High School Juniors and Seniors, make your winter break count!
Think about your list of college questions. Think about size and location of a college you want to attend. Brainstorm a list of attributes that you want for your college. If your family is traveling for the holidays considered stopping with your parents to visit a college campus. Think ahead for testing: SAT, ACT, and AP exams.Take advantage of this time when you don’t have your normal school workload to study ahead for those tests. Record your experiences and activities outside of academics. (Hint: The Scholarship Shark Activity Journal is perfect for this! Link below.) Finally, take advantage of this time to focus on some volunteering that is difficult to do when school is in session.
College Students, here are some easy ways to maximize your winter break!
You have been working really hard so feel free to give yourself permission to have several days of downtime! Take time to rest, decompress, and spend time with family and friends. You might consider a short-term internship experience during your break. Focus on creating or updating your resume now when you have more time. Remember, after college comes employment! Think ahead while you have time. Join a professional organization in your major. Student chapters are less expensive to join. Consider asking your parents to pay the joining fee as a Christmas gift for you. You can network with others in your industry by volunteering to help at a conference or applying for a scholarship that the organization offers.
Scholarship Opportunities for middle school and high school students – check them out during your winter break!
Scholarship deadlines are approaching! Check out the Burger King Scholars Program available for high school seniors with the potential to win up to $50,000! Deadline is Dec. 15! Student-athletes, you could win up to $20,000 with the Foot Locker Scholar-Athlete program! Deadline is also Dec. 15. Are you creative? Shirtspace.com has a $2500 scholarship available and is possibly open to middle schoolers. Deadline is Dec. 31. Also open to middle school students and older is the Association for Women in Mathematics essay contest. College students can also apply. Deadline in January. If your education is not fully funded, use this time of winter break to apply for scholarships. Listen soon to this episode because some deadlines are this week!
Check out this list of some of my favorite scholarship websites!
I have looked at a lot of scholarship websites, believe me! These are some of my favorites. Scholarships.com says, “Whether you’re a high school student, college student, nontraditional or adult-learner, complete a free profile and then get matched to scholarships and grants you’re qualified for”. GoodCall.com website says, “Search for scholarships based on your major, GPA, gender, ethnicity and more.” FastWeb.com promotes itself by saying, “Browse Fastweb’s information on scholarship themes, winning strategies, pitfalls, current scholarship news and much more.” SallieMay.com/scholarships is a student loan company with over forty years of supporting undergraduate and graduate study. So set a schedule for yourself. Commit to doing something every day, but it doesn’t have to take all day! Search in the morning, apply in the evening.
Outline of This Episode
[1:09] Things high school juniors can do to maximize their winter break
[4:14] Prevent winter learning loss in simple ways
[4:50] Things college students can do to maximize their winter breaks
[8:32] Commercial for “In Pursuit of College” board game
[9:07] Things that all students can do during their winter break
[11:46] Several of my favorite scholarship websites
Resources & People Mentioned
The Scholarship Shark
