Apply for Scholarships

There is no particular scholarship application “season.” Award deadlines happen throughout the year. If you know that you're going to college, you can start looking for scholarships at any point. Many scholarships open up their applications weeks or months before the due date.

It's often a good idea to look for college scholarships when you're not busy with school or extracurriculars. For example, summer break is a perfect time to apply for summer scholarships because you don’t have to juggle homework on top of your scholarship essay.

If you learn anything about applying for scholarships, it should be this: it's always best to apply as soon as possible. That means filling out scholarship applications even before you know where you're going to college. There are many scholarships for high school juniors as well as high school sophomore scholarships, like the Sodexo Stop Hunger Scholarship.

Students often think that they have to have a perfect academic record to even be considered for a merit scholarship. But that simply isn't true. You don't need to have a 4.0 or a 1600 on the SAT to win a scholarship. For example, the Brighthouse Scholar Connections Scholarship Program only requires a 2.7 GPA.

Having good grades is just one factor that may be considered. Schools and scholarship providers will also look at your background, what you’re interested in and what your letters of recommendation say.

Some scholarships are also more interested in your athletic ability or artistic achievements, not just your academics.

Having good grades is just one factor that may be considered. Schools and scholarship providers will also look at your background, what you’re interested in and what your letters of recommendation say. Some types of financial aid are also more interested in your athletic ability or artistic achievements, not just your academics. In short - if you’re a student with decent grades and a few extracurricular activties under your belt, then you still have a good shot at winning a college scholarship.

There is no specific time frame on when you should start applying for scholarships, but the earlier the better. In general, most kinds of financial aid require that you at least be a high school senior. However, some may have more lenient requirements and allow other high school students.

For example, the Doodle for Google Scholarship accepts students as young as 13 years old.

It's hard to find scholarships that accept students that early, but that doesn’t mean it hurts to look. If your child isn't in high school yet, you can set aside time once a quarter to look for scholarships.

Even if you think you’re the perfect candidate for a scholarship, that doesn’t mean that you’re guaranteed to be selected. You never know exactly what the scholarship committee is looking for or if your application was missing some necessary requirement.

In the end, applying to scholarships is really all about numbers. The more you apply to, the greater your chances of winning. Just remember to stay diversified; focus on the niche awards, not just the generic, big-name college scholarships.

While there's often a big push to apply to scholarships for high school seniors, many students forget that undergraduates may still be eligible for scholarships. In fact, dozens of scholarships only accept students who are already enrolled in college. And remember, even graduate school students can apply for scholarships.

Despite what graduate students often think, they are eligible for graduate scholarships.

Even if you think you're too old to win a scholarship, know that there are scholarships you are eligible for. Most scholarships don't have an age cutoff, only a grade requirement. For example, if you're going back to school as an older student, you can still qualify for graduate student scholarships. Again, as long as you haven’t graduated, you can likely still find eligible scholarships.

International students who live outside the U.S. may still be eligible for scholarships if they're attending school in one of the 50 states. While the pool of scholarships may be smaller than it is for domestic students, international students may still find some awards.

One of the best things that an international student can do is to apply to schools that offer tuition waivers. Generally, international students have to pay higher tuition, but a tuition waiver will grant them tuiton at the same rate as an in-state student. For example, Georgia Tech offers tuition waivers for internatonal students who are struggling financially.

Part-time status is determined by an individual school, but generally ranges between six and 11 credit hours. If you take more than 12 credit hours, you’re generally considered a full-time student.

Many scholarships will still accept part-time students. However, read through the eligibility requirements before you apply. Some scholarships may exclude part-time students.

If you’re currently a full-time student and drop down to part-time status, you should also make sure this won’t impact your existing scholarships. Some types of financial aid depend on you being a full-time student. In some cases, it may be less expensive to stay a full-time student than it is to be a part-time student.

Community or vocational college students usually pay lower tuition than those attending a four-year school. However, they may still need money to cover educational-related expenses.

That’s where scholarships for community college students come into play. There are many undergraduate scholarships that allow community college students to apply. In fact, you might be able to find specific scholarships just for community college students.

When deciding which students to select, scholarship providers often use GPA as one of their criteria. A general rule of thumb says that you need to have a 3.0 or higher to qualify for most awards, like the

For example, the Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship. To qualify, you must have a 3.0 GPA as a high school student. Winners may receive a $20,000 scholarship, and 150 winners will be chosen.

However, some scholarships may not even ask any questions about your GPA. If you don't have a stellar GPA, you should still be able to find plenty of awards. The key is to focus on what you can bring to the table, like athletic prowess, artistic skills and more. You can also look for awards based on your academic major, school year, residence state or special attributes.

If you have a poor high school GPA but are doing better in college, you shouldn’t let that deter you from applying for more scholarships.

Legitimate scholarships should not have any fees associated with them. While you might pay money to hire an SAT or ACT tutor or enlist someone to help you craft a scholarship essay, you shouldn’t have to pay a specific application fee. This is true for both traditional scholarships, as well as scholarship sweepstakes.

If a scholarship charges you a fee to apply, then it's likely a scam.

The only time that you have to complete the FAFSA before applying for a scholarship is if the scholarship application uses your FAFSA data to determine eligibility. Many need-based awards will decide who is eligible to win based on their FAFSA. If you haven't filled out the FAFSA for these awards, then you won't qualify.

Remeber, fillng out the FAFSA doesn’t mean that you have to take out a student loan. It simply gives you the ability to access federal financial aid, including grants and work-study. Also, don’t forget that you have to complete the FAFSA every year - it’s not a one-and-done situation.

If you decide to take a gap year after high school, you may be able to defer some scholarships until you're enrolled. However, there may be a limit on how long you can do this.

If you're applying for a scholarship and know that you want to take a gap year, make sure that you don't see anything in the rules or requirements that states you can’t do that. If you're not sure what the rules are, you should contact the scholarship committee as soon as possible.

If you want to wait until your gap year is over to apply for scholarships, make sure that you don’t wait too long to apply. Otherwise, you might miss most application deadlines and wind up without enough financial aid.

DACA students have a harder time finding financial aid, but they’re still out there, like the Golden Door Scholars (GDS) program.

Here’s how to qualify:

• Must attend college in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia
• School must be partnered with GDS
• Have graudated from a U.S. high school

The Golden Door Scholars program is available just for DACA students and others without official U.S. citizenship. Winners will receive funding for a four-year bachelor’s program at one of several selective schools across the country, including Duke University, Georgetown University, and Wake Forest University.

Unfortunately, students who have DACA status are not eligible for federal financial aid, such as federal student loans, Pell Grants, and work-study. And those with DACA status are less likely to be eligible for other scholarships.

Some states may even have special grants for DACA students. For example, California offers generous financial aid programs for those with DACA status, as well as for other undocumented students. To quallify, students must fill out the California Dream Act Application.