<p>i just finished junior year and am getting ready for the whole college thing but need some kind of financial aid
what are the best scholarships?
when should you apply?</p>
<p>thanks in advance</p>
<p>Now is the best time to start searching for scholarships! There is an abudance of scholarships for high school seniors and there are deadlines all year round. The major scholarships generally have deadlines from October to about March. Early January tends to be the height of scholarship deadline season. Here's a helpful article for how to organize your scholarship search:</p>
<p>Here are some steps you can take now:</p>
<ol>
<li>Sign up for a Fastweb.com account (if you haven't already)--the best scholarships to apply for are the ones that best fit your profile.</li>
<li>Set up a method of organization (scholarship folder, portfolio, filing system, etc.) so you can keep track of your applications--make sure to keep copies of your applications.</li>
<li>Make a timeline with the due dates for all your scholarships so you don't miss any.</li>
</ol>
<p>Depending on your profile, academic and extracurricular record, and personal story, there are plenty of scholarship opportunities for you. Here are just some of the largest scholarships available:</p>
<p>Horatio Alger National Scholarship (<a href="http://www.horatioalger.org%5B/url%5D">www.horatioalger.org</a>) - Due mid-October, 2007
Coca-Cola Scholarship (<a href="http://www.coca-colascholars.org%5B/url%5D">www.coca-colascholars.org</a>) - Due October 31, 2007
Gates Millennium Scholarship (<a href="http://www.gmsp.org%5B/url%5D">www.gmsp.org</a>) - Due January 11, 2008
Most Valuable Student Scholarship (<a href="http://www.elks.org/enf/scholars/mvs.cfm%5B/url%5D">http://www.elks.org/enf/scholars/mvs.cfm</a>) - Due January 11, 2008</p>
<p>There are plenty more out there, and you can find them through Fastweb, word-specific google searches, and other scholarship resources (books, career center, other websites, etc.). You should start applying as soon you find the next scholarship you're eligible for.</p>
<p>If you've worked hard throughout high school to make yourself competitive for college, you probably have a good foundation for scholarships as well. I would encourage you, starting now until you graduate from high school, to challenge yourself to maximize your potential, set goals for yourself, and work hard to meet and beat those goals. If you have any questions, send me a PM. I'd be more than happy to help.</p>
<p>Yeah, it is recommended that you begin looking for scholarships before your senior year starts. Some of the best awards that include things like 4 year renewability require you to apply during your senior year. Each award will have specific deadline dates, of course, but there are so many scholarships specifically for high school seniors I wish I had known about that when I was younger.</p>
<p>Other than Fastweb, you should talk to your HS guidance officer, local chamber of commerce, state commission/department of higher education (even a lot of the for-profit loan commissions have extensive info on financial aid), and if you have time, use multiple web-based scholarship search engines that automatically filter results based on profile.</p>
<p>Most scholarships come from the college you end up attending. Check the scholarship information page on the website of the colleges you are interested in. Some require additional essays, though some just need an application for admittance.</p>
<p>thanks so much for the info</p>
<p>are there any particularly big ones you've heard of?</p>
<p>i heard someone talking about a bill gates one or something that a lot of people got </p>
<p>does anyone now about this?</p>
<p>Gates Millenium Scholarship is for minority students(asians, hispanics, blacks, native americans) that have a 3.3 Gpa or higher, show leadership, and have contributed to the community. Bill gates pays for basically everything. Only 1000 students win it i think in the country.</p>
<p>:( im not eligible for that one</p>
<p>Yep, it kind of irks me too when all the great scholarships have a little footnote: "Must be Hispanic, Black, or Native American but especially a mix of all three."</p>
<p>what do you guys think about little known scholarships?
is it best to just apply for as many as possible?</p>
<p>any scholarship winners have advice?</p>
<p>guidance!!! try for the big nation ones. you never know......lol. i definitely did not expect to win. i almost didn't submit my app. just TRY.</p>
<p>which one did you win?</p>
<p>Are you going to be a first generation college student? If so, Mercedes-Benz: Drive Your Future is $2,500 renewable for 4 years...it is a good one! All the application deadlines are different so make sure you keep track of them all.</p>
<p>are you still considered first generation student even if your older siblings have/are attending college?</p>
<p>I have a very stupid question....umm how does the whole scholarship thing work? you apply for it, and then how do u know if u are accepted? and also where does the money go? I'm sure they don't just send you a check, maybe to the college you are attending? what if u havn't made up ur mind ??</p>
<p>umm anyone?</p>
<p>the_juggernaut: If your siblings were the first in your family to go to college, then you would be first generation as well since you and your siblings are from the same generation. Some scholarships may define it differently though, so check with the organization.</p>
<p>achang1990: I don't think your question is stupid, and I think there are many people who wonder the same thing. </p>
<p>When you apply for a scholarship, you send in your application by a certain deadline. Each scholarship has a different deadline, and they will usually tell you when you should expect to hear back from them. Most will send you a letter telling you whether you got it or not; others may call if you're the winner. Some also send email notifications.</p>
<p>If you receive the scholarship, they will often include an award acceptance form in the letter which you then fill out and send back to the organization. Depending on the scholarship, they will send the check to your university (who then deposits it into your account). Some scholarships send you a check made out to you AND your university and in that case it's your responsibility to make sure you submit it to your school's scholarship office. In some cases, they may give you the check directly. If you use that money for educational purposes, then you have to report it to your financial aid office. </p>
<p>Finally, most scholarships do not issue scholarship funds until the summer before you attend college. So if you haven't decided on a school yet, you can always just accept the scholarship and give them the updated information later. It's your responsibility to keep the organizations up-to-date on your information (college, address, grades, etc.). I hope that helps.</p>