Category Archives: scholarships

admissions, college guidance, college planning, parenting, scholarships, test prep

Finding the perfect "fit" (for college)

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collegeThis week, I’ve been spending time at College Week Live’s virtual college fair. I’ve been gathering information and gleaning some excellent tips about the college admissions process. What makes this advice unique? It’s  straight from the horses mouth: admissions officers.  You can’t get any more “hands on” than that and it’s the best place I know to get caught up on the latest admissions information.

Yesterday, I watched a “live” video interview with Peter Van Buskirk, the author of ” Winning the College Admission Game” and a former admissions officer. He spoke about that “perfect fit” and how important it was to find it. When asked by a student, “how do you determine if a college is the right fit?”, Peter first said to overlook all the emotional motives:

  • Your friends are going there
  • Your parents went there
  • You like the football team
  • Your boyfriend/girlfriend has chosen it

He said once you remove those emotional motives, you can concentrate on five criteria that will help you determine whether or not the college is a “perfect fit”:

  1. A place that provides the academic program that meets your needs.
  2. A place that provides the style of instruction that best fits your learning style.
  3. A place that provides a level of rigor and challenge equal to your ability.
  4. A place that feels like home.
  5. A place that values you for what you do well.

According to Peter (and I completely agree) you should encourage your teen to “chew” on each of these and think about what it is they want to get out of a college education. College is more than bricks and mortar and a place to get a diploma. It’s a place where the mind is challenged, social interaction abounds, friendships are formed and a place your college-bound teen will call home for at least four years of their life. That “perfect fit” will assure your teen is comfortable, challenged and ready to learn.

If you would like to hear all of the interview, visit College Week Live and go to the presentations tab. There are numerous presentations available to watch, along with additional information to help you help your college-bound teen find that “perfect fit”.

Also, check out Peter’s website, The Admission Game, on the events tab to see if he’ll be speaking at a school near you.

college costs, parenting, scholarships, test prep

In honor of Halloween: Weird and Wacky Scholarships

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Although these scholarships have been deemed “weird and wacky”, any scholarship that garners you FREE money for college is anything but that. Did you know that you can type in “wacky scholarships” in Google and come up with some of these scholarship gems? Here are just a few of them.

Is your teen a leftie?

Juniata College located in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania offers two 1,000 scholarhips to left handed students each year. One of the qualifications is – yes – left handedness.

Does your teen know how to knit?

The National Make It Yourself with Wool (NMIYWW) organization awards 2 scholarships for knitting wool garments. Make a killer wool garment and submit it to this organization and they will judge it based garment style and design, contestant’s presentation, and creativity. Winners receive either a $2,000 or a $1,000 scholarship.

Is your teen a Trekkie?

The Kor Memorial Scholarship is awarded by the Klingon Language Institute to recognize and encourage scholarship in the field of language study. You don’t have to be fluent in Klingon, but creativity is preferred.

And…

Starfleet Academy Scholarship. If you are a member of the “Starfleet Academy,” an organization modeled after the fictitious Star Trek academy you may qualify for awards such as the Gene Roddenberry Memorial Scholarship for Aspiring Writers or the DeForest Kelley/Dr. Leonard McCoy Medical Scholarship.

Is your teen enjoying “the air up there”?

The Kae Sumner Einfeldt Scholarship, sponsored by Tall Clubs International offers tall students a $1000.00 scholarship. To qualify, girls must be at least 5-foot-10, and guys must measure at least 6-foot-2.

Is your teen fascinated with ghosts?

The New York-based Parapsychology Foundation offers young ghost hunters and those with interest in the paranormal several scholarships.

Does your teen have expertise in duck calling?

The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest awards a $1,500 scholarship to the winner of their duck calling contest. First runner-up gets $500, second runner-up gets $300, and third runner-up gets $200.

If these have peeked your interest, here’s a few other links offering many other possibilities. With the scholarship names, you can go to a scholarship search site like FastWeb and find out all the details.

http://scholarship.lifetips.com/cat/61637/wacky-scholarships/index.html

http://www.wacky-scholarships.com/

Happy Halloween!

admissions, college costs, college guidance, college planning, extracurricular activities, parenting, scholarships, Uncategorized

Would you pay $14,000 to get your teen into Harvard?

college_20moneyTalk about college sticker shock! I just read an article about a company that charges $14,000 for a 4-day Application Bootcamp. The camp sells out every year and boasts a waiting list. The statistics are posted about the students who attend and the results of their admissions applications. The stats are impressive, but I had to ask myself if that price tag was worth the results. Perhaps it is, if your teen’s heart is set on a specific school and you have the cash on hand. But most parents are scrambling just to pay tuition, let alone come up with $14,000 to pay for an application coaching camp.

