eligible for one or two years of support. </p>
<p>ELIGIBILITY AND SELECTION CRITERIA:</p>
<p>Eligible are current full-time Sophomores and Juniors who intend to pursue careers in mathematics, engineering or the natural sciences."</p>
<p>Hi NSM - you found all the info before I got back online. Just one added detail: if you look at the list of winners for the NOAA (about 125; award includes two years of $8,000 plus a summer internship which, with travel expenses, is another almost 8 grand) you will see that they come from a wide variety of very normal schools - not all HYPS and top LACs, as with the Carpe Diem.</p>
<p>You may well be right about there being fewer scholarships, fellowships and grants for fields others than science and math, but I do vaguely recall seeing a number of them posted on humanities department bulletin boards...someone in those fields might know.</p>
<p>I think people would also be surprised to learn that fewer students apply for many of these - they are not at all like those national senior scholarships where many thousands upon thousands apply.</p>
<p>Have you contact the financial aid office or Office of Scholarships at the university your child attends? Where I went to school there were many upperclassman scholarships offered usually beginning the junior year. These were typically for students in certain fields, but there were many of them. Whatever office handles freshman scholarships would probably have information on these if they exist at the particular institution. (I think the larger the school, the more of these there tend to be.) It's worth a phone call.</p>