WEBVTT 00:00:27.900 --> 00:00:35.490 Lori Prince: Hello everyone Thank you so much for joining we're going to allow a little bit of time for others to get logged in — hang tight, thank you. 00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:41.040 Lori Prince: alrighty we'll go ahead and get started Thank you so much for joining us today. 00:01:41.430 --> 00:01:55.290 Lori Prince: We will go over the scholarship presentation that we gave during scholarship awareness month, it is now financial aid awareness month, so our office is giving a few webinar series to provide. 00:01:55.740 --> 00:02:17.310 Lori Prince: helpful financial aid information back to our student population and this presentation will cover private scholarships and how you're able to begin your search for private scholarships so i'm going to go ahead and record this, so we have it, for future reference. 00:02:19.050 --> 00:02:29.970 Lori Prince: Alrighty, so we are all set my name is Lori prints and I am the associate director financial aid here at the University of San Francisco and thank you so much for joining today. 00:02:36.030 --> 00:02:54.960 Lori Prince: So what you will learn today today we're going to cover scholarship types tips for a successful scholarship search how to create a scholarship essay featured scholarships and, lastly, how to reach our office. 00:02:59.790 --> 00:03:13.410 Lori Prince: scholarship types so first there would be student specific scholarships, so you be making a list of your personal unique attributes and investigate the major organization. 00:03:13.980 --> 00:03:27.420 Lori Prince: local groups and private corporations that may have educational funding and no matter what you enjoy doing or what makes you stand out there will always be a scholarship to reward you for simply being you. 00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:43.530 Lori Prince: The next type of scholarship are unique scholarships, so there are also many scholarships that reward quirky and unique talents talents that truly make you stand out in a crowd and potentially earn you money for college expenses. 00:03:44.670 --> 00:04:03.300 Lori Prince: And then next would be academic scholarships and merit scholarships. Merit scholarships are often related to academic performance but can also be given to a candidate displaying exceptional artistic or athletic success and skill, or even a combination of both. 00:04:08.340 --> 00:04:15.510 Lori Prince: we're going to talk about merit versus need based scholarships so merit based scholarships. 00:04:15.870 --> 00:04:24.750 Lori Prince: would be academic or merit based scholarships are awarded to recognize outstanding academic performance talents and leadership abilities. 00:04:25.170 --> 00:04:37.260 Lori Prince: And then whenever you see scholarships that are speaking of of need based need based scholarships are awarded to those who demonstrate financial need and how. 00:04:38.070 --> 00:04:53.520 Lori Prince: Our office or an organization can determine your need is by you, completing a financial aid application so, whether that be the FAFSA application if it's your California dream act application. 00:04:54.120 --> 00:05:03.540 Lori Prince: or CSS profile, those are the different financial aid applications that would demonstrate what your financial need is. 00:05:06.570 --> 00:05:08.730 Lori Prince: So key updates for the 00:05:10.140 --> 00:05:21.450 Lori Prince: FAFSA application is now available, and so, if you have not renewed your FAFSA application, please go online get that completed. 00:05:21.810 --> 00:05:28.230 Lori Prince: You would be doing a FAFSA renewal so it's a much quicker speedy process for you to get that done. 00:05:28.950 --> 00:05:42.750 Lori Prince: Make sure that you complete the fafsa even if you don't want federal loans, because most scholarships require the fafsa or your aid application dream act application CSS profile. 00:05:43.230 --> 00:05:51.750 Lori Prince: And you must be a citizen or eligible non citizen to file the fafsa but, again, even if you're not seeking federal loans. 00:05:52.980 --> 00:06:01.890 Lori Prince: Some scholarships do look to need, so the only way to demonstrate need is based on your financial aid application. 00:06:05.520 --> 00:06:27.120 Lori Prince: Scholarship tips: so first you want to consider the source, is it a .org or .com, is it a credible organization, you want to avoid applications that require you to pay or to apply for the scholarship so you should never be paying a fee to apply for a scholarship. 