|
|
It's Thursday again (already?!), which means it's a time for a scholarship update. Usually, I try to give you guys two or three scholarships with immediately impending deadlines. Since Thanksgiving is next week and finals are right around the corner, I figure your plate is going to be rather full until the first of the year. Therefore, for the next few weeks, I'll be focusing on scholarships with deadlines in the next four to six weeks. That should give you plenty of time to eat some turkey, study for finals and write a winning scholarship essay!
This week, I've got a $1,000 scholarship for undergraduate majors in technology education, up to $10,000 in scholarships for young entrepreneurs, and $25,000 for all-around outstanding students with a real commitment to community service and social justice. If you are in need of some serious money to help fund your college education, read on!
#1. The Foundation for Technology Education Scholarship: $1,000
The Foundation for Technology Education has one $1,000 scholarship for an outstanding undergraduate student majoring in technology education teacher preparation. The scholarship committee is looking for a student with a sincere interest in teaching, strong academic ability and glowing faculty recommendations. The applicant must be member of the International Technology Education Association (but if you are not, you can apply for membership at the same time that you submit your scholarship application.) The applicant must also be enrolled full-time in a technology education scholarship and cannot be a senior at the time of the application. A completed application will include a statement of personal interest; a resume not exceeding three pages; a college transcript showing a minimum GPA of 2.5 or higher; and three faculty recommendations. To learn more or for the address where to send your application, see the FTE website (linked above). The application deadline is December 1, 2008. The recipient will be announced in March 2009.
#2. 2009 Young Entrepreneur Awards: $1,000 - $10,000
The NFIB Young Entrepreneur Award program provides up to $10,000 in tuition assistance to high school seniors pursuing higher education and their entrepreneurial dreams. For more information, contact the NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation at yef@nfib.org. Application deadline is December 15.
#3. AXA Achievers Scholarship: $10,000 - $25,000
The AXA Achievements Scholarship, in association with U.S. News & World Report, offers a one-time scholarship of $10,000 fifty-two high school seniors — one from each state, the District of Colombia and Puerto Rico. From that pool of 52 winners, ten are selected as national winners, earning an additional one-time scholarship of $15,000. The top ten are also offered an internship with AXA. The successful applicants all share ambition, determination, respect for self and community, and the ability to succeed academically at college. To learn more or two apply for the AXA Achievers Scholarship, download the application from the link above (see the right side of the page for the Word download.) The application deadline in December 15.
Remember! There are literally millions of scholarships out there with more than $3.5 billion in assistance for students just like you. The Financial Aid Finder has the low-down on how to find scholarships and how to write a scholarship essay.
A few months ago, I wrote a couple of posts comparing Obama's views on financial aid to McCain's views on financial aid. Now that we have a new President (elect), I thought we should take a closer look at how federal financial aid, and specifically student loans, might look come January 21st under the new administration.
Just days before the November 4th election, Obama spoke on MTV about issues of concern to young voters. Primary among those concerns were student loans and financial aid. Here's what he had to say (from the blog at walletpop.com):
…I think the average student is taking out $25,000 to $30,000. That's a huge burden, especially in a time when wages and income are not going up. So here is what we want to do: increase the Pell Grant program, eliminate banks as middlemen from the direct loan program - they're taking out billions of dollars in profits - take that money, apply that to increasing the number of loans that are out there and reducing the rates, and then what I want to do is provide a $4,000 tuition credit for every student, every year, in exchange for national service.
He went on to say that special incentives would be potentially be offered to those students interested in pursuing careers in high demand:
And in certain areas, like teaching, where we really need teachers, especially in math and science, and nursing, where we really need nurses, we will potentially provide them with even more than that in order to get the high-quality teachers and nurses that we really need.
That all sounds great, but of course, we never know which campaign promises will make it into law - and which will get dropped for more pressing concerns. (And given the state of the economy, it's fair to assume that the President may have other problems on his mind first.) Even still, it's pretty clear from things that both Barack and his wife Michelle have said that this couple more than understands the strapped position so many students find themselves in with regard to their student loans.
For example, when the Obamas got married, their monthly student loan repayment (for undergraduate degrees from Columbia and Princeton, respectively, and two law school degrees from Harvard) was higher than their mortgage. Apparently it stayed that way for more than a decade. In fact, Michelle told a group of supporters back in April that the Obamas didn't pay off their student loans until her husband wrote his two best-selling books, "The Audacity of Hope" and "Dreams From My Father".
It seems that experience has made Obama pretty sympathetic to the plight of students struggling to get through college on student loans and other financial aid. Here's a video from earlier this summer of Barack Obama meeting with Wayne Community College student Marilyn Pace and her financial aid officer. Marilyn was so stressed about college finances that she had reached a breaking point. I'll tell you this much, after watching that, I sure wish Mr. Obama had been there to help me negotiate with my financial aid officer!
November 13, 2008 by Mara Strom
Treasury Secretary Paulson spoke yesterday morning at a press conference about the status of the $700 billion federal bailout of the banking industry.
Paulson said that while the original plan was to focus on the failing mortgage industry, the Treasury Department will now be expanding the scope of Troubled Asset Relief Program (or TARP) to include support for consumer loans such as car loans, credit cards and student loans. What does this mean for you, the beneficiary of student loans for college? Let's take a look:
Will the Federal Government be giving out more student loans?
