College students everywhere are always looking for ways to earn money to pay for school. With many scholarship deadlines approaching, students should be aware that applying for scholarships is a very simple but often overlooked means of doing just that.
According to Associate Director of Scholarships at ISU, Debbie Green, students can find all of the information they need to apply for scholarships by frequently visiting the scholarship office’s website at www.isu.edu/scholar.
“We have a lot posted for spring semester right now, and then in January and February we have a majority of scholarships posted for the following school year,” said Green.
Green said there are a couple of links on the site that are extremely beneficial.
The first of those links is an “Open Scholarship” link. That link gives students information like when a scholarship opens and closes, and what the eligibility requirements are.
The second beneficial link on the scholarships website is called “Scholarship Listings by College” through which students can view more specific listings for his or her specific college.
“[Students] can click on that link, then click on their specific college whether it be the College of Health Sciences, Arts and Letters—whatever the case may be—and they can see all of the different listings for scholarships within that college,” said Green.
Students can’t apply directly from that link, but they can get all of the information and direction they need to do so.
The link also divides each college down to specific majors and will instruct students where to look for scholarships pertinent to their specific major.
Green said that there are need-based as well as merit-based scholarships listed on the site, and that information will be listed in the scholarship announcement.
The typical process for filling out a scholarship application is relatively simple.
Students need to find the scholarship, make sure that they meet all of the requirements for it, then print the application and provide all of the required documents requested by the scholarship and have it turned in by the deadline.
“Scholarships are very simple to apply for,” said Green. “A lot of times, we tell students, ‘You just have to apply.’ If you don’t apply, you never know.”
She continued, “We have students come in and talk to us about it, who say they need help and financial assistance, but they don’t necessarily apply for it and that’s a big key, obviously, and like I said it’s very simple to do.”
Most scholarships will ask for the same general information. Some scholarships will ask for an unofficial transcript, some will ask for letters of reference and some will ask for a personal statement—which can be very valuable, according to Green.
“I strongly encourage students to make sure that those written statements are very well-written,” said Green. “By well-written, I mean a strong statement that they can use and adapt for all scholarships they apply for.”
Green said that a written statement should be no more than a page, unless specifically requested by a scholarship. She recommends students have a written statement prepared that they can quickly adjust for various scholarships.
The statement should tell about your passion and reason behind why you need the award or scholarship. It should list why you intend to major in whatever you’re majoring in.
Green added, “[Your statement] should be something that can really tug at a committee and make them understand, ‘This is what their plans are, this is what they want to go into and this is why they need the funds.’”
Green had a few tips for students applying for scholarships.
She said making sure it is all legible is key, along with making sure it is complete. Many scholarship committees will immediately throw out an application if it is missing a single component or piece of information. Green also said that students need to be sure that they are eligible for the scholarships they are applying for.
“If a scholarship is for Art majors and you aren’t an Art major, you should not be applying,” explained Green.
If students are having trouble with an application or have questions of any sort, they can go to the scholarship office on the Second Floor of the Museum Building.
“We have a lot of students who come in and want to know, ‘Can you read my scholarship statement,’ or ‘Is this a strong enough statement?’ We’re here to help in any way we can so [students] are more than welcome to come in,” said Green.
When asked what Green would say to students who feel that applying for smaller scholarships that “barely pay for a single textbook,” is pointless, she responded, “They add up.”
“$200 is $200,” said Green. “It’s $200 less out of your pocket, it’s $200 less out of the loan you perhaps have to take, less debt, whatever the case may be it does add up.”
Green said she would suggest to students that even if it’s small, scholarships are simple to do and she would encourage them to still apply.
Green also said there is a lot of money out there, but students need to make sure it is real.
“I caution students on making sure that if they do apply for a scholarship, whether it’s through a national search or whatever the case may be, that if it asks for their social security number or asks them to pay a fee in order to apply that they do not do that,” said Green. “There are scams out there as well.”
Green recommended students be very cautious and said if they have any questions, they’re welcome to call or come in to the scholarship office.