Most seniors are waiting anxiously as admissions from their top universities are rolling in. Some have even already committed to a school, and are awaiting the start of their college career this upcoming fall.

But as many students and their families find, paying for an education can be a significant financial burden. Many students are urged to apply for scholarships, in search of opportunities to earn money toward college tuition.  

Students are also able to receive merit scholarships, scholarships that recognize academic, artistic, and athletic achievement. These types of scholarships can be awarded from colleges, universities, as well as state government. Often, these scholarships are worth four times their value, because they are renewed for each school year. Students are able to search for merit scholarships by school the university they are attending.

Here at Rochester Adams, many opportunities can be found to apply for scholarships, some being as easy as filling out a survey. On the counseling webpage, a file can be found titled “scholarship bulletin”. This folder contains links and information about multiple scholarships. These scholarships are offered through a variety of programs, schools, and organizations, ranging from 500 to 40,000 dollars.

Searching for scholarships can be a daunting task, but counselor Mrs. Clement offers some advice:

“Fastweb.com is a great scholarship search engine. You put in a bunch of information about yourself and then it’s going to send you scholarships that match with you.”

This type of search engine allows students to easily find scholarships that match their interests and characteristics. She also gives a warning about using websites to find scholarships.

“ If any site asks you to give them money for a scholarship, don’t do it, it’s not a good idea. You shouldn’t ever pay to get a scholarship,” said Clement.

Not all scholarships, however, are just about writing essays. Some, like the Student View Scholarship Program, only requires a 15-20 minute survey to be filled out, and the scholarship will be awarded by means of a random drawing. They are offering one $4,000 scholarship, two $1,000, and ten $500 scholarships. Scholarships like this one offer unique opportunities to earn money toward tuition besides the average submission.

“I would like to take advantage of all of the opportunities to receive financial help for college,” said senior Nina Janies.