Strategic Scholar Podcast

By Kristy Sturgill

What's Strategic Scholar Podcast about?

Learn how to find and apply for scholarships efficiently, and learn how to strategically handle a higher education investment without significant amounts of student loan debt.

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Strategic Scholar Podcast episodes:

04.05.2017
Episode 54: American Fire Sprinkler Association Scholarship, an interview with Nicole Duvall
In this episode, Nicole Duvall communications director at the American Fire Sprinker Association discusses their annual quiz scholarships. The application should take less than 20 minutes and winners are chosen randomly. The high school scholarship has about 50,000 competitors and...
03.10.2017
Episode 53: Batch Processing Scholarships
Tackling a lot of scholarships can be very difficult, especially if you have classes and a job. However, I found that batch processing scholarships helps complete the process faster. This means completing several scholarships around a particular theme in an...
03.03.2017
Calling all students, to DoSomething.org: Scholarship opportunities, supplies and motivation
DoSomething.org is on a mission to inspire young people to participate in their communities, give back and ultimately make a difference. In addition to helping students, the organization hosts about 25 scholarships a year. Marissa, who does marketing for the...
02.17.2017
Episode 51: Common grammatical errors in a scholarship essay
This episode explores four common grammatical errors. 1. Passive Voice 2. Split Infinitive 3. Comma after an introductory phrase 4. Avoid prepositions at the end of a sentence. Regardless of rules, clarity is the overall goal.
02.10.2017
Episode 50: D.J. Nunez - IWSH Scholarship Strategies
D.J. Nunez, president of IAPMO, discusses strategies for the IWISH scholarship, which is hosted annually. He said he hopes to see quality research and creativity in this year's applicants.
02.03.2017
Cappex VP and Publisher discusses financial aid, student debt and scholarship strategy
Mark Kantrowitz, Vice President of Strategy and Publisher at Cappex, discusses student debt, and provides practical tips for students looking to apply to more scholarship opportunities. “Financial aid is like speaking another language,” he said. “We boil it down to...
01.20.2017
Episode 48: The difference between the two education tax credits AOTC and LLC.
January 23 marks the first day of individual tax filing season. This is a great time to talk about the two educational tax credits; The American Opportunity Tax Credit (previously known as the HOPE tax credit) and the Lifetime Learning...
01.14.2017
Episode 47: FASFA requires new tax information
The new FASFA requires prior-prior year in 2017. This episode we talk about the benefits and disadvantages of the new system. We also discuss tools that make the form much faster.
01.06.2017
Episode 46: United States Institute of Peace Scholarship and following directions
One fast route to disqualification is failing to follow the directions meticulously, especially when a scholarship has as many directions as this week's feature scholarship. There are a few things to note as you read the directions such as deadline,...
12.29.2016
Episode 45: Frame your future and 6 brainstorming strategies
Brainstorming is an important, and often overlooked, part of the writing or creating process. It is easy to just run with the first idea rather than explore a variety of options. This episode outlines six brainstorming strategies, and highlights the...
12.22.2016
Episode 44: How to edit essays effeciently and effectively
This episode discusses five steps to editing essays: reading the content aloud, cutting irrelevant information, analyzing words, evaluating research, and keenly reviewing the introduction and conclusion. This week's feature scholarship is a topic scholarship and it is hosted by expert...
12.15.2016
Episode 43: Defining goals for a $10,000 scholarship
Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institution and GE host an annual $10,000 scholarship for high school seniors. One component requires applicants to succinctly express career and educational goals. This episode we discuss four steps to conduct in the goal-making process.
12.09.2016
Episode 42: Scholarship opportunity featuring college retention rates
Retention rate is an important number for colleges, and applicants for the scholarship hosted by Transtutors must write an 800-word essay on their perspective on why students drop out, and what can be done to prevent it. Retention rates are...
12.01.2016
Episode 41: How to apply for scholarships when life gets busy
Every one has busy seasons, but it is important to keep scholarships a priority. Otherwise, it is easy for one week of not applying to a scholarship to turn into two weeks. The goal of this episode is to encourage...
11.17.2016
Episode 40: Unique Scholarships and how to find your niche
There are some fun scholarships out there, and you may be qualified to compete for some pretty interesting ones such as duck calling competitions, dorm waivers for twins, or just writing about how the world would be different without the...
11.10.2016
Episode 39: Volunteering Part 2 - writing a persuasive essay
