Scholarship Tips
10 Summer Scholarship Prep Actions for
College-Bound Students
Students usually have one thing on their minds when it comes to summer vacation: FUN! Parents with college-bound students, however, see college tuition bills looming and student loans adding up. There are several actions that students can take to show their parents that they are serious about doing their part to help pay for school, even during the warm, care-free summer months. Here are 10 summer college scholarship prep actions for college-bound students:
1. Work – Having a part-time job is a great experience and shows scholarship providers that the student is doing all he or she can to help save for college.
2. Start Searching – Checking out a few of the big scholarship listing books from the local library is a great way to see what is out there for college scholarships. Also, look online for ideas for specific groups (minority groups, parents' professions, children of veterans, etc.) that may apply when considering scholarships.
3. Write – Scholarship essays are how judges get to know students on a deeper level. Students can find some early deadline scholarships and practice writing the required essays. Kugler Counseling & Tutoring Services helps students use their voices to create unique and meaningful essays through the Application Essay Writing Program.
4. Volunteer – Helping others is a great way to explore career options, meet mentors, and rack up invaluable community service hours that scholarship providers look for in their applicants.
5. Remember and Record – Any meaningful experiences that a student has had just might be the makings of a great scholarship essay, especially those having to do with overcoming difficult circumstances. Students should take a little time to jot down thoughts and feelings from these experiences and by the end of the summer will have a nice list to use when it comes time to write their essays.
6. Create a Scholarship Resume – The scholarship resume should include community service details, part-time job experience, ACT/SAT scores, high school GPA, club involvement, leadership positions, honors/awards won, and any independent studies or projects completed.
7. Take a Class – Many community colleges offer summer classes that students can take for credit or just for fun. Either way, taking a class in the summer shows dedication to education and may help narrow down career choices. This should also include guaranteeing ACT and SAT scores are as high as possible to compete with other scholarship applicants. Consider our Standardized Test Preparation Program to maximize the use of valuable summer time.
8. Sign-up Online – There are tons of great online scholarship search websites that will deliver scholarship details right to a student’s email address. Creating an email account (firstname.lastname@gmail or something similar rather than the cute email address she gave herself in middle school) used exclusively for these websites and also for any correspondence that will take place during the college scholarship process is very important. Checking this email address will become vital and both parent and student should have access to the account.
9. Organize – Parents and students can begin to find and organize award certificates, community service details (hours worked, contact information, leadership skills used), and any other pertinent piece of information that may be needed for college scholarship applications.
10. Make Lists – Students will need lists of letter of recommendation writers, lists of their strengths and leadership skills, and lists of people who can help them in the college and scholarship application process.
These summer preparation tips are a great way to get students ready for the college scholarship process, no matter what level in school the student will be in the fall.
1. Work – Having a part-time job is a great experience and shows scholarship providers that the student is doing all he or she can to help save for college.
2. Start Searching – Checking out a few of the big scholarship listing books from the local library is a great way to see what is out there for college scholarships. Also, look online for ideas for specific groups (minority groups, parents' professions, children of veterans, etc.) that may apply when considering scholarships.
3. Write – Scholarship essays are how judges get to know students on a deeper level. Students can find some early deadline scholarships and practice writing the required essays. Kugler Counseling & Tutoring Services helps students use their voices to create unique and meaningful essays through the Application Essay Writing Program.
4. Volunteer – Helping others is a great way to explore career options, meet mentors, and rack up invaluable community service hours that scholarship providers look for in their applicants.
5. Remember and Record – Any meaningful experiences that a student has had just might be the makings of a great scholarship essay, especially those having to do with overcoming difficult circumstances. Students should take a little time to jot down thoughts and feelings from these experiences and by the end of the summer will have a nice list to use when it comes time to write their essays.
6. Create a Scholarship Resume – The scholarship resume should include community service details, part-time job experience, ACT/SAT scores, high school GPA, club involvement, leadership positions, honors/awards won, and any independent studies or projects completed.
7. Take a Class – Many community colleges offer summer classes that students can take for credit or just for fun. Either way, taking a class in the summer shows dedication to education and may help narrow down career choices. This should also include guaranteeing ACT and SAT scores are as high as possible to compete with other scholarship applicants. Consider our Standardized Test Preparation Program to maximize the use of valuable summer time.
8. Sign-up Online – There are tons of great online scholarship search websites that will deliver scholarship details right to a student’s email address. Creating an email account (firstname.lastname@gmail or something similar rather than the cute email address she gave herself in middle school) used exclusively for these websites and also for any correspondence that will take place during the college scholarship process is very important. Checking this email address will become vital and both parent and student should have access to the account.
9. Organize – Parents and students can begin to find and organize award certificates, community service details (hours worked, contact information, leadership skills used), and any other pertinent piece of information that may be needed for college scholarship applications.
10. Make Lists – Students will need lists of letter of recommendation writers, lists of their strengths and leadership skills, and lists of people who can help them in the college and scholarship application process.
These summer preparation tips are a great way to get students ready for the college scholarship process, no matter what level in school the student will be in the fall.
June 10, 2014 Excerpted from http://www.examiner.com/article/10-summer-scholarship-prep-actions-for-college-bound-students