Here is an interesting twist on the scholarship front. Consider looking outside the norm, when applying for college scholarships……..

Finding out that you do not have enough money to go to college can be a real problem - especially if you have already looked at the more common avenues. The good thing is that there may still be a way for you to get money for college with an unusual college scholarship. These scholarships for students can be for just about anything - including things you probably never thought about. Take a look at these ten sample award possibilities.

1. The All-American Apple Pie Recipe Contest

This opportunity for a college scholarship will enable the winner to get a $500 scholarship, plus he or she will receive a $1,000 cash award. In addition, the winner will have the privilege of becoming the spokesperson (Ambassador) for the National Beef Association. Contestants are required to enter a national speaking competition.

5. Tylenol Awards for Students

This college scholarship from the Tylenol Company offers 170 students the opportunity to win either $1,000 or $5,000 scholarships for college. They are based on academic standings, as well as leadership ability, and the student needs to be going into the medical profession.

6. The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance Scholarship

This college scholarship goes to those who are overweight and in their high school senior year. It awards either $1,000 or $500 at two times. To qualify, you must already be a member of NAAFA and have a grade average of at least 2.5. You also must be in the New England area.

7. The Patrick Kerr Skateboard Scholarship

Skateboards can win this award. You can be going to either a 2-year or a 4-year college, and you will need to have a GPA of 2.5 or higher. There are 4 awards each year, one for $5,000, and three for $1,000. You will need to write an essay about how skateboarding has positively affected your life in order to qualify.

8. National Rifle Association Scholarships

The NRA requires that you be an active association member with at least one rating (ability to shoot - Marksman, Sharpshooter, etc.). It offers a scholarship of $5,000 for the winning essay about why you became involved in shooting as a sport. The NRA also offers other college scholarships, too, including financial aid for the children of a law enforcement officer who was killed in the line of duty.

9. The Helen James Brewer Scholarship

This college scholarship is awarded to those who are descendants of a Confederate soldier. In order to qualify, you will have to be studying Southern history or literature and be from a Southern state, such Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, or South Carolina. The award is $1,000.

10. The Students for Organ Donation Youth Leadership

If you have agreed to be an organ donor when you got your driver’s license, then you qualify for a possible scholarship. Those who win the scholarship will be promoting organ donation. The Scholarship amounts available are $500 and $1,000.

These weird scholarships are just a few that are offered to college students. As you can see, there is a wide variety - but there is almost no limit to what is really out there. There are also scholarships for Start Trek fans, duct tape proms, golf, women, fire safety, horse lovers, herbivores, height-challenged people, and so many more. Students who work hard to find scholarships often succeed.

What is the one thing that most college students or recent college graduates have in common. Student loans. They are taken out by the majority of students to help combat the high expenses that go along with higher education. Scholarships can help, but there are many other expected expenses. Even if parents have saved for college, they often do not have enough to help with the everyday living costs that college students have during the course of their learning.

There are a variety of options when it comes to student loans. Most high school students in their senior year must begin the process of researching the different forms of fiscal aid available. A college loan can be a federally guaranteed loan, a private loan or a loan specifically for parents. It is important to understand the differences before you sign the lender agreement.

If you are a student and need to take out an student loans, then you will want to make sure that your loan does not require repayment, as long as you are enrolled in school. Loans such as the Stafford Loan are guaranteed through the Federal government and have a set interest rate. The loan note becomes due within six months of graduation or leaving school full-time. In order to file for these loans, you must fill out a Federal Application for Student Assistance. If you are independent from your parents and do not rely on them for support, make sure and notify the university or college before filling out the paperwork.

Once the paperwork is filled out and submitted it can take several weeks for the information to be processed. An education loan takes time to administer, so it is important to get your paperwork finished and submitted months before classes begin. The consequences of waiting too long to fill out the paperwork and submit it, could mean not having the funds available to pay for your tuition and books when the semester starts.

It would be a great world if everyone could go to college and not have to worry about money. student loans would be unnecessary and learners could concentrate on studying rather than worrying about their loan repayment or student credit card debt. Unfortunately, this is not a world where everything is free, but there are ways to get through school with a minimal amount of stress and worry about making ends meet. The student loan can help you pay for the things you need, when you need them.