If you’re one of those parents whose teen wants to be accepted into a top-tiered college or university and you don’t want to drop 14 grand for admissions coaching, what can you do? Will that price tag assure your teen an acceptance letter?

If that cost sends you running in the opposite direction, try this instead:

  1. Start early and stay organized–use a filing system that helps you keep track of awards, activities and deadlines.
  2. Encourage your teen to take challenging courses: AP classes, Honors classes, science and math courses.
  3. Be an effective parent coach by encouraging them to focus on one or two activities in high school and stay involved.
  4. Arm yourself with the right tools and information to help your teen learn about interview questions, essay topics and admissions applications.
  5. Study the college admissions statistics of the colleges that your teen is interested in and use them as a guideline in the college selection process.
  6. And lastly, for a fraction of the $14,000 pricetag, you can purchase the Parents Countdown to College Toolkit which will provide you with all the tools you need to help your teen realize their dream of a college education at the school of their choice.

Granted, there are those parents who can afford and are willing to pay hefty prices for admissions counseling. But the bulk of most parents are on a budget, scrimping and saving to be able to send their kids to college. The Parents Countdown to College Toolkit is an affordable and effective alternative!

admissions, college costs, college planning, extracurricular activities, scholarships, test prep, Uncategorized

More valuable tips and advice

For my loyal readers, I thought I would post the links to some posts I have done on other websites and blogs. All offer valuable information for parents of college bound teens.

Preparing Your Student for the Future
If your child is just starting high school, you’re probably not thinking about college yet…but should you be?

It’s Test Time!
The SATs and ACTs… Are these standardized tests striking fear and dread in your home? Suzanne Shaffer of Parents Countdown to College says the key to success is practice and she shows you where to find FREE help!

Searching for Scholarships

The best advice I can give any parent of a college-bound teen is to start the scholarship process EARLY. Don’t wait until senior year and scramble around trying to find scholarships. Here are 10 tips on searching for scholarships.

Visit these sites and gather some valuable information. Sign up and join GalTime for even more valuable parenting advice. Encourage your teen to enter Diploframe’s scholarship.

admissions, college costs, college guidance, college planning, extracurricular activities, parenting, scholarships, Uncategorized

Following the Yellow Brick Road

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yellowbrickroadI spent some time today surfing. Not at the beach (I never learned to surf after living on the Gulf for over 30 years). I was surfing around doing some “follow the yellow brick road” path. I like to call it that because one link, leads to another, leads to another and you find an Emerald City at the end! That’s the great thing about following links: you never know where they will take you and what adventures you will have along the way.
These are the jewels I found today. I couldn’t help but pass them along to all my parent readers (and fans!):

http://www.knowhow2go.org/
This is an amazing website for college planning. It’s interactive and tons of fun. It’s not your typical boring college information site. It’s a fun place to start the search for middle schoolers with schedules and tips all the way through high school. Whaz up dudes and dudettes…check this one out! (I know I’m not hip but I try)

http://www.youniversitytv.com
Wow. This is NOT your avearage college tour site. This one has moxy and some genuine off the wall creativity. There are video tours that ROCK, a message board, cool 3D maps, games, career videos and ways to connect with other college students. Check this one out and get in the “mood for college”!
http://www.savingforcollege.com/
I had to plop one in just for the parents. This is the BEST, I said BEST, site for everything you want to know about financing that college education but were afraid to ask. Remember guys: DENIAL is NOT a river in Egypt. Knowledge is power. The more you know the more prepared you will be. So take a deep breath and jump in!
http://www.theclic.net/
As my daughter would say…”cool beans”. This is a site where you can find and be found by colleges, scholarships and other college programs. A GREAT networking site and a place to connect and set up an online presence.

http://globalquad.com/
This site is Twitterific! Yes, I did say that. Keep up with college life on Twitter: students, colleges, faculty, clubs, and more. Stay on top of the latest college and student news via all the great Twitter links. And, there’s an option to “follow all” if you are so possessed. Whew…I’ll just follow…EVERYONE!

Frame My Future Scholarship Contest - Click here to go to framemyfuture.com and find out about $6,000 in scholarship awards!

No “yellow brick road” search would be complete without unearthing a scholarship. And this one is a great one. Here is how you enter to win…Submit a creation that shares with us what you want to achieve in your personal and professional life after college. Your entry can be a photograph, collage, poem, drawing, painting, graphic design piece, short typed explanation, or anything YOU can create in an image! Your entry should communicate: This is how I “Frame My Future.”

