The first one is from a posting on the Internet Tourbus.
------------ BrokeScholar ------------ You know how schools have a dean's list for students with exceptional grades? Well, I am here to tell you that your fearless bus driver's name never graced such a list. My grades in college were utterly atrocious ... so atrocious that I am all but certain that I graduated from the University of Alabama with a *NEGATIVE* GPA. The only reason I received a degree in the first place was that I had been a student at the University for so long that the University was left with only two options: give me a degree or give me tenure. The degree was cheaper. :P Well, cheaper for the University anyway. I still had to pay my own tuition. [Here begins the worst segue in the history of Tourbus. Please accept my apologies ahead of time.] Had I been a more diligent student, I might have been able to take advantage of the services offered by BrokeScholar at
http://www.brokescholar.com/ .
Put simply, BrokeScholar is a free search engine that lets you search through a database of more than 900,000 college scholarships. Just go to the BrokeScholar Web site and click on the blue "Start Free Scholarship Search" button in the middle of the page. In order for BrokeScholar to find scholarships for which you are eligible, you need to provide the site with some personal information. Clicking on the blue "Start Free Scholarship Search" button takes you to a six page form. Page one asks for your name and email address, page two asks for your date of birth and address, page three asks for the name of your college (or the names of the colleges to which you applied) and your expected graduation date, page four asks for your demographic data, page five asks for your activities and interests, and (sadly) the final page tries to sell you some magazines. Just click on the blue "no thanks" button on the magazine ad page to continue. This dumps you to a preferences page that asks you if you would like to receive email updates and how you found out about BrokeScholar. Complete this page and then click on the blue "Finish>>" button. This takes you to your profile page and at the bottom of this page is a blue "Search using my profile" button. Click on it and BrokeScholar shows you all of the scholoarships that match your profile. GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL! :) BrokeScholar shows you each scholarship's name, how much money is available, and the application deadline. Click on the name of any scholarship and BrokeScholar shows you more in-depth information about that scholarship including applicable majors and schools, contact information, and even a link to the scholarship provider's Web site. Cool, huh? :) By the way, even if you don't use BrokeScholar's free search engine, do take a minute to read the site's "Scholarship Q&A" page athttp://www.brokescholar.com/articles/160004.html .
This page debunks a lot of common misconceptions about scholarships
such as
- Is there such a thing as a guaranteed scholarship? [No.]
- Should I have to pay an application fee for a scholarship? [No.]
- Are there billions of dollars worth of unclaimed scholarships
every year? [No.]
The scholarship industry has its fair share of con artists.
BrokeScholar's Scholarship Q&A page gives you the information
necessary to hopefully protect yourself from becoming a victim of one
of these con artists.
The Internet Tourbus is, alas, no longer being published - but the link here will take you to the archives and a link to its successor.
We hook students up with colleges & grad schools
Zinch allows students to learn about, get recruited by, and interact with more than colleges and universities from all over the world. And it happens on a platform that students embrace - the web.
We make the process fun
The admissions process is very stressful. We know. So we let students connect with other students who are going through the same frustration, struggles and pains as they are. Hopefully that way the process can be a little bit easier.
This was recommended by a recent (2010) Bioanthro graduate who wrote
I wanted to suggest that you include Zinch.com in your list of resources alongside Broke Scholar since I imagine your students would really benefit from it as I have. With something like 2 billion dollars in free scholarships, 3.5 million student members, and a match feature that doubles your scholarship earnings won on the site, Zinch is quickly becoming a student favorite.
To be honest, sounds a little too good/smooth to be true to me - nobody doubles your money, with no money down - but hey, as long as you're careful, it looks like a potentially useful resource. Caveat emptor and good luck!
2013: Well, just got an email from someone at Zinch.com, stating
"Sorry to trouble you with this, but recently our website Zinch.com was flagged by Google for having "unnatural" links pointing to it. In some cases these links were placed by A) a spammer with no affiliation with our website, B) a hired consultant who did some dishonest SEO work for us years ago, or C) placed by you or one of your staff members with completely good intentions. Either way, we're taking a very aggressive "better safe than sorry" approach by removing any link that was flagged as suspicious since they are hurting our website and possibly yours."
and asking me to remove the link. I HOPE that leaving the description is OK. I'm not sure what to make of being told this page is "unnatural" in some way. Geez, what's more natural than BioAnthro? Ah well. Brave New World and all that. Whether this (or option B above)relates to my "too good to be true" comment in some way, I don't know.
There is a discussion of funding for graduate school (both here at UCSD and more generally), along with some useful links, at UCSD BioAnthro Graduate Program
Description:
The Donald Strauss Scholarship allows current juniors to pursue a public service project during their senior year by providing $10,000 for educational expenses. The award is made on the merit of the project itself. The scholarship amount is not tied to [?? missing in copy I got]
This scholarship is awarded based on the merits of a community project a senior student will implement in 2003-2004. The project may be a new undertaking or an extension of the student's current activities (e.g. internship, work study, research).
