Scholarships handy; apply early and often

By Blanca Gonzalez, Union-Tribune STAFF WRITER


December 25, 2003 - As high school seniors start thinking about college scholarship opportunities, they would do well to heed advice from Aurora Taber: Apply early and often.

Taber, a freshman at New York University, applied for about 20 scholarships when she was a senior at Rancho Bernardo High School last year. "It was pretty rigorous, it takes a lot of effort and there's a lot of paperwork," said Taber. "But it was definitely worth it."

The hours of writing essays and filling out forms resulted in thousands of dollars in scholarships for Taber, plus a Ford Focus as part of the San Diego County Ford Dealers' Salute to Education program.

Veronica Ramirez, a freshman at Stanford, also applied for more than a dozen scholarships and ended up with a $10,000 Sony award and a $3,100 renewable award from the Albert W. & Mildred Hubbard Scholarship fund, which is open to Escondido or Valley Center students.

While college costs escalate and the need for scholarships becomes vital to anyone not born with a generous trust fund, a variety of businesses and groups are shelling out millions of dollars a year to help students pursue their dreams of a college education.

But as the lottery slogan goes – "you can't win if you don't play" – or in this case, if you don't apply. While some deadlines have passed, most scholarship applications are due between January and April.

Opportunities abound for just about any motivated student seeking a share of the money available through sources ranging from Coca-Cola, DuPont and the Gates Millennium Foundation to the Women's Environmental Council, the House of Poland and the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.

Information on scholarships is readily available from school guidance counselors and a variety of Web sites.

The scholarships aren't just for the valedictorians or promising low-income students.

Emerging young artists, Italian-American Catholics, Latino students seeking journalism careers and San Diego County young adults who have been foster children are among the groups who may find scholarships specifically earmarked for them.

Awards range from $400 offered by the Cabrillo Civic Clubs of California to full tuition for Gates Millennium Scholars.

The College Board reports that student aid, including loans and work-study programs, reached more than $105 billion nationwide in 2002-03, but the figure does not include private scholarship aid.

While no one knows how much is available from private scholarships, the need is more than apparent with average college tuition and fees reaching about $4,700 for four-year public institutions and $19,700 for private colleges for the 2003-04 school year, according to the College Board.

Adding in room and board costs, the total tab for a year of college comes out to an average of $10,636 for a four-year public university and $26,854 for a private institution.

"It costs an insane amount of money to go to school," said Jessica Wade, 17, of Rancho Peñasquitos. "It would be impossible to go without some financial help."

Most San Diego-area high schools designate at least one counselor to help students navigate the scholarship application process. Some high schools, such as San Pasqual in Escondido, make regular intercom announcements to update seniors on scholarships and deadlines.

Others, like Mt. Carmel in Rancho Peñasquitos, provide a center where students can flip through files, ponder posters, or wander the Web in search of scholarships that fit their interests and needs.

Mt. Carmel counselors Diana White and Linda Hastings said they encourage students to check the counseling center's scholarship bulletin, which is updated regularly and is available on the school's Web site.

"The kids can access the Web site from home or they can go through the files in the center," said White.

"We provide a lot of information, but it's up to the kids to utilize it," said Hastings. "There are many opportunities, but sometimes the kids are overwhelmed with college applications their senior year."

Keep a file

Hastings advises students to start a personal file during their freshman year so they can have their list of accomplishments, awards and community service readily available when they need it.

Counselors also recommend that students keep journals to document personal challenges they've faced and may later want to write about when completing the essay portion of their applications.

"Colleges are really interested in personal challenges and obstacles overcome, as well as academic performance and community service," said Hastings.

Jessica, a Mt. Carmel senior, said counselors and the Internet have been invaluable in finding scholarship opportunities.

"I found a lot I wouldn't have thought of . . . there's the Coca-Cola one and there are different ones for grades, athletics and leadership," said Jessica, who was also considering applying for a $1,000 scholarship from the National League of American Pen Women.

"I know some kids are discouraged about applying because they're not in the top 2 percent of their class or they're not captain of a varsity team. But there are all kinds of scholarships available," said Jessica. "I heard of one for twins."

Veronica Ramirez, who was one of two Orange Glen High School 2003 graduates to receive a $10,000 Sony award, said fastweb.com is a useful and popular Web site among students seeking scholarships. "It matched up my interests and situation with more than 60 scholarships," said Ramirez, who continues to use it.

While many scholarships are geared to high school seniors about to enter college, opportunities are also available for older and continuing college students. Last year, the San Diego Foundation awarded $450,000 in scholarships to students from 17 to 61 years old.

One-stop shop

Valerie Attisha, director of scholarships for the foundation, said about half of the nonprofit group's scholarships are designed for continuing students or adults who want to return to college.

"We want to be the one-stop shop for all students looking for scholarships," said Attisha. The foundation, which provides many links to scholarship sites from its Web site, also offers a rare opportunity for students to apply for several local scholarships with one application.

Through the foundation's common application, which is due Jan. 23, students can apply for any of 40 scholarships. They include the Anneka McMillan Creative Arts Scholarship if they are pursuing a career in the creative arts, the Breslauer Family Scholarship if they are graduating from any downtown San Diego high school, and the Leon Williams scholarship for any graduating under-represented high school seniors from San Diego County.

Many scholarship providers require students to write an essay, a task that may discourage some.

Jose Llamas, a 2002 graduate of San Pasqual, said all the writing required may prove too daunting for some students. "They don't want to do all that work for something they may not get," said Llamas, who chose to make the effort and ended up with several scholarships that are helping pay his way through UCSD.

Jessica said she will be applying for more scholarships once she's done with the college application process this month. "After writing all the college application essays, it's not that big a deal (to write more essays) if you're motivated," said Wade. "Maybe it takes an hour or two, but it could get you $5,000 or $10,000. It's worth a shot."

Blanca Gonzalez: (760) 737-7554; blanca.gonzalez@uniontrib.com