00:06:28.170 --> 00:06:40.050 Lori Prince: Three check your online presence. Some scholarships, they will do a check, they'll do a Google search of you to see what you're posting so make sure that you're posting appropriate 00:06:40.860 --> 00:06:56.430 Lori Prince: content to your social media accounts. If they're not private, the things on the Internet that can be found there the scholarship committee or organization could do a search on you to see what you are displaying out to the world. 00:06:57.510 --> 00:07:14.550 Lori Prince: Next plan letters for recommendation at least three weeks ahead of time, so if you need to ask for letters of recommendation, you want to make sure that you're giving your contacts sufficient time to get those letters to you, so plan ahead. 00:07:15.780 --> 00:07:33.330 Lori Prince: Next is obtain your unofficial transcripts. So some of the scholarships might be merit based and they might want you to submit proof of your academic performance and in that case you want to make sure you have your unofficial transcripts readily available. 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:45.180 Lori Prince: Next is ensure your resume is updated and if you don't have one now's the perfect time to create one because some scholarships might ask for your resume. 00:07:45.630 --> 00:07:52.710 Lori Prince: So if you have one great make sure it's updated if you don't have one start to create one. 00:07:53.610 --> 00:08:01.350 Lori Prince: And the next step, you want to use keywords to narrow down your scholarship search so. 00:08:01.830 --> 00:08:13.020 Lori Prince: Writing down some of your qualities, things that you think might make you stand out for specific scholarships, you want to identify those so when you're searching for scholarships. 00:08:13.290 --> 00:08:24.870 Lori Prince: You're using those keywords to narrow your scholarship search saves you time and effort to just get to the ones that you know you are going to be able to 00:08:26.190 --> 00:08:26.790 Lori Prince: stand out. 00:08:27.960 --> 00:08:36.660 Lori Prince: Lastly, you want to focus on the end goal, so searching for scholarships can be very tiresome it's like a part-time job. 00:08:37.080 --> 00:08:46.980 Lori Prince: So you want to put in the effort each week, whether it be an hour three hours a week that you're setting aside that you're dedicating to this end goal. 00:08:47.340 --> 00:08:59.010 Lori Prince: And you need to keep at it, even if you feel discouraged. You may have applied to many scholarships and you haven't heard back yet, but don't give up. Invest the time, invest the energy, and 00:08:59.610 --> 00:09:16.740 Lori Prince: hopefully it turns out that you do ultimately get one. The good news is there's no deadline for a scholarship as long as you are a student, so maybe you found one your first year, maybe you found one your senior year, so don't don't be discouraged and keep on searching. 00:09:19.830 --> 00:09:30.510 Lori Prince: Next, you want to think about your personal networks, there might be scholarship opportunities within your personal network so, whether that be through church, 00:09:31.350 --> 00:09:45.090 Lori Prince: Boys and Girls Club, Big Brother Big Sister, YMCA, and then there's also auxiliary clubs, so there could be opportunities within these these types of networks. So Moose Lodge, 00:09:45.930 --> 00:10:00.270 Lori Prince: Elks Lodge, American Legion, Kiwanis, Lions Club, Rotary Club, Knights of Columbus, Shriners, Daughters of the American Revolution. 00:10:00.900 --> 00:10:11.670 Lori Prince: You might also want to check out Republican Women's Club, the Democratic Women's Club, or your parents employer, so you know, taking some time to sit down to see. 00:10:12.150 --> 00:10:21.390 Lori Prince: Who is in your personal network and if there's any opportunities there that you haven't identified before and that you might want to explore this time around. 