The amount of the award is not tied to the project budget, and the majority of the $10,000 award can be used for academic-related expenses.
Projects awarded last year included (but were not limited to) arts, environmental, health, social service, and school based programs.
UCSD is guaranteed one $10,000 award, provided we submit at least 3 worthy candidates. Last year, we had few competitive candidates.
The UCSD campus due date is Monday, February 10.
Eligibility:
Full time current juniors (2002-2003) or a current senior planning on a 5th year of undergraduate study at UCSD
3.0 GPA
Interest in public service as a career or as a volunteer
Selection:
Selectors look for applicants who are interested in public service, possess outstanding leadership potential, have effective communication skills, and "wish to make a difference" in local, regional, or national communities.
The Strauss Foundation defines public service as work (employee or volunteer) in government; education; law enforcement; organizations serving the public interest; national, regional, or local health organizations; non-profit organizations serving disadvantaged persons; environmental organizations. Fields of study can include, but are not limited to, sciences, social sciences, English, history, liberal arts and humanities, public administration, etc.
Project:
The project proposal, a major focus of the selection process, should be carefully prepared and realistic in scope. The foundation prefers projects designed for longevity (likely to continue after implementation). The project should include a project budget which indicates the project is well planned. Visit the Donald Strauss website for examples of past winning projects at http://www.straussfoundation.org. Please note the UCSD student application deadline is earlier than the deadline for UCSD to submit nominees to the Strauss Foundation.
Application:
Applicants must submit the following to the UCSD Scholarship Office on or before Monday, February 10, 2003
1) Completed nomination summary form (available in the Strauss Scholarship packet at the Scholarship bulletin board in the Financial Aid Office lobby or download from the Strauss website at http://www.strauss foundation.org)
2) One-page resume that includes work history and current and past community service
3) One-page autobiographical statement describing significant public service activities
4) Four-page proposal for a community service project to be carried out during the senior year (make sure it includes a description of the project plan and a discussion regarding the need or problem it addresses)
5) Two or three letters of recommendation from individuals who are well acquainted with your work, either academic or service
6) UCSD Scholarship Office will obtain a UCSD transcript for each student who submits an application
Questions?
Please feel free to contact Becky Obayashi, Scholarship Coordinator, at scholarships@ucsd.edu or (858) 534-1067
The following is a description [distributed by email] of undergraduate research fellowships available to UCSD students in May 2002 (for the 2002/03 year). I do not plan to update this page every year; the point here is just to alert you to the sorts of things available -- if interested, you need to track down the year-specific information you need. Most of these look annual and presumably the May 6 deadline for 2002 means "middle of spring quarter" is a good bet for future years as well.
UCSD UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIPS
Who Can Apply: All UCSD undergraduates in any major who will be enrolled the entire 2002-2003 academic year are eligible to apply. Students who plan on graduating mid-year in 2002-2003 may also apply, provided the project and final report are completed before graduation. Applicants must be US citizens or permanent residents. The project must be completed while the applicant is an undergraduate student at UCSD. Applicants need to submit only one Research Scholarship application. Your application will be considered for each scholarship you indicate on the application form. Applications can be printed from our web site, www.ucsd.edu/finaid. (Click on "Download Financial Aid / Scholarship Forms" - see "Undergraduate Research Application.")
Project Requisite: The project must be work above and beyond the normal course of study; that is, not part of a student's 190 series coursework, or any other class coursework. The subject matter does not have to be related to the student's major, minor, or other coursework. Additionally, the following also applies:
Term of Award: The research scholarship award is for 2002- 2003 academic year, with the final report due May 5, 2003. However, the Julia Brown award is for a project completed during Summer 2002, with the final report due Monday, October 21, 2002. Students may reapply for a research scholarship the following year.
Amount of Award: The amount of the research scholarship will be based upon financial need as determined by the project costs approved by the faculty sponsor. These costs may include equipment, books, supplies, travel expenses related to the project, summer living expenses while engaged in the project, computer time, etc. The research scholarship award maximums are listed below. Awards will be paid at the end of Spring/Summer Quarter, 2002, and will not displace any existing grants or financial aid. This award is considered a budget add-on to cover project costs.
Selection of Recipients: The faculty Committee on Undergraduate Scholarships and Honors will select the winners. Winners will be notified in writing in June 2002. Non-award winners will not be notified.
Deadline: Monday, May 6, 2002
All required application documents, including the letter of
recommendation, must be submitted to Financial Aid - Scholarship
Office by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, May 6, 2002.
Created 4/12/02