This scholarship is hosted by papercheck.com and is a $1,000 award. The scholarship requires a 1,000 word minimum essay convincing others to volunteer in their communities. This episode discusses strategies on how to write a persuasive essay that will keep...
10.27.2016
Episode 37: GIVA scholarship, journaling and how to start your story
GIVA Scholarship is an experience-focused scholarship due Dec. 1. It requires applicants to discuss their dreams, career goals, personal ambitions and how they plan to change the world. This episode discusses how to tackle this scholarship strategically.
10.20.2016
Episode 36: Fall Scholarship Marathon - Experienced-Focused Scholarships
Experience-focused scholarships are all about telling a good story. It is your story that wins scholarships. It doesn't require extensive research like topic scholarships, but it does require reflections and deep thought. This episode features three different experience-focused scholarships all...
10.13.2016
Episode 35: Fall scholarship marathon - Topic scholarships
This episode explores three different topic scholarships opportunities to tackle before the end of the Fall semester. Topic scholarships require research, writing, and editing. The purpose of the scholarship marathon is to encourage students to get out there and start...
10.06.2016
Episode 34: Scholarship Marathon Creative Content
Creative content scholarships include graphic design projects, poetry, photography and video. These scholarships can take many hours to complete, and applicants should pursue creative content scholarships that complete strengths.
09.29.2016
Episode 33: Is the Ultimate Scholarship Book worth it?
The Ultimate Scholarship Book is an annual publication with hundreds of scholarships, but it is worth the time and effort necessary to find scholarships that matter? This episode explores the pros and cons on searching for scholarships in a book...
09.22.2016
Episode 32: Purdue University introduces incoming-sharing agreements, interview with Ted Malone
Ted Malone, Financial Aid Director at Purdue University, discusses how income-sharing agreements work, and how students can benefit from the opportunity. Income-sharing agreement is an arrangement to dedicate a specific percentage of a student's income to pay for college rather...
09.15.2016
Episode 31: Seven things I wish I knew as a senior
This episode explores some common knowledge students learn while at college that they may not understand or know while in high school. It is always better to learn sooner rather than later.
09.08.2016
Episode 30: Big projects are key to more opportunities
This episode features Wyatt Hancock who is hosting a cancer care packaging event at his high school. These large events and projects help build resumes and open up new opportunities for high school students and college student. The work also...
09.01.2016
Episode 29: Handling rejections and being positively persistant
Handling rejection is an important part of the scholarship process. This episodes features some tools and strategies to keep going even when you keep hearing 'no.'
08.25.2016
Episode 28: Brainstorming and researching topic scholarships
This episode discusses strategies on how to brainstorm and do research quickly and effectively for topic scholarships. Topic scholarship are common, and quality essays are more competitive.
08.18.2016
Episode 27: Pros and Cons of AP Courses or Concurrent Enrollment
Strategies to reduce college debt can begin in high school by taking college courses or AP courses instead of simply high requirements. Here are the pros and cons of each option.
08.11.2016
Episode 26: How to be a competitive scholarship applicant while in college
Continuing to search for scholarships after starting college is important, and there are ways to be more competitive. This episode presents six strategies to increase your scholarship opportunities.
08.04.2016
Episode 25: Kierstin Stapleton: College admissions and being aggressive
Kierstin and I graduated from the same high school, and she and I both have decided to pursue helping students through higher education decisions. She focuses a lot of college admission. She is a current student at Tulsa University, and...
07.28.2016
Episode 24: Adam Carroll author of Broke, Busted and Disgusted
This episode features Adam Carroll the author of Broke, Busted and Disgusted - a pro-education film that discusses the costs of college. For more than ten years, Adam has encouraged families, students and academic institutions to teach the importance of...
07.21.2016
Episode 23: Seven questions to ask before starting application content
We have discussed personal information with focus on avoiding scams and knowing how to test whether or not a scholarship is legitimate. We have also discussed recommendation letters and transcripts, and how to not let those items make you miss...
07.14.2016
Episode 22: Strategies for transcripts and recommendation letters
Transcripts and recommendation letters are an important part of an application. In many cases, recommendation letters can be a major deciding factor for a scholarship applicant. This episode covers a variety of strategies related to completing the recommendation letters and...
07.07.2016
Episode 21: How to discover scholarship scams and protect personal information