00:10:25.740 --> 00:10:32.370 Lori Prince: Say no to scholarship scams. So again don't be fooled by scholarship scams. You never know 00:10:33.630 --> 00:10:42.930 Lori Prince: how they're going to try to catch you, so one of the biggest selling items are paying a submission fees, so that's why we mentioned it before you should never be 00:10:43.260 --> 00:10:56.490 Lori Prince: paying a fee to submit to register. And you want to be careful, the type of information that you're giving out as well. We have had students that will contact our office to say hey you know, 00:10:56.790 --> 00:11:07.770 Lori Prince: I received this phone call or I see this email I'm not sure. You're more than welcome to contact us if you're not sure about something and then we can help guide you. 00:11:08.460 --> 00:11:18.090 Lori Prince: But again, you just want to make sure you're being very careful in the type of scholarships you're applying for that you're not paying any fees to submit them. 00:11:21.810 --> 00:11:27.360 Lori Prince: I wanted to highlight scholarships for undocumented students, so we do have 00:11:28.140 --> 00:11:36.870 Lori Prince: two resources that that they can go to and again this is just saving the time and effort of researching for scholarships because 00:11:37.140 --> 00:11:48.450 Lori Prince: some scholarships will require that you are a US citizen or eligible non citizen, so this saves you lots of time and energy. Here are resources that I can point out for you. 00:11:48.840 --> 00:12:01.710 Lori Prince: So first would be the immigrants rising they have a undergraduate scholarship list, and there was a graduate scholarship list so one one website that they offer scholarship. 00:12:03.180 --> 00:12:08.490 Lori Prince: Scholarship search for both populations undergraduate and graduate. 00:12:09.240 --> 00:12:21.720 Lori Prince: And then next step, there is a Dreamers roadmap app. You can download this app on iOS or Android and there's also a ton of scholarship opportunities for undocumented students. 00:12:22.260 --> 00:12:32.400 Lori Prince: Through this platform, as well. So this would be an app — it's not a website — you would have to download it to begin to search for scholarship opportunities. 00:12:37.020 --> 00:12:57.840 Lori Prince: I also wanted to highlight international student resources, because again, wanting to save you time and energy. We have two options here: there's the study USA and also edupass scholarships. So these are two scholarship resources for our international students. 00:13:01.380 --> 00:13:22.620 Lori Prince: And then I'm going to go through some common scholarship websites, where you can begin your own personal search. We have finaid on the web, that would be finaid.org. Some fun financial aid scholarships there for you to search. Collegeboard.com has scholarship opportunities available. 00:13:25.770 --> 00:13:27.480 Lori Prince: Fastweb.com. 00:13:28.920 --> 00:13:31.830 Lori Prince: collegeresourcenetwork.com 00:13:35.250 --> 00:13:37.320 Lori Prince: Gocollege.com 00:13:39.780 --> 00:13:45.630 Lori Prince: blackscholarships.org 00:13:48.630 --> 00:14:00.900 Lori Prince: Sally Mae, they are a private loan lender, but they also surprisingly have scholarship search engine, so you can also search for scholarships through Sally Mae as well. 00:14:02.280 --> 00:14:04.560 Lori Prince: And there are scholarships.com 00:14:10.590 --> 00:14:20.460 Lori Prince: Next, I thought it would be important for us to talk about scholarship essay and how you begin that process and prepare for it and. 00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:31.470 Lori Prince: Many scholarships require that you submit an essay, and so this is the process that you should be going through when you're getting ready. You never want to use 00:14:31.980 --> 00:14:41.970 Lori Prince: the same scholarship essay for each scholarship you apply for because they may ask different things of you, so you really want to make sure that you're reading 00:14:42.720 --> 00:14:47.400 Lori Prince: what the scholarship is asking of you, and making sure that you're delivering that. 00:14:48.120 --> 00:14:55.770 Lori Prince: So first you want to start the process early so you want to take time to brainstorm your ideas and create an outline. 00:14:56.070 --> 00:15:04.980 Lori Prince: Edit your entry, as you would for any essay writing assignment, for your English class. So you're putting in that time putting in that effort. 00:15:05.580 --> 00:15:19.590 Lori Prince: And you also want to understand the scholarship provider's overall mission and purpose, so consider writing about an experience or interest that highlights your strong ties to the organization's mission. 00:15:20.250 --> 00:15:24.930 Lori Prince: Genuine passion and enthusiasm will show through in your essay writing. 