College /Vocation /Scholarships

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

"Quick Reference Guide To
 Evaluating Financial Aid Award Letters"

 Financial Aid

Publisher
Mark Kantrowitz

www.usafunds.org/scholarship

For Seniors

www.northgeorgia.edu/cadetscholarships

Cadets interested in learning Arabic, Chinese, Korean or Russian:

GIRLS GOING PLACES ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARD

Eligibility Requirements

·         Fill out application

·         250 word personal statement from the nominee

·         750 word letter of recommendation

·         Girls 12-18 years old who demonstrate budding entrepreneurship, are taking the first steps toward financial independence, and are making a difference in their school and communities.

Award Amounts  - range from $1,000 to $10,000. Come to the counseling center or visit www.GirlsGoingPlaces.com to see profiles of previous winners and to get an entry form.

There is more than $11 billion in merit-based scholarships available from colleges. Now, you can easily find these <a href="http://www.meritaid.com/index.jsp?code=gcInv"  merit scholarships at MeritAid.com, the Web's first free, comprehensive directory of merit aid scholarships.

to http://www.meritaid.com   description of this website: This is a great website – There is $11 billion in scholarships from colleges at MeritAid.com Type in the college of your choice and the site will list all the scholarships available at that school and after you create your portfolio, the site can let you know your chances of being accepted to that university. This website works in conjunction with www.cappex.com on which you can create a portfolio and the site will send you a list of colleges and universities that are looking for you.

To learn more about why accreditation is important when choosing your school of higher education, self assessment tools, grants, scholarships, work study, federal loans, careers programs and more... click on:

Meritaid.com
gmsp.org

UNIVERSITY APPLICATION AND SELECTION. BY MAJ. RAY THACKER

IT MAY SEEM EARLY TO TALK ABOUT COLLEGE, BUT IT IS NOT TOO EARLY AT ALL. LET’S LOOK AT SOME FACTS ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF A PLANNED AND RIGOROUS EDUCATION;

  1. IN 2010, 85 % OF ALL OCCUPATIONS WILL REQUIRE TRAINING ABOVE A HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA.
  2. THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR IN COLLEGE ADMISSION IS STUDENT SUCCESS IN THE MOST CHALLENGING HIGH SCHOOL COURSES AVAILABLE.
  3. STUDENTS WHO TAKE RIGOROUS COURSES IN HIGH SCHOOL WILL  EARN 13.1% MORE THAN THOSE WHO DO NOT.
  4. IN 2006, MEDIAN ANNUAL EARNINGS FOR WORKERS, AGES 25 AND OVER WERE; $24, 267   HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA. $26,693 ASSOCIATES DEGREE. $40,314 BACHELOR’S DEGREE (66% MORE THAN WORKERS WITH A HIGH SCHOOL DI.PLOMA.)
  5.  ADULTS WHO HAVE ONLY A HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA ARE TWICE AS LIKELY TO BE UNEMPLOYED AS THOSE WITH A BACHELOR’S DEGREE
  6. AMONG STUDENTS WHO GO ON TO COLLEGE, ABOUT 40% TAKE AT LEAST ONE REMEDIAL CLASS.
  7. COLLEGE STUDENTS WHO NEED REMEDIAL CLASSES ARE 6 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO DROP OUT THAN THOSE WHO DO NOT.

      SELECTING AND APPLYING TO A UNIVERSITY.

 1.   FIRST AND FOREMOST, YOU MUST APPLY TO A UNIVERSITY THAT AWARDS YOU THE DEGREE THAT YOU WANT.

  1. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS;
    1. THE REPUTATION OF THE SCHOOL.
    2. LOCATION OF THE CAMPUS.
    3. HOUSING.
    4. LOCAL JOB MARKET AT THE UNIVERSITY.
    5. CHANCES OF GETTING ACCEPTED BY THIS SCHOOL.
    6. VISIT SCHOOL.
    7. COMPLETE SAT AND ACT (DO YOU HAVE THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS).
    8. APPLY EARLY.
    9. VERY IMPORTANT. DO NOT ASSUME THAT BECAUSE IT IS AN EXPENSIVE SCHOOL THAT YOU CANNOT GO THERE. YOU CAN FIND A WAY.

