It is that time of the year when applying for scholarships as at an all time high. Most local, employer and school scholarships have deadlines just around the corner, so that come spring they have winners selected and ready.
Seniors - Get into your high school counslers office and do it often. About once a week to look for new applications for scholarships. New ones arrive weekly in most places.
Schedule time to work on them like you would your job, if you have one. This is possibly hours you will get paid for if you recieve the scholarship. So put a decent amount of effort and you will reap the rewards.
Juniors - If you have not taken your ACT or SAT tests this is a very good time to visit the Guidence Counslers office and ask for a packet if you don't already have one. Look at dates that don't interfere with school activites or family events and schedule it. Yes the do cost money to register. However, if you believe that you need monitary assistance, look into the qualifications for a fee waiver and submit to the appropriate loaction listed within the packet or online. If you have other questions, go here for SAT or ACT.
Sophmores - Create your first Resume and Cover Letter even if you are not looking for a job. Practice is important and knowing how to make yourself sound like you are the best for whatever position, job or college, that you know how to phrase it properly and how to format the documents.
Freshman - Start now with keeping a list of all you extra curricular activites and any community service that you do. You will need to for scholarships that you fill out later. Also keep track of any jobs that you have between the summer before your Freshman year and all thoughout high school. This will make creating a resume much easier. Also know who your supervisors and managers are and get their full names and contact information. Most applications require a great deal of information regarding previous employers. Start a word document, note book or file folder with all of this information together so that you know where it is.
Parents, as always, these tasks are not easy and sometimes you may not know how to do them because you may have been at the same job for 20 years and haven't had to create a resume. I don't expect you to remember your extracuriculars from high school and it is likely that the didn't even have the SAT or ACT when you were in school. That is okay. Just encourage you student to make the best effort and stick with it.
Good Hunting!
