Blog Spot

College Scholarships for the Regular Guy?
02/24/2008

A popular scholarship site which recently ran a contest to "create your own scholarship" received hundreds of entries. Not surprisingly, perhaps, a lot of entries suggested that a college scholarship be offered to the Average Joe or the Ordinary Guy.

Not surprising, I say, because I'm sure most of us fall into that category. While scholarships seek particular people in order to narrow down the selection of the recipient, most of us find ourselves likely categorized as average. Nothing spectacular. Not extraordinary. Nothing big to speak of.

But regular guys need college money, too, right?

And so, the request for scholarships meant for us regular folk.

Okay, so let's say someone did offer scholarship money for Ordinary Sue or Everyday Jose. Can you imagine how many applicants they'd get? I'd guess in the tens of thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of applicants. Because - face it - since so many of us are ordinary, the competition for this type of scholarship would be horrific!

Instead, I'd suggest looking for a scholarship that would bring one's chances of getting it to a more realistic number. Say, 100 applicants. A chance of 1 in 100 sounds to me a lot better than 1 in 400,000. How does one find such a scholarship?

Even if we find ourselves being so unique as to find a scholarship that only 99 others can apply for, just finding that thing would be another huge feat!

So I suggest looking at scholarship-getting an entirely different way. Instead of looking for the scholarships already out there that match me, perhaps I should find the big scholarships and adapt myself to become that candidate that the scholarship seeks. I've got a lot more influence over myself than I do over those who write the scholarship requirements.

I suggest instead NOT looking for a scholarship that matches ME, but changing ME in order to match the big-figure scholarships.

It might take some time. It'll definitely take some work. But it's doable.

My daughter won large figures last year in her quest for college money. She's not extraordinary. In fact, she's rather an ordinary young woman in an ordinary town with ordinary parents and ordinary experiences. The only difference between her and other ordinaries is that she initiated a plan to become that something extra that scholarship granters are looking for.

You can do it, too. Plan ahead.

---------------------

Not a member yet?

Stay on top of the scholarship process for your student! Get our Blog Spot delivered to your email every two weeks or so. Also get a sneak preview of what our online program can do for you. Sign up here.

---------------------