 

WHAT DO COLLEGE ADMISSION OFFICERS LOOK FOR WHEN YOU APPLY TO THEIR UNIVERSITY? IN THE FOLLOWING ORDER:

  1. GPA AND DIFFICULTY OF CURRICULUM.
  2. SAT, ACT SUBJECT TEST SCORES.
  3. CLASS RANK.
  4. APPLICATION ESSAYS.
  5. EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES.
  6. RECOMMENDATIONS.
  7. INTERVIEWS.

SENIORS MUST TAKE THE ACT OR SAT (BOTH ARE BEST) AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. UNIVERSITIES MUST HAVE THE SCORE TO ACT ON YOUR APPLICATION TO ATTEND THE SCHOOL. THESE ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO TESTS;

1.       ACT IS AN ASSESSMENT TEST THAT MEASURES WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED IN SCHOOL. SAT IS AN APTITUDE TEST THAT MEASURES HOW YOU APPLY WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED IN SCHOOL.

2.       ACT MATH INCLUDES ALGEBRA, GEOMETRY AND TRIGONOMETRY. SAT HAS ALGEBRA, GEOMETRY, STATISTICS, PROBABILITY AND DATA ANALYSIS.

3.       ONLY CORRECT ANSWERS ARE COUNTED ON THE ACT, THERE IS NO PENALTY FOR GUESSING. IF YOU GUESS ON THE SAT AND GET IT WRONG, A FRACTION OF A POINT IS DEDUCTED FROM YOUR SCORE.

Scholarship information for students interested in Christian Colleges: www.ChristianConnector.com

New resource in guidance office and available online at www.needalift.org The book, Need A Lift, is offered by the American Legion and gives extensive information on scholarship opportunities for veteran’s dependents.

All seniors in Sarasota County should have received, in the mail, a copy of Scholarship Scene – This is a tremendous resource that lists pages of local scholarships that are available as well as financial aid information. This information is also available online at www.sarasotacountyschools.net . Click on parent information (center right side of top list bar). Then click on colleges/financial aid/scholarships, and then click on Scholarship Scene (in red in center of page). In addition, the guidance office has some copies.

In December, Mrs. Maria Clapp will be taking the seniors to the computer lab to help them register for the Bright Futures Scholarship program.

In December, Dr. Ray Thacker will be talking with seniors about FAFSA and giving them information about how to fill out the FAFSA forms.

www.commonapp.org

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

1.       National Commission for Cooperative Education – a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing high quality, college-level cooperative education (partnerships between businesses and Universities), is giving away 185 merit co-op scholarships of $6000 each. Go to www.co-op.edu for more information.  (Note: In approximately one month we will have the 2007-2008 Edition of The Best of Co-op: A guide to the Best Co-op Colleges and Employers available in the guidance office for students/parents to review)

2.       Johnson and Wales is sponsoring the National High School Chef of the Year Scholarships – The awards range from $3500 renewable tuition scholarship to a full-tuition scholarship to any of the Johnson and Wales Universities. Stop by the guidance office for more information.

3.       Berklee College of Music has more than $15 million available for scholarship. Every applicant who goes through the audition and interview process of application is considered for a scholarship. The top scholarship is the Presidential Scholarship which covers tuition, housing and the required laptop computer. Go to  berklee.edu/discover  for more information

THE SOUTHERN SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION'S SCHOLARSHIP HOUSING PROGRAM IS LOCATED AT THE FOLLOWING SCHOOLS;

FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

FLORIDA A&M

FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY

THIS FOUNDATION IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WHICH AWARDS QUALFIYING STUDENTS WITH AN AFFORDABLE LIVING OPTION. ALL APPLICANTS MUST HAVE AT LEAST A 3.0 GPA AND A DEMONSTATED FINANCIAL NEED.

SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS LIVE IN A COOPERATIVE, HOME-LIKE SETTING WITH STUDENTS REPRESENTING A VARIETY OF BACKGROUNDS AND CULTURES. THEY DO NOT PAY RENT, BUT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR SHARE OF THE BASIC HOUSEHOLD EXPENSES SUCH AS FOOD AND UTILITIES, APPROXIMATELY $950.00 PER SEMESTER. APPLICATIONS ARE AVAILABLE ON THEIR WEBSITE,

          WWW.SOUTHERNSCHOLARSHIP.ORG