Getting free money to help pay for college is a worthy ambition and an achievable goal. Just bear in mind that you have to spend some time filling out scholarship applications. Keep the following tips in mind as you put pen — or keyboard — to application.
Apply for as many scholarships and grants as you can reasonably handle. Nobody checks to find out if you’ve applied elsewhere, so for the price of postage you might win some cash.
When preparing the applications, put yourself in the shoes of the people giving out the money. What would make a winning application for them?
Be organized. You can reuse application essays and other materials over and over again, sometimes with only slight modifications, so keep everything where you can find it again easily.
Never lie or mislead on your application; they usually check. Even if they don’t, it’s not the right thing to do.
Be on time. You may be the most qualified applicant or demonstrate the most need, but if you apply after the deadline or after the money has run out, you’re not getting the cash.