Let's Talk about Money

Psst… I’ve got a secret. College is expensive. Oh, you already knew that? Good! Now what are you going to do about it?

If there is one thing I’ve learned, despite the current economy, people are giving out money for education. Lots of it. To all different types of people. Make excuses, like your grades weren’t good enough in high school or your ACT score wasn’t that high. You could even pull the “my parent’s make too much” card. And while those are valid and will knock you out of the running for some grants and scholarships, it’s not the end of the world!

I’m writing this very bluntly because I want my readers to take it seriously. And I practice what I preach. I graduated high school with grades that wouldn’t exactly WOW you, finishing with a 2.7 if you round. My ACT score was decent, so that helped a bit. I was also really involved in high school. And you know what I applied for more scholarships than you can count on two hands. It paid off – big time. I didn’t have to pay a cent of my education this year. Through a variety of different sources, the government, private organizations, a few union scholarships, I got my entire tuition and board paid for!

Here’s how I did it:

First, make sure you fill out the Mizzou scholarship form and get it in by the priority deadline. That passed for this year, but you can fill it out every year – so if you missed this year, learn for next.

Next, get your FAFSA in. This is the government financial aid form, and you’ll need it if you apply for other scholarship more than likely. The priority deadline at Missouri is March 1st, so the sooner the better!

Once you’ve got those done start applying for private scholarships; apply for all the ones you even remotely qualify for. Sit down and make a list of attributes you have, associations your parents belong to, etc. If you have parents in a union definitely check into possible scholarships that way. Also with federal employee parents. Are you a minority, woman, tall, of Irish heritage? All of those things are possible scholarship leads. Don’t forget to see if your place of employment offers scholarships!

Then start looking. If your school is organized, check with your guidance counselor to see if they have a scholarship board or listings that are applicable in your area. Listen closely: the narrower the selection criteria the better chance you have at getting the scholarship. A good bet is your local community foundation.

DO NOT USE FASTWEB. That’s right, take it off your bookmarks page. I have not known a single person who has ever gotten a scholarship off that website. Because it’s national the organizations get hundreds of thousands of applicants. It’s hard to stand out from a crowd that big, and your efforts are better focused elsewhere.

Now lets talk about the application. PROOF READ. Nothing detracts more than glaring grammatical and spelling errors. Write from your heart, and while you may be corny, so long as it’s real the readers should be able to tell. Try to incorporate as much of your leadership experience as possible, and tell a story with it. This is your chance to shine, and you want to jump off the page. Be wary of recycling essays. After writing a few you’ll be able to piece together various parts of different ones, but make sure it remains fluid. (Once I copy-pasted and almost forgot to change the name of the organization I was sending it to. Luckily I caught it, but you can bet you’re out of the running if that happens.)

As for reference letters, give your person plenty of time. You don’t want it to be rushed. It also helps if you outline what topics need to be covered in the letter (leadership, involvement, etc.).

Ultimately, it’s a game of numbers. The more you apply the better your chances. APPLY, APPLY, APPLY! It can’t hurt. I’ve applied to scholarship where I’ve stretched the eligibility requirements pretty thin, but if they don’t have enough respondents they’ll consider you! Sometimes you’ll get an award just by default because no one else applied (that happened to me).
Good luck and don’t procrastinate! Student loans pile up and the last thing you want when you graduate is debt!

A Semester’s Worth of Knowledge:

I didn’t just learn geologic functions or how to conjugate verbs this semester. These last 4 ½ months have flown by, and I can’t believe my fist semester is over. I’ve had so many good experiences at Mizzou, and have grown so much from everything I’ve been a part of. Here are some compiled thoughts on my first semester (things I want to share, things you should know, and other anecdotes).

• Football is a BIG deal. Despite the common misconception, you do not have to buy the football/basketball combo to get season football tickets. If you don’t buy the combo however, you will have to wait to the beginning of school. In my opinion, just get the tickets (whether you like football or not). It’s a great bonding experience, and is the ironic activity of college. Go to at least one game, and you can always sell your tickets! I also really suggest joining Tiger’s Lair, the student cheering section. It was the best $10.00 I’ve spent! 
  

• Be friendly! Don’t just leave your door open, go introduce yourself. Try to at least say, “Hi,” to everyone on your floor. I’m sad to say that there are still a few people on my floor who I don’t recognize! Get active in your floor. If you see someone being shy invite them to dinner! You never know how cool they could be. I recently found out that this sophomore Greg on my floor, ran a marathon, with pneumonia.

• Stock up on expensive nonperishable’s like Kleenex, Shampoo, etc. If you can’t get to Walmart it can be expensive to have to restock every three months or so. Also, get your hair cut the day before you get to college. The longer you can hold off on beauty maintenance, the better. Girls, don’t be shy about dying your hair in the communal bathrooms either – everyone does it.

• Buy and sell your books online. The university bookstore has an “early bird” special where they’ll compile all the books you need. It’s convenient, but expensive. You’re not guaranteed used books either. Also, when selling books back online is usually the way to go. I tried to sell a set of books back and they offered me $11 for all four books! I looked up the price online, I could sell one book for $20! Sometimes the bookstore works out, but don’t limit yourself and always look for alternatives. If you’re taking a lab course though, make sure you buy the lab book new because you’ll write in it! 
  

At the PostSecret event they gave away a bunch of free postcards. We didn't write secrets down, but we had a fun time crafting and making postcards to send home! That's another thing, bring craft supplies; you'll use them more than you think!

• Stop by the Mizzou box office and see what events are going on. I’ve always wanted to go to a PostSecret event, and this year I got to! So many performers come to campus that you definitely want to get tickets early! Also, take time to explore downtown. There are a lot of cute stores! 

• Take your keys with you EVERYWHERE. It’s not uncommon for kids to get locked out of their rooms in just a towel and shower caddy because their roommates left. It’s a pain for both of you. In the older halls you only get three “freebies” before they start charging you to open the door. Even if you can just call up your roommate, they’ll get annoyed if they continuously have to come open the door for you. 

• Take notes by hand. In my case, I’ve found that bringing your computer to class is 9 times out of 10 more distracting than helpful – to everyone. Facebook will always be there, but most profesors don’t publish notes!
  

After Obama got elected we went on a mini-adventure to go celebrate with our peers!

• Be adventurous! Take advantage of silly trips, because they can be really fun. You’ll hear about more fun places when you get here, but you must see the Big Tree. It’s about a 20 minute drive, but the Big Tree is an impressive sight. It has a circumference of NINE people. Also, come Christmas time make sure you go to the Magic Tree. Ask around, someone will give you directions to get to these places. 

• Form study groups! I made so many friends just getting together to study. And NOT at the library. I hear you have to be quiet there, and where is the fun in that? A lot of halls now have study rooms on each floor and in the downstairs lounges. You can play charades to learn Spanish vocab without having to worry about people Ssshhing you. 

• People may joke that anytime someone takes out a camera that they must be a freshman, but you’ll want to remember all the good times you’re having. Bring a digital camera and take lots of pictures! My scrapbook is expanding exponentially! 
  

The semester has zoomed by! Mizzou has definitely become home to me! Sure, you’ll get homesick, overwhelmed, and broke, but it’s worth it!