3 Ways for First-Gen Students to Maximize a Scholarship Search
First-generation college students have made the life-changing decision to become the first people in their families to pursue higher education. While making this choice is hard on its own, worrying about how to fund your college experience can be an added stress to an already difficult situation.
Taking advantage of scholarships and financial aid are great way s for first-generation students to get free money for college and avoid ending up with a hefty amount of student loan debt. The following are three ways first-generation students can get the most out of scholarships and other aid for school and make college more affordable .
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1. Use your resources: Because their parents and grandparents didn't have the experience, first - generation students might have to rely more heavily on other scholarship search resources than students who may have more help from their families. If you have a counselor at your high school that you've worked with, he or she can be a great person to help you start looking for local scholarships, file your FAFSA and find colleges that will give you the most aid.
Some students may have community-based organizations in their area that help first-generation and underrepresented students in their college and scholarship search. These include programs like the federal Trio programs Upward Bound or Talent Search, YMCAs or local Boys & Girls Clubs.
Many of these can be found at community centers or through local colleges and community colleges , and can provide first-generation students with extra support and programming to get them ready for college.
If you don't have a high school counselor or organization to work with, a number of great online tools exist. Our site College Greenlight, for example, allows students to conduct searches for colleges that are financially friendly for first-generation students.
[Learn to prepare for college as a first-generation student.]
2. Take advantage of first-generation scholarships and cast a wide net: Do research on scholarships that give preference to or are available specifically for first-generation students. Depending in your location, there are even more scholarships that are available to students in certain areas, like the Villa Esperanza Scholarship for Austin, Texas-area first-gen students of Hispanic descent, or the Cynthia E. Morgan Scholarship Fund for Maryland first-generation students entering the medical field.
While you should definitely take advantage of first-gen eration scholarships, casting a wide net on your scholarship search can help get the most out of the chances to get free money for college. Senior year is often a very busy time for students, but if you can use free time to do research and apply to as many scholarships you qualify for, you could see big rewards later on when working on how you'll afford to attend your chosen school.
[Think about local options to boost your college scholarship odds.]
3. Ask about first-generation scholarships from your college: In addition to outside scholarships, the colleges you're considering may also have financial support through merit aid and scholarships offered by the institution. Arizona State University offers a number of scholarships for first-generation students in their College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University offers the Reynolds Scholarship for their first-generation students or those with other financial barriers.
If you aren't sure what the college offers, ask -- f inancial aid offices are an extremely helpful resource that can help you find scholarships not for first-generation students and other aid that you'll be eligible for, as well as find other ways to help make their college financially friendly for you.
Paying for college is daunting for most students, and those who are the first in their families to attend can be an additional disadvantage. Use your resources and put in your time and research and you can put yourself in the best position to afford pursuing an education after high school.
Liz Chereskin is the content manager for College Greenlight, a leading college and scholarship resource for first-generation and underrepresented students. College Greenlight helps students find colleges that match them and scholarships to fund their education and is a service of Cappex.com.
