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The scholarship search can be a long and exhausting process. All those websites to search through…all those criteria to read…all those forms to fill out…. You may not want to hear this, but applying for scholarships is supposed to be difficult – you need to put forth a lot of effort in order to get rewarded. Because it’s such hard work, it can be easy to lose focus and fall behind on your search sometimes. Don’t let it all get to you! Follow these tips to keep yourself motivated and on track throughout your scholarship search.

Search early. Search often.

Start your scholarship search as early as you can. You’ll begin finding a large number scholarships once you’ve hit your junior year of high school. Throughout your junior year, make it a point to search for new scholarships about once every two weeks. Your senior year is when you’ll start to find tons more scholarships. At this point, it’s a good idea to search for scholarships at least once a week. At Cappex, we add tons of new scholarships each week, so be sure to check if any of the new ones apply to you. Continuously seeing new scholarships that you qualify for provides great motivation to keep up with your search. There’s always more to find!

Track. Track. Track.

Keep your own list of all the scholarships on your plate. Create a table or a chart that lists all the scholarships you will apply for, those you’ve already applied for, and even those you’re interested in or unsure about. Sort them by the deadline date so you can manage your time effectively. Put a nice big check mark next to those you’ve applied for. Checking items off your to-do list is an excellent way to see how much you’ve accomplished.

Budget your time.

Schedule a specific time of each week to work on your scholarship search and applications. For example, every Sunday night, you could devote two or three hours to your scholarship search and working on applications. Once you’ve set that time, stick to it! Scheduling something in this manner provides structure, and adhering to that schedule you set for yourself ensures that you will always be on top of your search. If you don’t have hours at a time to devote to your scholarship essays and applications, divide the work up into smaller chunks, such as an hour a night. Spreading out the work like this helps keep you energized and allows you to look at your work with fresh eyes each time you begin again.

Take a break.

Your eyes might be a bit glassy. You might be a bit tired. For those times when you end up spending many hours on an application or an essay, don’t forget to take a break to refresh yourself.  A break doesn’t mean browsing through your Facebook feed though! Step away from your computer and get your blood flowing again. For example, getting up and walking around your house for a little while, getting a snack or a beverage, splashing your face with cold water, walking up and down a flight of stairs a couple times, or going outside for a few minutes helps you decompress. When you return to your work, you’ll feel more energized and motivated to keep sprinting toward the finish line.

Recently, many colleges and universities have reported that they are offering scholarships to STEM students thanks to the National Science Foundation (NSF). For example, the Baltimore Sun reports that Notre Dame of Maryland University plans to use a $450,000 NSF grant to provide annual scholarships to undergraduates in the Women's College who are pursuing degrees in mathematics, computer information systems, physics or engineering.

These scholarships of $10,000 each will be awarded through the school's Pathways to Excellence program, which encourages women to find jobs in STEM fields.

Similarly, Edmonds Community College in Washington recently announced that it will use a $600,000 NSF grant to give scholarships to 45 students who want to earn a degree in a STEM subject, My Edmonds News reports.  

See if you’re a match!

1. Womenetics Advancing Aspirations Global Scholarship
Amount-$1,500-$5,000
Deadline-August 12
Quick fact-Don’t be turned away men! This scholarship is open to both men and women enrolled in college.

2. AFSA Second Chance Scholarship
Amount-$1,000
Deadline-August 24
Quick fact- 5 scholarships will be awarded.

3. “First Kiss” Scholarship
Amount-$500
Deadline-September 1
Quick fact-Available for high school students to adult college students, all you have to do to apply is write a 250 word story about your, yep, first kiss. Haven’t had one yet? Make it up.

4. Go! Study Abroad Scholarship
Amount-$1,000
Deadline-September 15
Quick fact- This is for students who are planning on studying abroad.

5. Ayn Rand “Atlas Shrugged” Scholarship
Amount- $50-$10,000
Deadline-September 17
Quick fact-Yes, a book and an essay are involved, but there will be 84 scholarship winners!

6. Hit the Books Scholarship
Amount- $500
Deadline-September 30
Quick fact- Scholarship award must be used for educational books and materials.

7. Just Poetry Scholarship
Amount-$100-$500
Deadline-September 30
Quick fact-9 scholarships will be awarded to applicants who submit their original poetry.

Looking for more scholarships? Check out www.cappex.com/scholarships.

All you have to do is see if you’re a match:

1. OP Loftbed Scholarship
Amount-$500
Deadline-July 31
Quick fact-High school seniors through doctoral-level students can apply.

2. Lincoln Forum Scholarship
Amount-$250-$1,000
Deadline-July 31
Quick fact- This scholarship is available for enrolled college students.

3. Family Travel Forum Teen Travel Writing Scholarship
Amount-$200-$1,000
Deadline-August 1
Quick fact-To qualify for this scholarship, applicants must sign up to be members of the MyFamilyTravels.com community prior to application.

4. Shut Up and Sweat Scholarship
Amount-$2,000
Deadline-August 1
Quick fact-This is the perfect scholarship for student athletes!