That ends my search for today. I think I can safely say I found the “Emerald City” because every one of those links can take your teen closer to their dream of a college education.

But right now, I’m OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD!

college costs, extracurricular activities, scholarships, Uncategorized

"Why I Deserve a Scholarship" Contest

dell-scholarship

Create

Submit a 1-3 minute video describing/showing/depicting “Why you deserve a scholarship”. Video must be in a compressed Quicktime, Flash or Windows Media format. Be sure to include a title and description for your video.

Upload

Post finished video at WhyIDeserveAScholarship.com. Videos must be original and created by you. Your entry means that your work is not the work of others.

Vote

Voting begins September 8, 2009 and ends September 15, 2009. Members may vote only once each day on the following criteria:

1/3 Need, 1/3 Creativity, 1/3 Originality

And that’s not all, ONE lucky voter will receive a $1000 Scholarship just for voting!

college costs, scholarships

Scholarship Alert: Essay Contest for 2010 Seniors

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fire-logo1

FIRE’s Freedom in Academia Essay Contest

2009 Awards
One first place winner will be awarded a $5,000 college scholarship.
Two second place winners will each receive a $2,500 college scholarship.
Five runners-up will each receive a $1000 college scholarship.

Deadlines
The final day to submit an entry is November 6, 2009. The winners will be announced on December 11, 2009.

FIRE’s Mission
FIRE’s mission is to defend and sustain individual rights at America’s colleges and universities. These rights include freedom of speech, legal equality, due process, religious liberty, and sanctity of conscience?the essential qualities of individual liberty and dignity. FIRE’s core mission is to protect the unprotected and to educate the public and communities of concerned Americans about the threats to these rights on our campuses and about the means to preserve them.

Click here for all the scholarship details!

college costs, scholarships

$10,000 Parent Answer Sweepstakes!

Start your Scholarship Search now and you could win $10,000!*

Sallie Mae’s free Scholarship Search database has over 3 million scholarships worth over $16 billion. Register and set up a profile for your child today to get a personalized list of scholarship opportunities that match your child’s unique background. Start now.

And just by registering, you will automatically be entered in our annual $10,000 Parent Answer Sweepstakes!*

Start using Sallie Mae’s free Scholarship Search and you could find free money to pay for your child’s education today.

What have you got to lose? Register and you’re automatically entered. Plus, you’ll get some scholarship matches in the process. A win-win!

college costs, scholarships

What Can You Do? Scholarship Video Contest

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filmakingIs your college-bound teen a budding videographer or filmaker? The Campaign for Disability Employment is sponsoring a video contest for a $1500 Scholarship. The contest asks applicants to make a video on best practices within the workplace that allow every employee the opportunity to contribute, specifically fellow co-workers with a disability.

This is a perfect opportunity for your creative teen to use that creativity and win a scholarship. Since there’s no age limit, anyone can create a video and upload it for submission.

The deadline is July 15, 2009, so don’t procrastinate and encourage your teen to get their creative juices flowing!

Click here for rules and entry information.

college costs, extracurricular activities, scholarships

Scholarship Q & A

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Question: Is it worth my time to apply for scholarships?

It is if you want FREE money. Because that’s what scholarships are: FREE money. The key is to apply for those scholarships that “fit” you. Each scholarship is looking for students with specific qualities. If you meet those, you’ll have a much better chance of winning the scholarship.

Question: I’m not the best student. Is there a scholarship out there for me?

Absolutely. Many scholarships aren’t based on grades, but on specific criteria. Many are essay contests. Many are based on heritage or affiliation. Many are based on specific talents or abilities. So even though you’re not a “straight A” student, there are scholarships out there that would be a perfect fit for you.

Question: Do I  have to have a long list of extracurricular activities to win a scholarship?

The great thing about scholarships is that you can distinguish yourself by being focused on a particular activity. It’s not how many you have, but what you have spent your time on during your teen years. If you communicate your strengths (such as working all throughout high school), you won’t need a long list of activities.

Question: Are all scholarships the same?

Absolutely not. Scholarships are as varied as people. There are scholarships for academics, writing, inventing, music, lineage, creativity, geographic residence, and the list goes on and on. As I said previously, finding the ones that “fit” is the key to success.

Question: What is the easiest way to find out about scholarships?

Go online to scholarship sites (you can find some on my TOOLS page) and register. Ask your counselor. Visit your local library reference desk.

Sign up for me FREE Ebook for many other suggestions!