Emily Huffstetler, Bee Conservationist and Scholarship Winner

Sweet Success

As a child growing up among the vibrant foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee, Emily Huffstetler was fascinated with bees. Now, Huffstetler is pursuing a graduate degree to further her career in bee conservation– and she’s totally debt-free.

“I’m working on building my scientific credibility in the field,” Huffstetler explained. “My education is my top priority.”

When Huffstetler began her college career, she knew she would need to work hard to succeed. She recognized early on that graduating debt-free would be a crucial step toward achieving her ultimate goal: growing her nonprofit Build for Bees into a full-time career. “I did not want to start life in debt,” Huffstetler said— so she began applying for scholarships.

Through Scholarships.com, Huffstetler found the Taco Bell Live Más scholarship, a prestigious, renewable award for students with a passion for making change in the world. She applied for the scholarship during her freshman year of college. Despite her hopes, she didn’t win.

“So I just gave it another go,” Huffstetler said. “They resonated with that second application.”

“Securing the money I needed was really freeing because it meant that I wasn’t having to work full-time in undergrad,” explained Huffstetler. “I could dedicate my time to other things. My nonprofit, being head editor of the school paper, being class president for a few years… I was lucky to have the free time to explore all those things.”

And her academics flourished, too. Huffstetler triple majored in writing, Spanish, and design. “That’s a major privilege because I only had to work part-time,” she said. “I wouldn’t have been able to earn 12 years worth of degrees in 4 if I was also working full-time.”

Now living in Spain while she completes her graduate degree, Huffstetler couldn’t be more grateful for the aid that has funded her dreams. “A lot of those applications are beasts,” she said of the many scholarships available to students like herself, “but they are a much better use of your time than living with the burden of debt.”

For Huffstetler, Scholarships.com’s comprehensive directory simplified the process. “What I really loved was that I could go through things on a surface level with the search tools, but I could also look at it with a fine tooth comb and know that I didn’t miss any opportunities,” she said.

“Find your voice. Be able to articulate who you are and what you care about and how your education is going to help you pursue it,” Huffstetler advised students looking to follow her example. “What resonates with scholarship readers is a real human who really cares.”

Find your personalized scholarship matches today at Scholarships.com; keep up with Build for Bees online at build4bees.com.