Money 101: Get personal with your finances.
 
Find money for school!
Even with the rising costs of education, the opportunity to apply for scholarship money is literally everywhere. Last year alone, there were almost $3 billion in scholarships available for students! But how do you find, apply for, and most importantly, secure a bit of the seemingly endless funds that are out there?

Although there are scholarships designed for almost every type of student, uncovering them is not always easy. While a common misconception is that free money is only available for the students with the best grades, this is simply not true.

What types of scholarships can I win?
Scholarships exist for just about every type of student, even those with the best “milk mustache” (we’re not kidding!). Here are the different types available:
  • Need-Based: May take academics into account, but the primary criterion for qualification is demonstrating financial need.

  • Merit-Based: They may be academic, athletic or what have you, but all merit scholarships, regardless of their focus, require you to have accomplished something by which they can measure you. For example, students can be awarded for accomplishments in leadership or community involvement.

  • Unique/Non-Traditional: The very things that your friends always teased you for can now earn you big bucks for college.
While it is true that a percentage of these funds are academic in nature, many are available for athletes, minority students, women, and those with specific skills or extra-curricular activities. Even your part-time job can be an opportunity to lessen the burden of paying for a college education if you do your research.

Still not sold? How about receiving money for possessing unusual attributes such as being left-handed, speaking Klingon, the fictitious language from the TV series Star Trek—or thanks to the New York-based Parapsychology Foundation, your interest in ghost hunting? Seriously!

So where do I look?
Even if you don’t happen to be a Klingon-speaking, left-handed star athlete with a 4.0 GPA, there are literally thousands of scholarships available. Check out these great links for articles and tips to help get you started on your search!

FastWeb.com
A great resource for scholarships along with informative articles and tips to help you win them!

CollegeBoard.com
The College Board's FUND FINDER scholarship database listing scholarships and other types of Financial Aid programs from 3,300 national, state, public and private sources.

SchoolSoup.com
Offering a large, free search database.

Bankrate.com
Information on some of the more bizarre scholarship opportunities available.

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