The most dreaded time for high school seniors has finally arrived: college application season. Among the endless supplemental essays to be written, letters of recommendation to be requested, and extracurriculars is the daunting price of tuition, adding one more troublesome task of finding and applying for external scholarships. External scholarships are just what they sound like: scholarships that you apply for outside of your schools.
Scholarships can be found in a variety of ways and places, one of the most helpful being the College & Career website, with an entire section titled “Scholarships.” The College & Career Website can be found by going to the MHS website, hovering over the “Student Life” tab, and clicking on “College and Career.”
They include lists of scholarships only open to MUSD as well as other ones outside the district. MUSD scholarships can range from $500 to $3,000, while other scholarships may range from $500 to $10,000. The College & Career website also lists other scholarship search engines such as BigFuture (from College Board) and various websites with resource guides for scholarships.
The College Board website also has a section to search for scholarships. It provides nearly 32,000 different scholarships from across the nation, and they provide filters such as location, GPA, fields of study, etc., to help you narrow down your search. Some scholarships may require a certain GPA or require you to live in a certain place, so it’s crucial to find scholarships that will fit your needs.
MHS counselors can also offer other suggestions for scholarships, a quick email or a short meeting with your counselor can not only provide you with more information about scholarships, but also give you tips for applications.
Applying to as many scholarships as possible is a good strategy, as you’ll be competing against many students for a limited number of awards. A lot of scholarships may share the same essay prompt such as “What’s your biggest accomplishment in life?” according to studentaid.gov, so you may be able to reuse some of your essays from other scholarships you may have applied to. It’s also important to have several people read your essays to get a variety of opinions — think teachers, parents, counselors, mentors, or coaches. If you’re going to reuse your essays and tweak a few things, make sure they’re the best they can be.
Requesting letters of recommendation can also be a daunting task. Ask a teacher who knows you well—maybe they’re an adviser of a club that you’re in or you’re an active participant in their class—and ask them early, giving them lots of time to write your letter to ensure that it can be the best quality it can be. Request a letter in-person rather than over email to make it more personal and be polite when asking.
The application process for scholarships and college may seem daunting, but you’re not alone. More important than applying to hundreds of scholarships and paying hundreds in application fees, it’s important to stay healthy and keep a calm head — and although it may seem impossible, to not be too stressed out.
