How To Find Legitimate External Scholarships

Published on Monday, May 2nd, 2011 by Nohel Category: College Scholarships And Grants

External Scholarships

College scholarships are funds made available by an institution and awarded to any qualified student to further education. They are awarded based on various criteria such as academic achievement, special talents, ethnic origin, religious affiliation and other circumstances or characteristics. There are basically two kinds of scholarships: internal and external. Internal scholarships are those offered by the college or university while the external ones are those offered by outside organizations.

However, with the widespread proliferation of college scholarships, it has become increasingly important for students to tread carefully while looking for college scholarships. These days, there are a lot of scholarship websites out there parading all manner of material listings for scholarships and grants. A lot of them will ask you to pay an application fee. The truth is that anybody that asks you to pay to apply for any scholarship is a scammer. But how do you really know where to find a genuine external scholarship without getting scammed? In this article, I have suggested some tips that will guide you towards taking the right steps.

The three major sources where you can find the most legitimate scholarships are:

Federal Government
College and Universities
Private Organizations (Profit and Non-Profit)

The following are tips on how you can search for scholarships from each of these sources.

External Scholarships on the Internet

For obvious reasons, the simplest and most veritable platform to research about scholarships is on the Internet. Although there are a stream of websites now that showcase all sorts of scholarship opportunities, you have to be careful which ones you go for. There are a lot of scam sites now that claim to be affiliated with accredited organizations. So many people have been duped in the course of looking for college scholarships. Make sure you go for those websites belonging to public benefits organizations. For instance, the U.S. Department of Education is a good place to find federal financial aid as is the United Negro College Fund. If you know how to use search engines, you will able to find suitable ones.

College Financial Aid Office

Apart from institutional financial assistance that they have in place for students, most colleges and universities also provide information on external scholarships and financial aid through their Financial Aid Office. It is usually important to contact this office in order to get adequate information about different types of scholarships available, their requirements, deadlines, and other details. Just visit the college website then navigate to the financial aid portal for contact details such as emails, fax, physical office address, etc.

External Scholarships at the Library
Another great place to get scholarships, as well as other types of financial aid information is your local or college library where you can find materials listing scholarships that you may be eligible for. You can also get supplemental information from the librarian; make sure you take advantage of this as well. Also, online libraries can see you through your scholarship search.

If you can take advantage of the above-mentioned sources, you will save yourself from scholarship scams.

For students in the San Mateo and San Francisco (California) areas, check out:

Silicon Valley Community Foundation Scholarships

Chicana Latina Foundation

College To Careers You’re In! Scholarship

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