Advice on college scholarships: Apply, apply, apply even while in school

Right now, many students are heading back to college.

Every year, the U.S. Department of Education awards an estimated $46 billion in student scholarships, according to the education data initiative.

Boston 25 News advisor Clark Howard says students who do not apply for scholarships could be leaving thousands in savings on the table.

When it comes to applying for scholarships, Logan Yates knows a thing or two.

“Definitely double digits. I want to say like 20, 25, maybe even 30,” is how many scholarships Yates says he applied for.

Of those 20 or 30 the college freshman applied for, Yates has only been awarded two but that’s not stopping him from applying for more.

“I think, continue to apply for scholarships throughout your four years and continue on for college. That’s a smart idea just because every dollar counts,” Yates said.

Along with the scholarships, Yates applied for a study abroad program, which will allow him to pay in-state tuition at his out-of-state university.

He said it’s important to look at the fine print for each application.

“Some might say only last through your first year, but some also say for your four years you get $500 for your books,” Yates said.

Howard said those small amounts can add up to big bucks.

The average first-time undergraduate student who gets government grants and scholarships at a 4-year college receives just under $15,000 each year, according to the Education Data Initiative.

Gabrielle McCormick founded the site Scholarship Informer, which helps students navigate the scholarship process.

“A question that people are not asking me That they should be asking me is how long does this process really take?” McCormick said.

She said it is not uncommon for students like Yates to be denied the first year.

“But year two, $30K in 30 days,” McCormick said.

Howard said the key is to get started. Once you’ve got an essay completed you can tweak it for individual applications.

“There are scholarships out there for Taylor Swift fans. There are scholarships out there for Nintendo, for sleeping, for Minecraft, all kinds of things,” McCormick said.

There are also programs that can help you pay down student debt.

“Not all scholarships are called scholarships. Sometimes there are special programs and initiatives that can be put on through the city, or through associations that are associated with that particular major or career,” McCormick said.

Yates has advice for other students who want help paying for college.

“Find every scholarship you can and just apply, apply, apply, apply, because you never know what’s going to be a yes and what’s going to be a no,” McCormick said.

Something else about when you finish college. Howard said many people aren’t done and go on to graduate school, and so often you’ll have grad school scholarships that exceed the cost, and you can use those to pay towards your outstanding undergraduate student loans.

Get them out of there as quickly as you can.

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