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4 tips for scholarship applicants

Scholarship applications -- the old way.

Scholarship applications — the old way.

Personally, I’m not a procrastinator, but in my role at the Community Foundation I interact with many people who are. I’m talking about college-bound high school seniors. They’re so busy that applying for scholarships often falls to the bottom of their “to-do” list until they feel the pressure of a deadline … or their parents.

Most of the 140 scholarship funds that I help to manage at the Community Foundation have application deadlines in mid-March. So, typically, the majority of our 700-ish applications are submitted in March.

I’m so excited that most of our applications can now be completed online!

Did you know that we manage one of the largest scholarship programs in the Fox Valley area on behalf of our donors? This year about $900,000 in scholarships is available, which will likely translate into helping about 275 students. See what’s available, by school, at cffoxvalley.org/scholarshiplist. Share this link and these four key scholarship tips with students in your life (and their parents) who are searching for scholarship dollars.

4 Key Scholarship Application Tips
1. FAFSA – Students who will be applying for scholarships based on financial need must complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), as soon as possible, because the Student Aid Report (SAR) that is generated may be required for scholarship and college applications. Fox Valley Technical College offers a  free workshop. If you haven’t done your taxes, it’s okay to estimate the amounts on the FAFSA. After taxes are filed, you’ll need to log back in to the FAFSA and make any necessary corrections.

2. START EARLY Begin the application process early enough to make sure there’s enough time to gather all of the required information (letters of recommendation, grade reports, SAR, ACT/SAT scores, essays, etc.)

3. REVIEW – Before submitting an application, carefully proofread it and make sure ALL required information and documentation have been provided.

4. DON’T BE LATE – Make absolutely sure the application is submitted by the deadline.

 

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