Search for Scholarships
Your student’s search for scholarships should begin now, if it hasn’t already, and continue through the last year of any postsecondary education or training program.
Why It Matters
- Two words: free money.
Scholarships are considered “gift aid,” meaning that source of college funding does not generally need to be repaid. Even if all your student earns are small awards, multiple scholarships add up. - Scholarships may replace loan funds.
Depending on policies at your student’s chosen institution, scholarships can lower the total amount of student loans needed to cover the gap after earnings, savings and other sources of funding. Your student should check with admissions or financial aid on whether scholarships from outside sources are used to replace aid awarded by the school or is “stacked” on top of other aid.
What Your Student Can Do Now
- Get started with one registration.
The ISL Education Lending Scholarship is a good place to start. Registration is open now at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/ScholarshipSignUp for Iowa high school students in ninth through 12th grades. Registration takes just a few minutes to be entered into random drawings for $1,000 College Savings Iowa deposits. With one scholarship application done, your student may be motivated to do more. - Search for other scholarships to suit qualifications.
Your student can use free online scholarship searches to look for opportunities. (Never pay for a scholarship search.) Scholarships are available from all kinds of sources — such as civic and religious organizations, businesses and nonprofit institutions – for various types of students. Even if your student doesn’t have the highest grades, there may be an opportunity available after just a few minutes of searching. - Keep working on the resume.
Although qualifications vary, many scholarship opportunities are available to students with good academic achievement, proven leadership and demonstrated service. Continuing to focus on these aspects of high school will help your student be considered for multiple opportunities. - Talk to the counseling office.
School counselors often post local and regional scholarship opportunities in their offices or online. They may also be able to point your student to organizations that have awarded scholarships to others in recent years. - Check colleges’ financial aid websites.
Large awards, including those called “automatic merit” based on set qualifications rather than a competitive process, are often awarded by colleges to attract incoming freshmen with the qualities they look for in their student populations. Your student should compare the scholarship opportunities offered by each institution, as well as specific departments and organizations for each, under consideration.
What Your Student Can Do Later
- Evaluate future needs.
Your student should pay careful attention to the terms of any scholarships earned and how they change the bottom line of college costs. Scholarships may be a one-time award, split between two semesters of freshman year, or renewable for multiple years. If scholarships are renewable, your student should be aware of the requirements to renew, such as maintaining a specific grade point or reapplying. In addition, your student should understand whether a probationary period applies for any lost scholarship funds and how to reinstate eligibility. - Make a plan to replace short-term awards.
If your student will see a steep drop-off after freshman year when nonrenewable scholarships expire, it is important to know how to replace those funds for subsequent years. Fewer scholarships are available for later years in college, but there are some. Making connections with mentors, professors and organizational leaders can help, as can continuing to build qualifications like academic achievement, leadership and involvement. - Allow college savings to grow.
Using scholarships can delay the need to dip into savings invested in a 529 college savings plan or other vehicles. The chart below shows how 529 funds can grow the longer they remain in a 529 college savings plan.
What You Can Do
- Ask around.
Your employer, church, civic organization or another group you are affiliated with may offer scholarships. The same applies for your neighbors, extended family members and friends. Don’t be afraid to ask others about possible opportunities your student may be interested in. - Encourage continual consideration.
After an initial burst of scholarship applications, it can be hard for students to stay motivated, especially if they don’t see immediate rewards or receive smaller awards. Encourage your student to continue looking for opportunities. Multiple small scholarships add up, reducing the need to borrow or deplete savings, and the reward outweighs invested time.
Next Steps
Be sure to complete the survey questions at the end of this article to be entered into the 529 deposit giveaway!
Additional references, handouts and talking points are available in the right sidebar to use at your leisure. They may prove beneficial to reference now or after receiving future emails – we’ll leave it completely up to you. Use our emails like a recipe for a successful outcome — assemble the recommended ingredients and then follow accompanying directions to add flavor and depth.