Smart Track™ Toolkit: October 2011

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Scholarships

Good vs. Not-so-Good Scholarships

There are three types of college scholarships:

1. Merit Based Scholarships

2. Private Scholarships

3. Campus Based Scholarships

The most abundant types of scholarships are typically the need-based and merit-based scholarships. You may be surprised to learn that private scholarships can actually work against you with regard to financial aid.

Many students spend countless hours searching and applying for free private scholarships. They locate the sources, gather letters of recommendation, write essays and meet the deadlines. Yet private-sector scholarships make up only about 3% of the college funding awarded annually. We think of this as spending valuable time and energy going after the crumbs. These private scholarships still help pay for college costs, right? Maybe not!

Many colleges deduct private-sector awards from the money that the school already offered you or would have offered you. Simply put, the money from your private scholarship may go back into the school’s treasury, and is eventually given to another student! The funding package from your college still contains the same proportion of gift aid (free money) and self-help aid (money that student works for or loans that must be paid back), but the college’s “contribution” is now less. Who may really benefit from all of your hard work? That’s right, the college!

Detecting Scholarship Scams

Some college scholarship companies are making false claims regarding their services, such as claiming they can help families receive thousands of dollars in unclaimed free college scholarships. They assert that there are millions of dollars in unclaimed scholarships just waiting to be awarded. As you read above, even if you are awarded some of these private scholarships, in some cases it may benefit your college and not you!

Watch out for claims such as:

We've already secured funding for your college.
"The scholarship is guaranteed or your money back".
You've been “pre-selected" by a "national foundation" to receive a scholarship.
We have you scheduled for an "interview"

Maximize Your Scholarship Opportunities

Apply only if you’re eligible! Read all of the scholarship requirements and directions carefully to make sure you’re eligible before you send in your application. Your application can’t win if you’re not eligible for the scholarship.
Complete the application in full. If a question doesn’t apply, note that on the application. Don’t just leave it blank.
Follow directions. Provide everything that is required, but don’t supply things that are not requested. You could be disqualified.
Neatness counts. Make several photocopies of all the forms you receive. Use the copies as working drafts to develop your application packet. Always type your application. If you must print, do so neatly and legibly.
Make sure your essay makes an impression. The key to writing a strong essay is to be personal and specific. Include concrete details to make your experience come alive.
Watch for deadlines. To keep yourself on track, impose a deadline on yourself that is at least two weeks before the stated deadline. Use this time to proofread your application before you send it off.
Make copies before sending. Before sending your application, make a copy of the entire packet and keep it on file in case your application goes astray. Make sure your name (and social security number, if applicable) appears on each page of your application to ensure that nothing is lost.
Give it a final “once-over.” Proofread the entire application carefully. Be on the lookout for misspelled words or grammatical errors. Ask a friend, teacher or parent to proofread it as well.
Ask for help if you need it. If you have problems with the application, call the funding organization and ask questions.
Remember: your scholarship application represents you! Your ability to submit a neat, timely, complete application reflects on you. It’s your face to this organization. Take pride in yourself by submitting your best application.

Any additional tips to share? Leave your comments!

About Smart Track™ Toolkit: The toolkit is a web based service that assists families with everything from admissions and test prep, to student athletics and financial aid. Our intuitive software and on-demand workshops are key components to making sure students find their top choice colleges, and families can afford to send them there.

About the author: Laura Guarino is the Student Services Coordinator with College Planning Strategies, LLC. Laura has a degree in Human Development from Boston College and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in School Guidance Counseling. She is also enrolled in a certificate program in College Admissions Counseling. Laura is at the forefront of the college admissions process for the families of CPS and The Smart Track™ Toolkit.

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Thursday, October 13, 2011

What you should be doing NOW to prepare for college

As college planning experts, we know that it’s never too early to start preparing for college. You don’t want to be scrambling your junior and senior year trying to find a college that’s right for you. Here are some things we think you should be doing right now, even if you are only a freshman or a sophomore.

Develop relationships with your teachers and your counselor: It is very important that you develop and maintain positive relationships with your teachers and with your guidance counselor. The better your teachers and your counselor know you, the better letter of recommendation they will be able to write about you. You will want teachers who know you well and are able to speak about your character.

Teachers - This isn’t the time to sit in the back of the class. You need to be assertive and ask questions. Don’t rely on a good grade to result in a good letter of recommendation. Personal relationships are worth far more. Reach out and get to know the people around you, especially if they are on your “letter writing radar”.

Counselors – This can be an incredibly instrumental letter writer – often the most important one. Unfortunately, in most cases, the counselor will have had very little face time with a student – particularly at a public school. Therefore, the student needs to work on and maintain this relationship. Students should approach their counselor early on in the process. Ask them what their school’s protocol is for letters of recommendation. Is there paperwork that needs to be filled out? Then, students should briefly check-in with counselor at least once a month (I call this “drip marketing” yourself) so that the counselor can see that you are a serious student and get to know you . Asking your counselor in the middle of admission season, if they have never seen you before is a “recipe for disaster”.

Engage in self-exploration and career exploration: This is the perfect time to engage in self-exploration and career exploration. You need to begin to get to know yourself, what you like to do, what you are interested in, and what careers are out there that you may enjoy. Ask your guidance department if your school uses any college readiness tools, such as Naviance or Discover, that have personality inventories. These types of programs help you evaluate your strengths, interests, and career options. Research-based assessments of work-relevant interests, abilities, and values help people explore career options that are a good match for them. These types of programs provide guidance and information to help people make important career and educational decisions.

