<p>You are smart to have figured out so early that the websites listed are usually a waste of time.</p>
<p>I signed up for FastWeb on behalf of my daughter and prepared a spreadsheet with each scholarship and its requirements. My D was well-rounded, with a 35 ACT, 4.0, NMSF at the time (later NMF), athletics, leadership, and community service. Most of the scholarships that came up in my search for her were ones that obviously didn’t apply to her. Some required demonstration of need, which would reduce her chances. At the end, she didn’t apply for any scholarships that we found solely through FAFSA.</p>
<p>She did apply for a local scholarship for her major, from which she received some money. We found out about it through her school.</p>
<p>In my opinion, steering students to FastWeb and similar sites is a method of abdicating any responsibility for helping students find scholarships. I think FastWeb just gathers your information for marketing purposes. I signed up my D using a short version of her name that we use only at home. She later got mail in that name.</p>
<p>In addition to the excellent suggestions above, you could search for scholarships by searching the web for publicly-available information posted by other high schools in your area.</p>
<p>I also agree with the person who suggested you might want to study over the summer to see whether you could increase your ACT score (or take the SAT). My children both raised their ACT scores the second time around. Taking the science section again was particularly beneficial, as they went from a 27 or 29 in one case, and a 30 in the other, to a 36 each in science. </p>
<p>Good luck to you!</p>