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Nancy L. Anderson, Forbes Contributor
Tuition at the University of California has nearly doubled since my youngest son started four years ago. My husband and I look forward to his upcoming graduation ceremony in June with great anticipation not only to celebrate his accomplishment and this important milestone in his life, but also because we won’t be receiving any more letters from the President of the university informing us of tuition increases. In this past summer’s letter, President Yudof stated that ‘adjusted for inflation and enrollment growth’ the University of California received 60% less funding from the state than it did in 1990 as justification for yet another tuition increase. I am sure this type of letter is one of many parents across the country received over the past few years.
It is challenging enough to attempt to plan for funding college education for children without steep increases with each and every tuition payment. Many parents whose students are attending college now aren’t able to make up the difference and subsequently, students are increasing their student loan balances. The Project on Student Debt reported that of the schools they surveyed, the average student loan debt for the Class of 2010 was $25,250 for those with debt; with 98 colleges reporting average debt of more than $35,000. Seventy-three colleges said more than 90% of the class of 2010 graduated with debt. There is another answer.
In today’s economic climate, it is even more vital for students to apply for scholarships. Last week, I wrote about scholarships that are available for the average student. This week we will explore scholarships for the high-achieving students. The point being if a student has the ability, know-how, and dedication to get top grades and SAT scores and they are involved in student leadership positions, student government and community service, they should fight for the top-paying scholarships. Here are some high dollar value scholarships. Some take financial need into account, but not all:
Buick Achievers Scholarship Program - This $25,000 scholarship is among one of the largest award amounts and has the additional benefit of being renewable each year for four years (or five for five-year engineering programs) making the value $100,000 or more. Buick (through the GM Foundation) is making a big commitment to scholarships as they award $2,000 one-time scholarships to an additional 1,000 students as well. What high school student isn’t interested in cars? They are seeking students who want to build, design or market tomorrow’s automobiles. Applicants must be interested in entering the automotive or related industries so they are looking for students who plan to major in engineering, design, and business. Grades and financial need are the first cut but look beyond that to community service and a whole host of other factors including the student being female, minority, a member of the military, or a veteran or dependent of a veteran.
Merit scholarships – There are many colleges that provide merit scholarships that are based on academic achievement. According to US News and World Report, Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa pays the highest percentage of merit scholarships in the country with 98% of students receiving non-need based aid. Many on their list were private colleges paying merit scholarships from their endowments but there are public universities as well including University of Nevada - Reno (which happens to be my grandfather’s alma mater) where 31% of students receive non-needs based aid. At Auburn University hundreds of students apply for 6 elite scholarships which range from $2,500 - $7,500 per year over four years.
Resources: www.meritaid.com, US News Merit Scholarship Ranking
Siemens Math, Science and Technology Award Scholarships – In order to nurture the growth of the best and brightest minds in math, science and technology, Siemens Corporation teamed up with the College Board and each year they hold regional science competitions for high school students. The regional winners are awarded $3,000 scholarships but the national finalist awards range from a low of $10,000 to a high of $100,000 for the first place winner. Prestigious universities such as California Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Texas at Austin, and University of Notre Dame host the regional competitions giving students exposure to the campuses.
Resource: Siemens Math, Science and Technology Competitions
Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation – This foundation provides 250 achievement-based scholarships annually for students with a minimum GPA of 3.0 and who are planning on attending an accredited post-secondary U.S. academic institution. The top 50 are designated as National Scholars and receive $20,000 while remaining 200 are designated as Regional Scholars and receive awards of $10,000.
Resource: Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation
Davidson Institute for Talent Development – Only the extraordinary apply here. This scholarship is awarded to students 18 and under who have completed a significant piece of work, whether it is in mathematics, science, literature, music, technology, or philosophy. They also have an additional category that I am sure Steve Jobs would have liked named, “Outside of the Box.” The top award is $50,000 followed by $25,000 and $10,000 one-time awards for top- notch students.
Resource: Davidson Fellows
Horatio Alger Scholarship Award – This scholarship honors the spirit of Horatio Alger, Jr., whose dime store novels of city youth living in poverty and over-overcoming adversity with uncommon courage and moral fortitude achieved great wealth and acclaim. This scholarship is awarded to students who have a financial need, are high performing, and have overcome great adversity. The national scholarship winners are awarded a $20,000 scholarship and there are state awards for lower amounts.
Resource: Horatio Alger Scholarship Awards
KFCs Colonel’s Scholars program – The KFC scholarship award is for students with an entrepreneurial spirit who have a financial need and are applying to a public college or university. This award is worth up to $5,000 each year for four years. Because Colonel Sanders believed in the work ethic, which was certainly needed to establish the original KFC, this award requires students to work an average 10 hours per week beginning in the second year of funding.
Resource: KFC Scholars
Media Fellow Program - Full-time rising juniors and seniors who are dedicated to pursuing a career in the public policy advertising industry should consider applying for the Media Fellows Program. Through the Media Fellows Program, the Washington Media Scholars Foundation awards a $5,000 scholarship to 5 students who have an extraordinary achievement in their field as well as earning a GPA of at least 3.0.
Resource: Media Fellows Program
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society Scholarships – Transfer students need funds too. Students planning on transferring from community colleges to universities can find scholarships through this academic honor society using a common application (available to members). There are a wide range of awards from $1,000 up to $7,500 from Phi Theta Kappa scholarship partners, which include a wide range of companies and foundations such as GEICO, New Century, and Coca-Cola., Additional scholarship opportunities available to Phi Theta Kappa members range up to $30,000 per year.
Resource: Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship Opportunities
Gallery Collection Scholarship – This $10,000 scholarship is awarded for outstanding talent. The contest is open to high school students as well as students currently enrolled in college who have a flair for practical design. I say practical design because the donor is looking for original work , which may actually be used as a greeting card (so it has to be attractive to their corporate clients and to their consumers.) This is one of those rare scholarships that students who are already attending college can apply for. However, a high school student from Texas did win the scholarship in 2009 beating out many university students.
Resource: Create-a-Greeting-Card Scholarship
Each and every one of these top scholarships will be awarded to outstanding, hardworking, and well-deserving students. There is another criterion however that hasn’t been mentioned yet – each one of them has to turn in their application. No scholarships will be awarded to students who don’t apply! Sometimes students feel they won’t win the award because there is such a staggering field of outstanding talent out there, then years later they realize those same amazing students were looking at them with the same thoughts. A message to those students, “Throw your hat in the ring.”
Additional Resources:
Scholarship search: http://www.fastweb.com/
Free source for Merit Aid Scholarship: www.meritaid.com
How to get in (and pay) for college: http://www.zinch.com/
Find money and have colleges find you: http://www.scholarships.com/
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发表于 2017-9-28 16:07:48
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