It is a real shame, the amount of scholarships that go unclaimed, just because people don’t think they fit the requirements, or are outnumbered by the competition. The following article is food for thought when it comes to the thousands of people who pass up the opportunity to get a minority scholarship…….

A minority scholarship may be exactly what you require if you are a minority and are looking at the mountain of literature about the colleges you want to attend, where it seems like every little thing has a fee associated with it. What happens is that the total cost seems to add up to an astronomical figure, one that you could only afford if you were to win the state lottery.

Seriously, the cost of a good college education is very expensive these days. The problem with this is multiple things. First of all, many people are electing to only go to a two year college, or may elect not to attend college at all. This is a drastic mistake, especially in today’s economic and very competitive times. Your college degree is your admission ticket to today’s job market, and without that degree, your chances of getting the job you want or a good job are very minimized.

But this presents another problem. If not going to college is not an option, how are you going to get the money to fund your college education? Good question, and surely your parents have mentioned that money does not grow on trees these days. The option most prospective students take is to get a federal student loan. The interest rate is low, the rates are extremely competitive, and you don’t have to start paying it back until after you graduate.

Aha! The key problem is that last part where it says “you start paying it back”. Even with a student loan, it needs to be paid back. After you graduate and start looking for a job in your field of study, perhaps relocating to a different city and then also having to find an apartment or place to live, you have more than enough to worry about without having the additional stress caused by your student loan payments being due.

The beauty of a minority scholarship is that it does not need to be paid back, ever. It is money that is given to you and they do not expect repayment, not ever. And the additional beauty of it is that there is no law or regulation that prevents you from having several college scholarships all at once.

You see, most people realize this but they think their chances of getting a minority scholarship are minimal. The reality of it is that nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, there are hundreds of scholarships available every year that simply are not awarded simply because nobody applied for them! The sponsors of those scholarships would have happily given those scholarships to people who applied for them, but NOBODY applied for them, so they had to take it back and do NOTHING with it.

How sad is that? Prospective students need to be familiar with what scholarships are requiring these days, since it is very different from what it used to be. For example, it used to be that the vast majority of college scholarships were only awarded to the academic geniuses or the football jocks or the chess club champion. It used to be that you would only get a scholarship if your financial situation was so bad that you could not even feed a parking meter.

Those days are long past. These days, college scholarships are awarded to people who APPLY for them. Most do not require any particular financial requirement or need on the part of the student, and have very reasonable academic requirements, some even being awarded to students with a grade point average as low as a 2.0. And if you are a minority, there are many minority scholarships available that cannot be awarded unless the applicant is part of a particular minority group.

Remember, the key is that you need to apply for each and every minority scholarship where you meet the requirements. Most can be done online so there is not even the cost of a postage stamp involved with it, just the very simple requirement that you APPLY. Stop wishing and start applying today!

If you are currently in college or soon will be, the thought of getting some student scholarships has probably crossed your mind. If it has not, then you are either independently wealthy or have not taken a good long look at the sky rocketing cost of a good college education these days.

Students should spend as much time as possible looking for student scholarships because this is an excellent way to defray and sometimes even completely pay for the cost of a college education. Note the use of the plural form of scholarships. Yes, there is no reason to stop at one scholarship when you can get several of them, there is no law against that, either legally or morally.

Finding an acceptable student scholarship is not difficult but will involve some of your time in research and actually applying for the scholarships. But when you look at the amount of money that you could get, the cost of a postage stamp pales in comparison, and in many cases it isn’t even that anymore since most places allow you to apply online.

Think you cannot get a student scholarship? Think again. It used to be that you had to be the local rocket scientist or academically brilliant to get a scholarship or grant, or had to be the sports king or queen, or had to come from some economically disadvantaged family or region of the country. That is no longer the case with most grants and scholarships. You may simply have to indicate that you are going to pursue a specific field of study, which still does not even necessarily lock you into maintaining that major.

The truth of the matter is that many college scholarships are available today for almost any academic record or background, as well as almost any financial background, from the filthy rich to the dirt poor. Consider for a moment the very real fact that in today’s world, many scholarships go unawarded each year simply because nobody applied for them! In other words, there are businesses, organizations and companies that are more than happy to award a scholarship but they cannot award it if nobody applies for it!