Keep your grades strong: At the beginning of freshman year, you have a blank slate in terms of your grades and your GPA. Once you take your first quiz or test, you are just beginning to form your GPA. You need to start getting serious about school (if you haven’t already) and really put some effort into studying for tests and acing your projects. You have some control over your GPA at this point. However, the farther along in high school you get, you lose this control. Starting off right is critical.

Read often: Read as much as you can. Read the newspaper, magazines, online articles, read anything that interests you. The more you read, the faster you will become and the more your vocabulary will improve. This is essential in acing your college admissions tests (SAT/ACT) as well as having a successful high school and college career.

Begin visiting colleges: Even if you have no idea what you want in a college, go visit some colleges in the area to get a feel for what they are like. Go see a big school, a small school, a private school, and a public school. Once you see a few different types of schools, you will have a better idea of what you want in a college and what will be a good fit for you.

Become (and stay) involved in extracurricular activities: Colleges want students who will be valued contributing members of their community. They want to see that you are involved at your high school. You don’t need to be involved in 15 different activities. Colleges want to see that you are involved in a couple of things and that you’ve been committed. They’d rather see that you’re involved in 2 or 3 activities (clubs, sports, organizations, etc) and have been involved for all four years than having a list of 20 different clubs you’ve joined but just bounced from one to another throughout high school.

Discuss career and college options with your guidance counselor: Again, you will want to develop and maintain a positive relationship with your guidance counselor. Check in with them every so often to discuss colleges, career options, your interests, etc. They are there to help you and you should speak with them MUCH more often than just to plan your class schedule.

Try to get a job or internship in a field you may be interested in: A job or internship gives you an opportunity to try on a career and investigate an industry. It also gives you marketable skills and experience, making you more attractive to both employers and colleges. You may even have to work for free at first, but it might be worth it.

Any additional tips to share? Leave your comments!

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Thursday, October 6, 2011

Writing A Powerful College Essay

Good-quality college admissions essays are critical to getting into the schools of your choice as well as winning merit-based scholarships and grants. The essay and the interview, unlike your GPA and test scores at this point, are things that you have some level of control over. In fact, the essay you submit to colleges and universities just might be the extra leverage you need to surpass other highly qualified candidates. A college essay showcases your unique personality, passions, and writing skills. It is important to view your essay as an opportunity rather than another assignment. This is your chance to compel a busy admissions officer to accept you.

What are admissions officers looking for when they evaluate your essay?
It is evident that each admission officer's critique of your essay will vary. However, it is safe to assume that each admission officer wants your essay to prove two things to them.

First, they are looking to see if you can write at a collegiate level, which essentially means that you must demonstrate control and proper usage of the English language, and that you can use it to construct a coherent written document. Admission officers are also interested in seeing that you understand sentence and paragraph structure so that you can pace a narrative. Your story should be concise, flow logically from one event to the next, and provide a convincing conclusion.
Second, admissions officers want to learn about you! They want to know about your character, your personality and your interests. Will you be successful in their school? Will you fit in? Will you be a valued, contributing member of their community? Why should they admit you? What is so special, so unique about you that will make you stand out from other applicants?

Don't overuse a thesaurus. It is important to not get “caught up” in using a thesaurus as they are not interested in your vocabulary skills. Instead, you can write your essay, as you normally would, without using flowery language that you don’t understand. Many admissions officers are aware that applicants use these resources to enhance their vocabulary, but you should steer away from these and focus more on your own natural ability.

Pick a topic that is unique to you. Your subject doesn't have to be earth-shattering, just something that shows your unique perspective. Your views on world politics are great, but if someone who really knows you knows that you're at your happiest when you're doing origami, then it's origami that you should be writing about.

Use humor when possible. The essay is an important part of your application, but it really is OK to lighten up a bit. Getting playful with your topic will make the essay more fun for you to write and much more fun for the admissions officer to read. You don't have to be fabulously witty or stick in a bunch of jokes (doing so could actually be detrimental to your essay), but just show that you can see the humor in life.

Use self-effacement (poke fun at yourself). A big shiny essay about how unrelentingly terrific you are may ring false with admissions officers. They often prefer applicants who admit that they are less than perfect and who can find humor in their imperfections.

Do not exceed the word limit (typically 500 words). Most schools put a word limit on essays and it is your best interest to stick to it. Writing an overly lengthy essay may feel like going the extra mile to you, but to the admissions officer who still has hundreds of essays to get through, it just seems inconsiderate. The longer your essay is, the more chance it won't be read completely.

Be (slightly) informal. The admissions officer wants to get to know the real you, not read a carefully crafted glossy press release or hear your imitation of how an important professional should sound. Keep your own style and voice.

Do not copy an essay. Don't even think about copying an essay from a collection or ripping one from the Internet. If you've seen it, so have the admissions officers—dozens of times. No school will admit a known plagiarist.

Take the revision process seriously. After you write your essay, you’ll want a few different sets of eyes to take a look. Ask your parents, your English teacher, and/or your guidance counselor. You’ll want someone to proofread your essay for spelling, punctuation, grammar and overall flow as well as for style. Again, admissions officers are looking to see if you can write at a collegiate level, so the revision process is essential. It probably wouldn’t be smart to start and finish your college essay the night before the deadline without revision.