Funding Your College Experience

Funding Your

College Experience

Rema Oxandaboure

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

Funding Your College Experience

About Joel Bervell

Funding College Through Scholarships

• Billions of dollars of free money
• Junior/ Senior year = ideal time
• Take Notes!

• Sophmore at Yale University
• Born in British Columbia, Canada
• Lived in Seattle, WA
• Older sister, younger brother
• Loves playing soccer!
• Majoring in: Biology?
• Secured $200,000 in scholarships

How to Get Scholarships

What to do once you win?

How to Find Scholarships

You've won (or lost)... What now?

You've found a scholarship, now what?

Start the search for free money!

1. How do I keep track of my money?

2. What do I do if I didn't get the scholarship?

3. How can I learn?

1. How to start the application

2. What to write about

3. Making your application stick out

1. What do I look for?

2. Where do I look?

3. What should I avoid?

Understand the Guidelines

Types of Scholarships

Gathering your Materials

Follow Up

• Read directions COMPLETELY
• Watch out for due dates
• Do you qualify?
• Tailor each application
• Submit all components

Places to Look

• Keep in Contact
• Send a thank you note
• Continue to check in regularly
• Ask about other scholarships

• University Scholarships
• Academic
• Local Scholarships
• Community Service/ Leadership
• Financial Aid Based
• Heritage/ Ethnicity
• Corporate
• Career
• Unusual

Get all Materials:

• Transcripts
• Test Scores (SAT & ACT)
• Financial Aid Forms
• Essays or SOP
• Letters of Recommendation
• Proof of Eligibility
• Make copies

Didn't Win? Don't Worry!

• Key Word Searches: Google, Bing, Yahoo
• Don't be ashamed to ask
• Ask around - ask anybody
• Look in Newspapers
• Counselor's Office
• Locally/ Nationally
• Organizations/ Larger Corporations

• Keep applying to scholarships - you won't get them all
• Revise your essays/ application

Make Your Application Shine

Tell Your Story

Scholarship Websites

Manage Your Cash

Get Organized

• Do your research on the scholarship
• Manage your online presence
• Be neat and think outside of the box
• Don't be afraid to brag
• Include supplemental material
• Read over your application before you mail it

• Collegetoolkit.com/Scholarship
• Collegestartupfoundation.com
• Fastweb.com
• Cappex.com
• Scholarships.com
• Collegeconfidential.com
• Scholarshipexperts.com

• Keep a spreadsheet of your winnings
• Follow up if you don't receive it
• Check in with your college to make sure they receive the funds

• Find what you're passionate about - and tell me
• Be creative - have fun with it!
• Recycle essays
• Practice for the college application
• Entertain your reader
• Avoid being vague
• Have people proofread

• Create a spreadsheet with:
• Scholarship Name
• Start date
• Deadline
• Requirements
• Make a folder on the computer with each scholarship
• Keep a binder of the letters/ documents you receive
• Keep all your essays you write!
• Create an activity sheet resume
• Keep any online/ print news articles

Finding the Right "Recommender"

Scholarship Scam Warnings

The In-Person Interview/

Phone Call/ Skype

• Find someone that knows you well/ likes you
• Can discuss your leadership/ skill/ personal traits
• Teachers, instructors, coaches, NOT parents
• Recommendations can make or break an application
• Try different people for different scholarships
• Ask early, let your person know you'll be applying a lot

• Have talking points prepared
• What's your elevator pitch?
• Introduce yourself to your interviewer/ Break the barrier

• Ask for Money
• Never give away bank account information
• Be cautious giving out SSN

When to Look for Scholarships

• Start EARLY
• Deadlines are between November/ May usually
• Majority of scholarships = $1,000 - $5,000
• Make getting scholarships a "job"

Scholarships You Should Apply For

Nordstrom Scholarship

• Eighty $10,000 four year scholarships
• Four annual installments of $2,500
• Available to high school juniors
• 2.7 GPA minimum
• Leadership / Community Service
• Due May

Coca Cola Scholarship

GE-Reagan Scholarship

• Up to $40,000 over four years
• All-expense paid trip for your family to California
• Learn about the legacy of Ronald Reagan
• Leadership and Service oriented
• Due in January

• 250 Scholarships worth $10,000 / 50 Scholarships of $20,000
• Free all-expense trip to Atlanta
• Become a part of the "Coca-Cola network"
• Leadership/ Community Service Based
• High School Seniors
• Due October
• 4 year and community college scholarships

+ So Many More

Buick Achievers

Gates Millennium Scholarship

• $25,000 per year for 100 seniors
• Open to High School Seniors
• Interested in pursuing a career in the automotive or related industries (engineering, tech, design, business, etc.)

• Full tuition in college for 1,000 students
• Trip to Washington D.C. or California your freshman year of college
• Network of people to support you and help you finish college
• Open to high school seniors; graduate level scholarships available in certain fields
• Nomination required

Alexander Hamilton & Friends

• Open to high school juniors, 2 yr academy
• Trip to Seattle during your senior year
• Fully funded study abroad over the summer
• Leadership/ Financial need

Advice from the experienced

Advice...

"Find your passion. The number of clubs don't matter, it's the commitment level."

"Chances are that you will be asked to write an essay, so use that opportunity to tell a story. Your story. Remember that above all, your goal is to be memorable as a person who did something different, and noteworthy, so relentlessly search for ways to make your accomplishments that much more entertaining or interesting. Make it rhyme. Say it from the perspective of an first grader. Show your audience that you have the creativity and the spark that makes people game changers and leaders, and they will invest in your future."

Advice...

"Get started early because there is a lot to navigate! And don't be afraid to apply to a lot of them because you never know which scholarships will and won't pan out."

"Take time creating an excellent resume, apply for everything (you never know what you could end up with!) and make it a part time job searching for scholarships. The more the merrier! I didn't think I'd stand a chance for the Coke scholarship and it turned out to be one of the greatest blessings!"

Questions?

Contact info:

rema.oxandaboure@sf.frb.org

www.frbsf.org/education

joel.bervell@yale.edu

www.joelbervell.com