One of the super great things about grants and scholarships is that the money you get from them is free. In other words, it is money that you do not need to pay back. Now contrast that with federal student loans, which almost anyone can get, but you need to pay back every penny of them, with interest, after you graduate. Given a choice between a student loan that you need to pay back versus a student scholarship that does not need to be paid back, which one would you rather opt for?

The more student scholarships you apply for, the better your chances that you will be awarded one or more of them. Maybe a particular scholarship is only worth $500. Does that mean it is not worth your effort to apply for it? Nothing could be further from the truth. If you got that one scholarship, put it in perspective, since that one scholarship could pay for the books for two of your classes, which is much better than reaching into your own pocket to pay for them. Or looking at it another way, what if you were awarded 10 or 20 of those $500 scholarships. Would that make a difference in figuring out how you are going to pay for your college education?

Take the time to apply for student scholarships. Keep yourself organized and keep track of which ones you have applied for so that you don’t apply for the same one multiple times. And don’t give it, keep those scholarship applications going!

Many high school students would want to go to college. But not all will muster up enough motivation to even try to go to college. Despite the advantages of having a degree, many students end up skipping the opportunity to go to university, largely because of the gargantuan obstacles they have to face to get through college.

But this shouldn’t be the case at all. The pros of getting a college degree should be reason enough to work hard for it. College gives you the opportunity to expand your skills and knowledge, which, in turn, provide you with more job opportunities. More opportunities mean more chances of earning good money. With a college degree, you’re more likely to have a secure and comfortable future. So why squander the chance of having it?

The reason why many students choose not to go to college is because many of them focus too much on the obstacles, and it’s easy for them to get too discouraged to even try. But with careful thought, these hurdles are not impossible to conquer. Let’s go over the common college obstacles students are faced with:

1) High cost of education

Although college is expensive, it is still accessible to the average person. In fact, people who can afford to go to college are more of the exception than the rule. Most Americans can’t finance college out of their own pockets, but surprisingly enough, many of them are still able to graduate.

We live at a time when financial aid has become commonplace, and they usually take the form of grants, scholarships and student loans. The opportunities are there. And thanks to the internet, looking for financial aid has never been easier. So many college graduates have financed their education through various financial aids.

In addition, many colleges offer flexibility when planning schedules. This gives opportunities for students to work part-time if money is an issue.

2) Grades aren’t ‘good enough’

If you’re eyeing prestigious universities because of the ‘bragging rights’ that come with those schools, less than stellar grades would really be a problem. But if you’re looking at a second chance to prove yourself as well as the opportunity to have a degree, higher education is still possible through community colleges, since you don’t need to have a great report card to be accepted in these institutions. But that doesn’t mean that the quality of the education you get will be diminished.
What you miss out on is the ‘prestige’ factor. Other than that, community colleges can provide you with that much needed college diploma or the option of furthering your studies if you wish to pursue a 4-year course.

3) Uncertain about what ‘I’ want

Don’t worry. Many people are not entirely sure what they want to be doing for the rest of their lives, and you aren’t alone if you’re uncertain about what you want to take up. College is still valuable, however. With a college degree, at least you still have the chance to have a good paying job and earn decent money while you ‘search for your place in the sky’.

I know, it has been a while. Beginning of school and kids to send off, etc. I know that the previous post was related to this subject, but it bears repeating again and then I will move on to something a little lighter.

Fighting a recent incident of identity theft among one of the adults in the family, I thought about how many of us see our young adults off to a new year of education without really impressing upon them the importance of protecting their personal information. So here goes….

When we send our kids off to college, we usually advise them about safety issues since for many, this will be their first time away from home. We hope they have listened all these years about protecting themselves at night, locking their doors, keeping valuables out of sight in the car, etc. The one thing many parents do not stress enough to their college aged kids, is the importance of protecting their personal information.

Identity theft is one of the most prevalent crimes in the United States (the entire world for that matter) today. College students tend to overlook the threat of identity theft, since their funds are usually limited after paying for school costs and living expenses. They need to know that it may not be the cash that they are after, but the personal information.