00:15:25.290 --> 00:15:38.340 Lori Prince: So maybe you don't want to invest the time into a scholarship organization where you don't have the same belief system. You want to make sure that you're you know, putting in that energy into a scholarship that 00:15:39.120 --> 00:15:49.500 Lori Prince: is following your interest your your ties that you can write passionately about what they stand for. 00:15:50.190 --> 00:16:09.210 Lori Prince: And next step, you want to follow the scholarship essay instructions. Make sure you follow all the necessary steps and review them before submitting your scholarship essay. Make sure you're paying attention to what they are asking from you in that scholarship essay instruction. 00:16:12.240 --> 00:16:25.680 Lori Prince: You want to steer clear from essay topics that focus on negativity or pessimism. You want to you really want to be positive in your scholarship essay. 00:16:26.040 --> 00:16:33.270 Lori Prince: Scholarship committees would rather see how you overcame your hardships and succeeded, despite the obstacles in your path. 00:16:34.140 --> 00:16:50.100 Lori Prince: Or what you learn from the times that that you failed. It really is about you know you meeting your end goal and how you have overcome. You want to focus on your strengths and what you learned rather than any negative 00:16:51.180 --> 00:17:00.930 Lori Prince: aspect. And don't be afraid to get personal. Share something about who you are telling your story makes an essay genuine 00:17:01.230 --> 00:17:13.860 Lori Prince: and ultimately more memorable to the scholarship committee. This really is an opportunity for you to shine to share who you are and to engage with the scholarship committee. 00:17:15.180 --> 00:17:28.650 Lori Prince: You want to seek out writing advice in and and feedback, so if you're asking professors counselors family members trustworthy friends for feedback on your essay it will result in a better final product. 00:17:32.970 --> 00:17:44.130 Lori Prince: The next step is yes, spelling and grammar matters. Scholarship committees do notice grammar mistakes even tiny errors can distract the reader from the overall message. 00:17:44.400 --> 00:17:51.930 Lori Prince: Before you submit your application, make sure you take the time to proofread your essay from the beginning to the end. 00:17:52.740 --> 00:18:03.270 Lori Prince: And lastly, don't give up. When you're tired take a break, but don't throw in the towel. Again, you know I would pace myself. I wouldn't 00:18:03.870 --> 00:18:20.400 Lori Prince: spend hours on end searching for a scholarship, preparing for a scholarship essay. I would dedicate two maybe three hours a week, that I would dedicate solely on researching scholarships and spending time writing scholarship essays. 00:18:23.550 --> 00:18:34.170 Lori Prince: We're going to go over some featured scholarships. So these are scholarships, that if you fit the criteria and you want to apply, you can go on and apply. 00:18:34.590 --> 00:18:44.760 Lori Prince: We have a section on the financial aid website for outside scholarships; that's where I pulled these particular scholarships from and we give a monthly 00:18:45.600 --> 00:18:58.110 Lori Prince: calendar, so you're able to see, based on the month what scholarship is available for you to apply for and so, for this one, the due date is February 26. It's 00:18:58.920 --> 00:19:12.810 Lori Prince: the LA grant foundation and their application is currently available on the website to make sure, everything was still current. So if you would like to apply for this scholarship it is made available. 00:19:13.470 --> 00:19:20.880 Lori Prince: You can go ahead and do so, they have both undergraduate students scholarships and graduate and PhD student scholarships. 00:19:24.810 --> 00:19:49.980 Lori Prince: The next feature scholarship has a due date of March 31, and this is the Contra Costa association of realtors scholarship foundation, so they have scholarship opportunity available currently so you can go online to apply for this opportunity you have until March 31. 00:19:52.650 --> 00:20:06.930 Lori Prince: And next up is the Gilman application so this due date is on March 2 and application is now open, you can go online to apply for the Gilman scholarship. 00:20:14.970 --> 00:20:29.850 Lori Prince: The next featured scholarship has a due date of March 21, this is the after college scholarship, it is a nursing scholarship and they have their upcoming deadline is March and 00:20:30.630 --> 00:20:48.690 Lori Prince: it's March 31. There's another scholarship for June 30, September 30, December 31, so if you're a nursing student, this is an opportunity that you should be applying to. 00:20:53.430 --> 00:21:04.050 Lori Prince: You can always reach the financial aid office, so you can reach us by phone, you can reach us at 415-422-3387. 