One of the very first questions I encountered when I began my scholarship journey, was is this scholarship legitimate. I didn't want to waste my time or my put my information at risk. This episode covers some good strategies to...
06.30.2016
Episode 20: Three strategies for "middle-of-the-road" students
On request, this episode is a conversation on how to manage feeling average, and winning scholarships even when you think you won't qualify for any. Specifically, students should search for one or two exceptional qualities or skills, focus on topic...
06.23.2016
Episode 19: Five rules for experience-focused scholarship applications
Outside of the specific rules outlined for each scholarship, there are several other rules to keep in mind. This episode we discuss some great strategies to implement on experienced-focused scholarships including using SMART goals and storytelling.
06.16.2016
Episode 18: Finding time for scholarship applications
Full time college students must manage their time well to be able to apply for scholarships while also finishing homework and sometimes managing a full or part-time job. Working in an entire list of activities into one day is difficult...
06.09.2016
Episode 17: #CollegeCash with Jodi Okun
Jodi Okun is a financial aid expert who regularly helps families and students navigate the college funding process. She is an author and she host #CollegeCash every Thursday on Twitter. In this episode, she discusses some important strategies she has...
06.02.2016
Episode 16: Scholarship marathon, never undervalue a $500 scholarship
Many students get discourage when applying for a scholarship that is only a few hundred dollars and a lot of work, but strategic scholars never undervalue any scholarship. Every dollar in scholarship is one less dollar in debt, which is...
05.26.2016
Episode 15: Scholarship Marathon, dealing with perspecitve differences and choosing the right format
This is the second week of the three-week scholarship marathon. The purpose of the marathon is to apply for many scholarships in three weeks. The two strategies discussed in this episode with the two featured scholarships are how to handle...
05.19.2016
Episode 14: Scholarship Marathon, the power of past winners and annual scholarships
A big part of winning scholarships is completing scholarship application. Now that the Spring semester has ended, it is time to really get to work on scholarships. This is the first episode of three featuring various scholarships most students are...
05.12.2016
Episode 13: Recent graduate Jenica Hallman discusses her loan repayment journey
For about five years, Jenica has been paying back her loans, one small payment at a time. After graduating, loan repayment can seem daunting, but Jenica discusses how she handles the payments by making them a priority.
05.05.2016
Episode 12: Randy Levin: Tips for writing a better scholarship essay
Randy Levin is a college admission essay coach and he serves up some great tips on writing better scholarship essays such as staying positive and avoiding cliches. He also encourages students to be authentic in their writing endeavors. Find more...
04.28.2016
Episode 11: Defining Financial Aid
It is not uncommon for students to struggle with knowing the different types of financial aid, and how the aid will impact personal finance. This episode defines various types of financial aid to help students be more prepared to make important decisions.
04.21.2016
Episode 10: Lauren Gaggioli and ACT/SAT testing strategies
Lauren provides some incredible insight on standardized testing, which is a great way to earn merit aid to public and private universities.
04.14.2016
Episode 9: Teaching abroad to reduce debt or increase savings
Alyssa Bailey discusses her experience teaching abroad in South Korea. Some students use teaching aboard opportunities to help reduce their student loan debt or increase their savings. International teaching programs often come with housing and meals provided, which helps students...
04.07.2016
Episode 8: Is College Worth It
A lot of students wonder if all the work is worth it, and especially if the debt is worth it. Here is the basic answer to that question.
04.06.2016
Episode 7: Scholarship Misconceptions
Scholarship misconceptions are often the cause of students avoiding the pursuit of scholarships or grants. The one misconception I hate the most is scholarships are free money. Actually, scholarship awards require a lot of hard work.
04.05.2016
Episode 6: Six strategies to avoid becoming a student debt statistic
Avoiding student requires a two-fold approach: reducing costs and finding additional funding. Here are some tips to avoid becoming another student with crippling debt.
04.03.2016
Episode 5: The scholarship process from start to finish in 15 minutes
The scholarship process includes many steps and this episodes defines each part. The feature scholarship requires a statement about e-waste in 140 characters or less, and we discuss a law student who bankrupted out of a student loan.
04.02.2016
Episode 4: How to tell a story
Like it or not, a lot of scholarships require story telling. This episode discusses some story telling basics, features a $10,000 scholarships and briefly explores how to avoid debt repayment scams.

