Scholarships

[tesfawMD]

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Hey guys,

For those of you who received scholarships what did your overall resume look like- GPA, volunteer/community work, Essays, LORs, etc.? I want to apply for scholarships, but I feel I haven't done enough, I have a good GPA (3.72) and have done some volunteer work this summer, which totals to about 50 to 60 hours at a community services agency. Other than what I've said, I have nothing else. I finished high school this year and will be going to a JC for one more year, because I had about 40 transferable units when I graduated high school. I'm starting to panic because, I have to start preparing for the transfer process this fall and have no clue as to how I'm going to pay for college let alone getting accepted to college I like .

Any advice would be much appreciated

 

[fMRI]

Hey guys,

For those of you who received scholarships what did your overall resume look like- GPA, volunteer/community work, Essays, LORs, etc.? I want to apply for scholarships, but I feel I haven't done enough, I have a good GPA (3.72) and have done some volunteer work this summer, which totals to about 50 to 60 hours at a community services agency. Other than what I've said, I have nothing else. I finished high school this year and will be going to a JC for one more year, because I had about 40 transferable units when I graduated high school. I'm starting to panic because, I have to start preparing for the transfer process this fall and have no clue as to how I'm going to pay for college let alone getting accepted to college I like .

Any advice would be much appreciated

OK...
1) "Rich" schools have more money, better chance for scholarship funds.
2) 50-60h volunteer work -- doesn't matter, that's a week's worth of full-time employment or 4-5 days as a resident...
3) There are advisers in college, get help there.
4) Apply to the wealthy schools.
5) See point 1.

Good luck! 😀

 

[tesfawMD]

OK...
1) "Rich" schools have more money, better chance for scholarship funds.
2) 50-60h volunteer work -- doesn't matter, that's a week's worth of full-time employment or 4-5 days as a resident...
3) There are advisers in college, get help there.
4) Apply to the wealthy schools.
5) See point 1.

Good luck! 😀

So, does that mean the volunteer work I did was pretty much worthless?

 

[Narmerguy]

So, does that mean the volunteer work I did was pretty much worthless?

It's not worthless but it's not noteworthy. Also, while volunteerism is recommended, it's doubtful that you'll get a scholarship by sheer volume of hours alone. Don't focus too much on the #of hours but on your level of contribution and creativity in volunteering.

 

[Abdullaah]

Hey guys,

For those of you who received scholarships what did your overall resume look like- GPA, volunteer/community work, Essays, LORs, etc.? I want to apply for scholarships, but I feel I haven't done enough, I have a good GPA (3.72) and have done some volunteer work this summer, which totals to about 50 to 60 hours at a community services agency. Other than what I've said, I have nothing else. I finished high school this year and will be going to a JC for one more year, because I had about 40 transferable units when I graduated high school. I'm starting to panic because, I have to start preparing for the transfer process this fall and have no clue as to how I'm going to pay for college let alone getting accepted to college I like .

Any advice would be much appreciated

I had a solid GPA with lots of honors/AP classes. Some volunteer/leadership/community service. I think the essays were good. I don't remember getting any LORs for undergrad? My SAT score was around 2000 (or around 1300 for those who used the 1600 grading scale). I was top 15% of class and I applied to my state school. They seem pretty generous with scholarships.

 

[Dannyw]

for undergrad? I had a 3.8 gpa, no community service.

 

[tesfawMD]

for undergrad? I had a 3.8 gpa, no community service.

Did you get any scholarships? Yes, I mean undergrad. But I am a transfer student and didn't take the SATs.

 

[schrizto]

Scholarships for undergrad: It varies from school to school. Usually it's easy with high test scores.

 

[Narmerguy]

Did you get any scholarships? Yes, I mean undergrad. But I am a transfer student and didn't take the SATs.

Sorry didn't realize you meant undergraduate scholarships. I received an undergraduate one but I'm not sure how substantial the scholarships colleges award to transfer students are. For me I had high SAT, #1 in class, ECs, etc. You can PM me if you want actual details but I just don't think that most of our cases will resemble something that you're looking for.

 

[DrYoda]

I don't know if universities really recruit transfer students that hard?

I would look at private scholarships on the schools website and appply to all that you are qualified for.

 

[schrizto]

Yeah from what I have heard at many universities transfer students are ineligible for scholarships.

 

[loveoforganic]

Tuition, room and board, laptop, and 1000 a year for national merit

 

[tesfawMD]

So, from what I am hearing transfer students don't have many scholarship opportunities, right? Well then, how do they pay for college if they ineligible for scholarships? I know there are grants, loans, etc., but are they enough to pay for college without acquiring to much debt?

 

[loveoforganic]

Define 'too much debt.' There are other ways to pay for college, such as service in the national guard, army, etc.