No, not exactly. When you take out a loan, the bank that makes that loan then sells it to someone else. That's called a security.
The market for securities on consumer loans, including private student loans, has shut down in the past three months because investors are skittish after the debacle with mortgage securities.
Paulson is suggesting that the government buy up some of these securities in order to "jump-start" the credit markets and encourage private lenders to extend loans to students.
So, while the government will not directly be giving you a private student loan, its actions will hopefully make it more likely that banks (and other private lenders) get back into the business of offering private student loans.
According to the Washington Post yesterday, the details still have to be worked out:
[Paulson] said Treasury is exploring the possibility of the government investing in lending companies besides banks, or offering loans against securities based on consumer debt.
If the Treasury Department does go in this direction, it would not impact Stafford loans, since they are already secured by the federal government.
Sorry for the late posting of these scholarship announcements. I'm going to move to a biweekly format for scholarships starting next week as the cold weather signals the start of a much more robust scholarship season.
Today, I've got three college scholarships with deadlines for this week, but in the coming weeks we will be looking at scholarships with late November, December and early January deadlines.
It's time to start getting your duck in a row, so to speak, so that you can the most out of your scholarship opportunities. If you are a high school senior, that means fine-tuning your scholarship essays and making sure your letters of recommendation are in tip-top shape. If you are in college, looking for money for later this year or for the '09-'10 school year, you will want to be sure that your transcripts are ready and all your other paperwork is good to go.
Without further adieu, here are the top three scholarship opportunities with deadlines for later this week:
1. Intel Annual Science Talent Search: $5,000 - $100,000
The Intel Annual Science Talent Search (Intel STS) is America's premiere pre-college science competition, bringing together the 40 best and brightest young scientific minds in America to compete for $1.25 million in awards and scholarships. Every year, some 1,600 American high school seniors enter the competition with original projects from a wide range of mathematics and science disciplines. The field of 1,600 is then narrowed to 300 semifinalists, and then further culled to the 40 finalists. Each of the 40 finalists will receive $5,000 from the Intel Foundation; a new laptop with Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology; an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. where they will meet with government officials, including the President or Vice President; and the opportunity to display their research at the National Academy of Sciences. The grand prize winner will be awarded a $100,000, four-year scholarship. The second place winner will receive a $75,000, four-year scholarship and the third place winner will receive $50,000. The fourth through sixth place winners each receive $25,000, while the seventh through tenth place winners each receive $20,000. The 66-year history of the Intel STS has honored some of the world's most accomplished scientists: six former finalists have gone on to win a Nobel Prize. Applications must be received no later than 8:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, November 19, 2008.
2. Toyota Community Scholars: $10,000 - $20,000
Toyota's Community Scholars program annually provides 100 four-year college scholarships, valued at either $10,000 or $20,000, to recognize academic excellence, leadership and commitment to community service. High schools nationwide may each nominate one scholar per year for the scholarship program, which is administered by the Educational Testing Service. The nomination deadline for the 2009-2010 Toyota Community Scholars Program is November 14, 2008.
3. Scholarships.com College Health Scholarship: $1,000
Scholarships.com, one of the leading free scholarship searches, offers a variety of $1,000 to students pursuing a variety of majors. Posted with deadlines throughout the years, these scholarships cover everything from English to Engineering. This week's opportunity is for undergrads pursuing a career in medicine and health care. The online application is available through Scholarships.com and includes a brief application form and a 250 to 350-word essay on the topic: "What has influenced your decision to pursue a career in health care/medicine?" Application deadline is November 30, 2008.
November 4, 2008 by Mara Strom
It's election day. Have you voted yet? You still have an hour left if you're on the East Coast - and four more hours to vote if you're out in California.
If you haven't yet voted, stop reading this post right now, and RUN to your voting poll. If you have voted, read on!
For many of you, this is the first Presidential election in which you have been eligible to vote. What an exciting right of passage. Whoever wins, there will no doubt be big changes on the economic landscape, including the world of financing college. Will there be changes to the federal Pell Grants program, for instance? Time will tell.
Of course, it is not only financial aid issues that are getting students out to vote this year in record numbers. More new college students registered to vote for the first time this year than the total number of college voters in all of the 2004 election combined. What has been motivating students to get involved like never before? Is it the candidates or the issues?
Even though students have registered to vote (and according to news reports, have turned out to vote) in record numbers, they still face unique challenges that older voters do not have to deal with. Some of these challenges include intimidation tactics - like incorrectly telling students that registering to vote in the district you attend college will invalidate your parents' ability to claim you on their tax return. Not true.
Then there was the hacking of the George Mason University Provost's e-mail to distribute a letter to all undergrads that voting would actually commence on November 5 (tomorrow). Again, Not true!
Despite the pitfalls, though, students are making their voices heard loud and clear this election day. And if youth activists have anything to say about, their voices will continue to be heard long after the next President is sworn in.
That's my take on college students rocking the vote this Election Day. If you have a few more minutes to spare before the election returns start rolling in, check out some of these articles from around the web:
|