What's Strategic Scholar Podcast about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Strategic Scholar Podcast episodes:

Episode 54: American Fire Sprinkler Association Scholarship, an interview with Nicole Duvall

Episode 53: Batch Processing Scholarships

Calling all students, to DoSomething.org: Scholarship opportunities, supplies and motivation

Episode 51: Common grammatical errors in a scholarship essay

Episode 50: D.J. Nunez - IWSH Scholarship Strategies

Cappex VP and Publisher discusses financial aid, student debt and scholarship strategy

Episode 48: The difference between the two education tax credits AOTC and LLC.

Episode 47: FASFA requires new tax information

Episode 46: United States Institute of Peace Scholarship and following directions

Episode 45: Frame your future and 6 brainstorming strategies

Episode 44: How to edit essays effeciently and effectively

Episode 43: Defining goals for a $10,000 scholarship

Episode 42: Scholarship opportunity featuring college retention rates

Episode 41: How to apply for scholarships when life gets busy

Episode 40: Unique Scholarships and how to find your niche

Episode 39: Volunteering Part 2 - writing a persuasive essay

Episode 37: GIVA scholarship, journaling and how to start your story

Episode 36: Fall Scholarship Marathon - Experienced-Focused Scholarships

Episode 35: Fall scholarship marathon - Topic scholarships

Episode 34: Scholarship Marathon Creative Content

Episode 33: Is the Ultimate Scholarship Book worth it?

Episode 32: Purdue University introduces incoming-sharing agreements, interview with Ted Malone

Episode 31: Seven things I wish I knew as a senior

Episode 30: Big projects are key to more opportunities

Episode 29: Handling rejections and being positively persistant

Episode 28: Brainstorming and researching topic scholarships

Episode 27: Pros and Cons of AP Courses or Concurrent Enrollment

Episode 26: How to be a competitive scholarship applicant while in college

Episode 25: Kierstin Stapleton: College admissions and being aggressive

Episode 24: Adam Carroll author of Broke, Busted and Disgusted

Episode 23: Seven questions to ask before starting application content

Episode 22: Strategies for transcripts and recommendation letters

Episode 21: How to discover scholarship scams and protect personal information

Episode 20: Three strategies for "middle-of-the-road" students

Episode 19: Five rules for experience-focused scholarship applications

Episode 18: Finding time for scholarship applications

Episode 17: #CollegeCash with Jodi Okun

Episode 16: Scholarship marathon, never undervalue a $500 scholarship

Episode 15: Scholarship Marathon, dealing with perspecitve differences and choosing the right format

Episode 14: Scholarship Marathon, the power of past winners and annual scholarships

Episode 13: Recent graduate Jenica Hallman discusses her loan repayment journey

Episode 12: Randy Levin: Tips for writing a better scholarship essay

Episode 11: Defining Financial Aid

Episode 10: Lauren Gaggioli and ACT/SAT testing strategies

Episode 9: Teaching abroad to reduce debt or increase savings

Episode 8: Is College Worth It

Episode 7: Scholarship Misconceptions

Episode 6: Six strategies to avoid becoming a student debt statistic

Episode 5: The scholarship process from start to finish in 15 minutes

Episode 4: How to tell a story