 

[DrYoda]

So, from what I am hearing transfer students don't have many scholarship opportunities, right? Well then, how do they pay for college if they ineligible for scholarships? I know there are grants, loans, etc., but are they enough to pay for college without acquiring to much debt?

- you will still be eligible for outside scholarships and private ones through your school.

-If you're going to a state school it isn't hard to minimize debt(if not avoid it all together) by having a job.

-look for paid internships.

-I personally perfer to live alone, but having a roommate usually saves you $.

-Only take loans you need (don't use them for vacations, ect).

 

[tesfawMD]

Define 'too much debt.' There are other ways to pay for college, such as service in the national guard, army, etc.

I'd say 5-10k of debt is manageable. Yes, I've heard of having the military pay for college, but you have to serve in return.

 

[FlowRate]

Tuition, room and board, laptop, and 1000 a year for national merit

Every time I hear about scholarships for Finalists, I curse myself for not taking the PSAT seriously -- I was 1 or 2 points from qualifying. At my school, NM Finalists get 15k/yr if they are in the dorms, 9k/yr if they're not. Dorms are 6k +-2k. Tuition is about 5-6k a year. So they make out with a few grand. It's pretty nice.

My scholarship, the next down, is pretty much a little more than full tuition in concert with the state's scholarship. I got it from 4.0+ (weighted) GPA and 32 ACT/2100ish SAT and a successful acceptance to the Honor's program at the school.

 

[planktonelement]

Depends on the school. Top tier schools will have the money, but those scholarships will be much more difficult to win. Lower level schools will typically give out some pretty decent scholarships to attract students that are noticeably better than the norm at their school.

 

[schrizto]

Depends on the school. Top tier schools will have the money, but those scholarships will be much more difficult to win.

if you're looking for scholarships from top tier schools, forget about it. almost all financial aid from top tier schools is need-based. I looked up Brown University one time and it flat out said it didn't give any financial aid to transfer students.

 

[chicubsfan]

Most undergrad scholarships are reserved for first-year students and transfer students are ineligible. However, you may be given an academic award upon admittance - it is all school specific. Also think about looking outside your college for scholarships - look at community organizations, your parents' employers, your church... these types of scholarships are generally small, or one-time awards, but they can add up. Good luck!

 

[unitofpain]

the only school I can think of that gives scholarships to nonfreshman is Caltech- they actually have a pretty substantial number of merit scholarships that you apply for after your first year.

 

[Dannyw]

Did you get any scholarships? Yes, I mean undergrad. But I am a transfer student and didn't take the SATs.

Yes I did get one. It was $5,000 broken up into four semesters. I finished at my community college with an associates degree and my university had a scholarship specifically for a CC transfer. See if the school you are planning to go to has something similar.

 

[loveoforganic]

Every time I hear about scholarships for Finalists, I curse myself for not taking the PSAT seriously -- I was 1 or 2 points from qualifying. At my school, NM Finalists get 15k/yr if they are in the dorms, 9k/yr if they're not. Dorms are 6k +-2k. Tuition is about 5-6k a year. So they make out with a few grand. It's pretty nice.

My scholarship, the next down, is pretty much a little more than full tuition in concert with the state's scholarship. I got it from 4.0+ (weighted) GPA and 32 ACT/2100ish SAT and a successful acceptance to the Honor's program at the school.

I didn't really take it seriously either, or at least, didn't realize how important it could be (I mean, I did try to do my best on it, just didn't prep). They should really stress it more in high school. It just seems like just another random standardized test.

 

[planktonelement]

if you're looking for scholarships from top tier schools, forget about it. almost all financial aid from top tier schools is need-based. I looked up Brown University one time and it flat out said it didn't give any financial aid to transfer students.

Well, I'm talking about top tier schools in a broader sense, say US News top 30 or something like that. But you're totally right, Ivy League schools and others in the same range won't have any merit scholarships.

 

[CoolWhipp]

50 hours of volunteer work isn't much.

 

[tesfawMD]

50 hours of volunteer work isn't much.

What would you consider a substantial amount of volunteer work?

 

[looks like mae]

I have found that scholarships are really mostly about writing a compelling essay. I have paid for my first two years pretty much in full on scholarships singularly. My parents make too much, but not enough to pay for anything so I'm pretty much on my own. I guess my advice would be to

1. look everywhere, university-wide, department scholarships, small local ones, large national ones (all of mine are either from corporations or departmental/university scholarships)
2. apply early, I always set a deadline for all scholarships. It helps to just get them done, and most of them have the same or similar essay prompts so it's pretty easy

I think it's similar to what everyone says about medical school admissions essays - sell yourself. My GPA is similar and my volunteer hours and extra curricular stuff were not that great either.