A go-to guide for college and scholarship applications
Editorial by Aundrea Koger
For many high school seniors, college is just around the corner. Before we know it we will be off on our own, trying to make ends meet with Ramen noodles and hamburgers off the dollar menu. But before that happens, we have to get accepted to college. Unfortunately, the daunting task of filling out one college application after another is imperative for those wishing to receive a post-secondary degree. However, with a little prior planning, applying for college can be a breeze.
College applications often require you to provide a slew of personal and academic information, so it’s good to know what you may need in order to fill out the application, and have those things ready when you start. You will need a copy of your high school transcript, so that you may either fill out the classes you have taken on the application, mail or fax it to the university, or attach it to the application as a PDF file. An official transcript will need to be sent to the college following graduation. You will also need all of your ACT and SAT scores. Most universities just ask for your best score, but some will ask for the scores from every ACT or SAT that you have taken, so be prepared to provide them with those. Also have your social security number handy, as well as contact information for you and your parents, and even a rough estimate of your family’s annual income, because you will have to fill out a fairly in-depth personal information section. Some other things to have on hand when filling out applications, not only for college but also for scholarships, is a list of your achievements and awards in high school, a list of your current and past involvements, a total number and description of your community service hours, and an idea (even if you don’t actually know yet) of what you want to major in and why. Colleges are looking for students who will be active and successful at the university and beyond, so knowing what you want to study, being involved in school, being active in your community, and being goal-oriented in and out of the classroom is very appealing to admissions offices. Once you’ve finished your application, be sure to double, or even triple check it to make sure all of the information is correct. If you had to write an essay, have a teacher, parent, or trusted friend read over it and give you pointers.
So you sent in your application for admission, and you were accepted. It’s time to kick back and relax until move in day, right? Unfortunately, that’s not the case. I wish I could say that once us seniors are accepted we don’t have to lift a finger until graduation, but that is sadly not true, unless you want to finish college with an unfathomable amount of student debt. The next task that we have to tackle while also trying to live our busy high school lives is applying for scholarships. Now, some colleges already have their scholarship applications built into their admissions apps, but many don’t so be sure to find out which schools require a separate application. And don’t stop there. Check with the high school guidance counselor about local scholarships, and even get online and find scholarship search engines. Some great websites to start your search on are https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/scholarship-search and https://colleges.niche.com/scholarships/. There are literally thousands of scholarships out there. They can be anything from $50 for someone who participates in underwater basket-weaving every third Tuesday, to a $10,000 award from a random company for any kid willing to apply. Even if the scholarship sounds ridiculous, or you think that you have no chance of getting it, still go ahead and fill out the application! There’s no harm in trying. And who knows, maybe you’ll end up earning more scholarships than you thought you could! You don’t need to have a 4.0 GPA, and for many scholarships you don’t even have to write an essay. However, it is good to have a general scholarship essay typed up. You can modify it slightly to satisfy the prompt for just about any scholarship application that requires an essay, and it saves you from having to type up a whole new one for every application that you fill out. And just like with the college application essay, have someone you trust look over what you wrote up.
Hopefully, with a little effort and prior preparation, not only will you have been accepted into your dream college, but you will also have the beginnings of the relentless college expenses paid for with scholarships. Then maybe you can treat yourself to an extra package of Ramen noodles, and the occasional side of fries with your hamburger off of the dollar menu once you’re living on your own.
Works Consulted: http://www.universitylanguage.com/guides/applying-to-college/
Photo courtesy of wdde.org
The PowWow of Osage City High School 