8 Tips for Applying to Scholarships

8 Tips for Applying to Scholarships 

By: ATS alumna Rubi Hernandez Lopez

With school, work, sports and other extracurricular activities it could be hard to find the time to apply to scholarships but scholarships can save you a lot of money in the long run. Here are a couple tips to help you as you in the process. Good luck!

1. Looking for scholarships 

Scholarships are everywhere and each year there are many that go unclaimed. A simple Google search is all it takes to find out what scholarships apply to you. Start with local scholarships because the odds of winning these scholarships are greater. Find out what scholarships your school offers, then move on to county wide scholarships, then state scholarships and so on and so forth.

2. Get organized: 

Once you know what scholarships you will be applying to you will notice that they all require different documentation and have varying deadlines. Gather all the documentation needed and keep it organized digitally and keep a paper copy just in case. Make note of the different deadlines and stay on top of them. The last thing you want to do is put in all this hard work into completing a scholarship only to miss the deadline.

3. Follow your passion: 

Apply to scholarships that fit your passion and interest. The more personal the scholarship is, the more you can portray your passion which can result in a better submission. Remember, there are scholarships for everyone: vegetarians, puppy lovers, video game players, theater enthusiast and the list go on and on.

4. Answering Essay Prompts: 

Many of the scholarships will require an essay prompt depending on the topic make sure to tailor your essay for that specific scholarship. Try not to repeat essay prompts and stick to the word limit. Have someone proof read your essay before submitting it. Sometimes we know what we want to say and it’s difficult to catch our own mistakes so have a fresh set of eyes read it over.

5. Satisfy all the requirements: 

Look over every completed application thoroughly before submitting it to make sure you have fulfilled all the requirements. If you are unsure about something contact the scholarship providers to clarify.

6. Submit early: 

You don’t have to wait until the due date and submit your application early. This will help you in case there’s a problem with the site, internet connection, or your computer.

7. Apply to as many scholarships as possible: 

As long as you are in school you should continue applying to scholarships because scholarship money is money you don’t have to pay back. Try treating it like a part-time job and set a couple hours aside during the week or weekend to apply for scholarships.

8. Keep trying: 

You will not win every scholarship you apply to so don’t take it personally. Continue applying because in order to be a successful scholarship winner you have to keep trying.

About the Author:

My name is Rubi Hernandez Lopez and I am an ATS Alumni. I graduated from the University of California, Davis with a Bachelors in Science in Clinical Nutrition and a minor in Spanish. I am currently employed with through Sonoma County as a Public Health Aide for the Women Infant and Children (WIC) Program. I am also working on my internship to become a Registered Dietitian through the California WIC Dietetic Internship. I am extremely grateful for the ATS program which helped me get to where I am today by providing me with the proper tools and resources. Applying for scholarships was one of the most valuable things I learned through this program therefore, I wanted to share some of that knowledge with you. 

Recap of College Info Day at Cal

On Saturday, October 20^th ATS took a group of 12th grade students to College Information Day at UC Berkeley. The day was packed with numerous workshops ranging from discovering career paths to an overview of the UC application. Students also took advantage of the college fair on campus by talking to admission representatives from CSUs, UCs, private colleges and out-of-state schools.

ATS seniors at UC Berkeley

With ATS’s UC online application workshop just around the corner, our college-focused seniors made it their priority to attend the workshops that pertained to the UC application. The first workshop our seniors sat in was “Presenting yourself in the UC Application.”  An admissions representative from UC Berkeley walked the seniors (and advisors) through the online UC application, stopping at every slide to provide insightful advice on the type of information students should include on their college app (i.e. A-G classes, extracurricular activities and awards). He also mentioned that, despite the common notion that extracurricular activities only pertain to school clubs/ organizations and other academic related activities outside of school, this is not the case. Responsibilities students are required to uphold (and in most cases, have normalized in their everyday lives) after school at home are considered as extracurricular activities, therefore students should mention this on their college application. Most importantly, students were advised to utilize the additional comments section on the application to include information that is not otherwise found in other areas of the application. It’s imperative for students to know that any information they list in the additional comments section is viewed as neutral or added information, meaning they won’t increase or decrease their chances of getting accepted into a UC! 

High School seniors ready to learn

The second popular workshop ATS seniors attended was “Writing the Personal Insight Questions For High School Seniors Interested in applying to UC for fall 2019.” In this workshop, students learned that the personal insight questions is a way for them to introduce themselves to the admissions committee. They also learned that they’re only required to answer four out of the eight total questions listed on the UC application. In previous years, the UCs required the responses to be in the form of essays, but that is no longer the case! Responses are limited to 350 words max for each question. Another important thing to note is that there is no key question that will increase students’ chances of getting accepted to a UC, despite what some applicants and their mentors may think. Therefore, students should select the four questions that most resemble with them, their experiences and their unique circumstances. The presenters could not emphasize enough the fact that there is no special question that will increase a student’s chances of getting accepted to a UC.

Don’t write about the topic or subject you are being asked to write about, write how that topic or subject has shaped you --the applicant was a common theme the presenters tried to drill into the students’ minds. Students learned that context is key when writing their responses to the personal insight questions. The application review committee is less concerned with a background story of a student’s family experience, than they are in wanting to know how the student dealt with a challenge, and how it shaped them. Admissions officers told students they’re looking for specific examples and responses that go into depth in the student’s lived experiences. To get the point across, the presenter showed the audience examples of past students’ responses to the personal insight questions. This helped a lot because students, parents and advisors were able to read the type of context and specific examples admissions committees are looking for in an applicant’s response to the insight questions.

Khristina playing the piano

Finally, after all the workshops were over, ATS students and staff enjoyed a delicious Mexican grill delight from Chipotle while they relaxed in the restaurant’s patio. Once everyone’s tummies were satiated and full, we headed back to Sonoma State, making it back by 3:30pm to our sunny wine country hills.