Savings and Loans

Q: [Teen] My oldest applied to schools and we got so wrapped up in that process, and life with two other little ones in the house, we have suddenly hit the May 1st commit date and haven’t tracked down financing other than the basic loans they offer. Are we too late?

A: A major misconception is you are no longer eligible for scholarships after have been accepted into college.

One of the worst mistakes students and families can make is to assume it’s too late to apply for scholarships once college decisions are made. There are scholarships with summer deadlines, scholarships available to students already in college, and some only available to current college students.

The key is research. Speak with the financial aid office at your school, check with the department of your major, and seek out local community organizations and service clubs.

• Some available scholarships are small, but they add up and make a big difference if you apply for multiple. Smaller, less well-known scholarships tend to receive fewer applicants because students think they won’t make an impact in the overall cost of college. However, if you win ten $1,000 scholarships, I think you would agree that it’s worth it. It might require you to apply for a larger number of scholarships, but in the end you are increasing your chances of getting selected.
• If writing essays isn’t your forte, there are even scholarships where you just follow simple prompts to “enter” rather than “apply,” and the winner is chosen at random.
• Apply for scholarships that have a very specific requirement such as being a vegetarian, LGBT or left-handed. Since some scholarships are so specific, they tend to be less competitive.
• A good number of scholarship essay questions are very similar to one another. Write a few essays and then find scholarships with similar essay prompts.
• Create a profile with an app or online tool, such as Scholly, to see what scholarships you are still eligible for. It will instantly bring up appropriate scholarships relevant to the individual applicant — to make the search process easier. It also notifies users when new “matches” come online, and helps them keep track of deadlines.

Christopher Gray is the founder and CEO of Scholly, a web and mobile app that helps students find scholarships. On Shark Tank, Scholly won investment from two sharks. Gray made Forbes’ “30 under 30” in 2016 and EY Entrepreneur of 2015 in Philadelphia. www.myscholly.com