Why do so many people look at me like I have 2 heads when I start talking about private scholarships? I recently saw a FaceBook post from a parent who actually got chastised by other parents for expecting her child to look for outside scholarships to help pay for college. When did we, as a society, decide that humans thrive when we DON’T have to work for what we want?
But doesn’t it make sense to “work smarter, not harder?” Trust me, a student who takes student loans to pay for college will work A LOT harder to pay off those loans than they will to apply for outside scholarships. A student who takes out just $20,000 in Federal loans will have to pay back about $23,140 over ten years, more if they accept an extended payment plan. Depending on the career the student enters after college this would probably be around half a year’s salary and represent roughly 1,000 hours of work. A good scholarship strategy shouldn’t take up more than 100 hours and comes with none of the financial burden of a student loan balance.
On the other hand, it’s true that earning a salary comes with the guarantee of income while applying for a scholarship doesn’t mean you’ll actually win a scholarship. However, if you put together a good plan and spend one hour a week or even a month and win no scholarships, how much have you really lost? Isn’t it worth the try?
Need help? Check out the new article on getting started with your scholarship strategy or just send me a message! Rynda@21finance.xyz