00:21:04.650 --> 00:21:10.140 Lori Prince: You can also send us an email. If you email us please make sure that you include your student ID number. 00:21:10.710 --> 00:21:17.970 Lori Prince: And you're also able to make the financial aid appointment with us so on our financial aid website there's a schedule appointment 00:21:18.450 --> 00:21:30.630 Lori Prince: box that you that will drive you to our booking system and you're able to see what the available slots are select and book a 30 minute appointment to speak with someone in our office. 00:21:30.990 --> 00:21:39.150 Lori Prince: So, whether that be scholarship related financial aid related anything that you need our assistance with we're here to help you. 00:21:40.290 --> 00:21:44.760 Lori Prince: Let me see if we have any questions in the QandA. 00:21:47.070 --> 00:22:01.770 Lori Prince: Yes, we will provide these slides, so we are recording it so we'll make the recording available and and we will provide access to the slides. So if you email, the financial aid office and they'll be able to send this slide deck to you. 00:22:04.800 --> 00:22:06.090 Lori Prince: Any other questions. 00:22:29.970 --> 00:22:41.310 Lori Prince: Okay looks like we have a few more: So, which days can we make appointments? So we do have, I know we have availability, this week, and so, if you go on to the financial aid website and 00:22:41.880 --> 00:22:50.700 Lori Prince: On the right hand side it'll it'll display this little screen here, where it says financial aid, the physical address, mailing address, scholarship checks. 00:22:51.000 --> 00:22:56.550 Lori Prince: You just click the green button schedule appointment and it will take you so we do have appointments for this week. 00:22:57.300 --> 00:23:17.430 Lori Prince: We are open for appointments from 9:30am until 5pm, Monday through Friday, with the exception of Wednesday when we have our staff meeting so we close the office from three to five. But other than that we're available for appointments, you can also call in or send us an email. 00:23:42.300 --> 00:23:44.760 Lori Prince: A bit more in case anyone else has questions for me. 00:24:14.010 --> 00:24:26.340 Lori Prince: You're welcome, so if no one else has any other questions I'll go ahead and end the webinar. Thank you so much for attending today, and we really appreciate you stopping in and listening on 00:24:26.970 --> 00:24:39.480 Lori Prince: scholarships and how to search for scholarships and if you can, if you want to reach our office and you'll you'll want to either email us call us or book that financial aid appointment. 00:24:40.110 --> 00:24:49.200 Lori Prince: So we do have another question I'll go ahead and answer. How do scholarships impact our financial aid offer? So it depends on 00:24:50.040 --> 00:25:03.330 Lori Prince: if you've accepted your financial aid up to the cost of attendance. So if you haven't accepted your aid up to the cost of attendance, then we would just be adding that scholarship to your financial aid 00:25:04.020 --> 00:25:20.100 Lori Prince: package. If you have accepted your financial aid up to the cost of attendance, then we may need to reduce a student loan, if you had loans accepted on your account up to the cost of attendance. So it really depends 00:25:20.910 --> 00:25:27.690 Lori Prince: what the state of your current financial aid offer is, do did you already accept all the way up to the cost of attendance? 00:25:27.960 --> 00:25:40.410 Lori Prince: Or did you not and you still have room to put in the scholarships? If you're not sure, and you want to follow up with our office to see what your situation would look like, because each student situation 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:48.360 Lori Prince: can be different, and I would really encourage you to either book that financial aid appointment, email your 00:25:48.720 --> 00:26:03.420 Lori Prince: student ID number and your your student question to us, and then we can be sure to let you know how adding a scholarship of $1,000 $2,000 $500 how it would impact your specific financial aid package. 00:26:11.430 --> 00:26:13.290 Lori Prince: Alrighty anything else? 00:26:14.880 --> 00:26:20.850 Lori Prince: See, we still have a few more on so i'm going to just have to stay on in case more questions come through. 00:26:28.260 --> 00:26:29.370 Lori Prince: you're welcome Lisa. 00:26:42.570 --> 00:26:51.150 Lori Prince: Already what looks like that's it, so thank you again so much for joining us today, I hope you guys have a lovely evening and take good care.