As college applications are being wrapped up, many students feel like they have finished the biggest task of senior year. But when acceptances come and decisions are being made, one final component becomes extremely significant: cost. Too many students are finding their dreams dashed by huge price-tags and less than ideal financial aid, and while loans are often unavoidable, they can be minimized. The key to this is scholarships.
With essays and paperwork reminiscent of the college application process, the task may seem arduous and unnecessary, but the money that is gained by casting a wide net can mean the difference between attending your top choice and your financial safety. While Malden High School does encourage seniors to start looking for scholarships closer to the end of the year, that is by no means the earliest that the process can begin. Scholarships are available all throughout the year, and are often even open to underclassmen who take the initiative to send in an essay and fill out the forms. This means that with mindful planning, any student can begin preparing for the cost of higher education.
In the past, those interested in scholarships would have to look at the local library, or other similar sources, for binders full of available scholarships. But with the advent of the internet, that is no longer the case. Websites such as Fastweb allow students to customize their profile so that only scholarships that they are qualified for will appear in their queue. This allows families to choose which scholarships seem most sensible to apply for, and also exposes students to scholarships that may have been lost in the research process due to their particularity or small size.
So don’t stop before you reach the finish line; go out, search for scholarships, and ensure that you’ll be able to afford the education that you’ve already worked so hard to prepare for.