The goal of an identity theif is to take advantage of people with a good credit rating and use their identity to gain money or goods fraudulently. All they need is the right information from you such as social security number, date of birth, account numbers, driver’s license, credit card number, whatever. They particularly like college students, since their credit records are usually a clean slate for them to build upon.

Identity theft can affect your credit rating, criminal record, ability to get loans, and even jeopardize your job opportunities. So what should college students do to avoid identity theft? For starters, use some common sense and make your sensitive information inaccessible. Consider the following:

Keep your personal documents such as bank statements, credit card bills, or anything else containing information about you in a locked filing cabinet, or lock box. Never leave papers out for roving eyes.

Try not to let your roommates see where you store your valuables. Disappointing yes, but the fact is that the majority of college identity theft victims know the perpetrator.

Destroy all credit card offers before throwing them away. A shredder would be a wise investment.

Know your credit card and bank account balances - check them often for unusual activity.

When using the internet, make sure you have a secure connection and your firewall is on. Always log out of a web site when finished and do not just close out the page! Never download attachments from unknown email senders, in fact do not even open emails from unidentifiable sources.

If you blog, use Face Book, MySpace or any other social web site, be sure not to use your full name and whenever possible - limit any personal information from public view, such as your address, birthday, or cell phone number. Never display your picture along with personal information.

Guard your Social Security Number. Just because there is a space for it on a form, application, or a doctor’s registration sheet, you do not have to supply that information.

You will meet many new people and form new friendships at this stage in life. It is natural for us to want to trust and believe that our new friends are honest and trustworthy, but keep in mind that you do not know everything about them or their friends.

Think this all sounds a bit paranoid? Really, it is not - it is about being responsible in your new adult world. Having to face the consequences of identity theft can be a nightmare and take years to repair. Why risk ruining the best years of your life?

Discarded documents may contain personal information - ammunition in the hands of identity thieves, unless completely destroyed before you throw it away. Tearing up your documents is not enough. Make sure that those crafty identity thieves cannot piece together any personal information, which they can use to steal your identity and ruin your credit. Purchasing a quality cross-cutting shredder will cost much less than it will to repair your credit record. There are even shredders on the market that will shred your expired credit cards and computer disks containing your personal information.

One more thing - Guard your Social Security Number very closely. Just because a form may ask for it, doesn’t mean you need to comply. Recently, I changed doctors and had to fill out a multitude of forms at my new doctor’s office.

Three of the forms wanted my social security number, which I left blank. After returning the forms, I was called back to the receptionist’s desk - surprise, surprise. I asked why my social was needed, since they had my insurance information and my co-payment, and that I did not give my social security number out unless there was a very good reason. End result - I won. Now that is one less place I have to worry about someone having access to a very big piece of my personal information, or having it end up in a dumpster someday. Never give out your Social Security Number, unless absolutely necessary. Don’t carry your Social Security Card in your wallet, unless y ou need it that day.

Do not allow any clerk to write your social on a check as identification. Never give out your SSN, nor your passwords, mother’s maiden name, date of birth, or other information over the phone, unless you initiated the call and you are absolutely secure about who you are speaking with. Protect Your Identity!

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Great news for parents and students - many billions of dollars in scholarships and grants were available last year from federal, state and institutional sources and that billions more were provided by private donors and large corporations. What is not so great - that an increasingly large percentage of the federal financial aid is available only in the form of loans that have to be paid back. This trend is likely to progress over time.

Despite these type of situations, scholarship funds are still out there in abundance. According to the National Scholarship Research Service in Santa Rosa, California, more than two billion dollars in private funds were unclaimed last year.

Though many parents may not have the time or funds necessary to plan for their  childrens’ college education when they are infants, not doing so by the time they are in high school could make it difficult, and for some impossible, to pay for college when it comes time. If parents thought about saving as little as $25 per month in the early years, properly invested, it could make a big dent into the cost of their education - especially if the money is put into programs offered by some states, which lock rates as of the date the account is opened.

College tuition is rising at about 6 percent annually and campus room and board expenses are rising even more quickly, sometimes becoming more expensive than the tuition itself. College-bound high school students should enlist the help of their guidance counselor as early as possible for information and requirements of financial aid and scholarship opportunities.  Completing the Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will assess how much their families are able to contribute toward their college education.