5. AFSA Second Chance Scholarship
Amount-$1,000
Deadline-August 24
Quick fact-5 awards will be granted.

Want more scholarship matches? Make a profile on Cappex!

You can be a scholarship winner too by making a Cappex profile! Your profile will then be used as your “application” for the Cappex scholarships, like, say, these two coming up:

A GPA Isn’t Everything and I Don’t Want to Pay for College.

That’s exactly what these two superstars did to win their scholarships:

“A GPA Isn’t Everything” Scholarship – Winter II Scholarship Winner: Rebecca D. from Mt. Prospect, Ill., will be attending college next fall.  During her high school career, she served as a member of SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) and eventually its President for two school years.  The program was recognized as one of the best programs in the state and won grants from the Operation Teen Safe Driver for its success. Rebecca was also a peer tutor and a member of her school’s service organization which works to better the community and help with special needs schools as well as the elderly.

“I Don’t Want to Pay for College” – Spring Scholarship Winner: Matthew J., from Murfreesboro, Tenn., is currently a college student with a broad background in volunteer and service with his church and Boy Scouts including canned food drives, making care packages for the 101st Airborne and community clean up.  Matthew’s a talented student who channeled his passion for music and science into an awesome project where he designed, produced and then performed with two homemade instruments.

Want to see past scholarship winners? Check them out on our Facebook page!

To give you a head start, here are 11 scholarships you can apply to this summer.  See if you’re a match!

1. Abbot & Fenner Scholarships
Deadline-June 18th
Amount- $1,000
Quick fact- Available for high school juniors through doctoral-level study!

2. I Don’t Want to Pay for College Scholarship
Deadline-June 30th
Amount-$1,000
Quick fact- To apply, all you’ll need is a Cappex profile

3. Win-Win Scholarship
Deadline-June 30th
Amount-$500-$25,000
Quick fact- Fairly easy application and lots of scholarship money!

4. Castle Ink’s Green Scholarship
Deadline-June 30th
Amount-$2,500
Quick fact- Not academic-based

5. BBG Communications Scholarship
Deadline-June 30th
Amount-$1,000
Quick fact- Easy application process and need a 2.5 GPA to qualify

6. Share Your Story Scholarship
Deadline-July 15th
Amount-$1,000-$5,000
Quick fact- Financial need considered

7. A GPA Isn’t Everything
Deadline-July 31st
Amount-$1,000
Quick fact- All you need to apply is a Cappex profile! 

8. Lincoln Forum Scholarship
Deadline-July 31st
Amount-$250-$1,000
Quick fact-3 awards will be given away

9. Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
Deadline-July 31st
Amount-$1,000
Quick fact-Easy application

10. AFSA Second Chance Scholarship
Deadline-August 24th
Amount-$1,000
Quick fact-5 scholarships will be awarded

11. R2C Scholarship
Deadline-August 31st
Amount-$1,500
Quick fact-Application should take very short time

Want more scholarships? Here you go!

It’s a crazy world in those high school halls, especially for a newbie.  What’s even crazier is that it’s actually not that crazy to start thinking about college once you catch your breath.  It may seem unnecessary at the time, considering you still got 4 more school years to go, but in the long run, it will actually ease the stress your college search.

Here are 6 things college-bound high school freshman should keep in mind:

1.  Start Early
Freshman year of high school seems early to to start your college search.  But, it’s more about mental preparedness than anything else.  The college application process is like a 3-ringed circus that you have to run while keeping up with your high school classes. The more you can prepare yourself for it, the smoother time you’ll have.

Sit down with your high school counselor.  Make sure you’re on the path to graduate on time and that you’re taking classes required for most colleges.  Discuss your future with your parents so you can all be on the same page about your goals. College is a big deal–financially and academically–and will have a huge impact on your life. So, how could it hurt to start thinking about it?

2. Find a Passion or Hobby
There are too many students out there who just phone-in volunteer hours so it will “look good” on their college application.  Yes, extra-curricular activities, leadership and volunteer services will make your college application appear more well-rounded.  But, college admissions folks weren’t born yesterday. They can tell the difference between surface-deep involvement in an activity and a heartfelt one.

A passion or a hobby can be anything.  Sports, birdwatching, an after-school job, tutoring, etc.  Find or continue doing what you love and what interests you.  It will be easier, and far more fun and motivating to grow and find leadership positions doing something you love versus something you think will look good on a resume.

3. Reach Out to Teachers
Your teachers are probably the most underused resource you have.  If they’re teaching at your school, they went to college and can offer up words of wisdom.  Ask questions about how they discovered they wanted to become teachers or if they know any field of study that you’d be interested in.  Just because it’s not on the syllabus doesn’t mean you can’t ask.

It’s also great to keep up a healthy relationship with a couple teachers because you might need a letter of recommendation in a few years.

4. Every Year Counts
Certain colleges will tell you that they disregard Freshman year from your transcript and GPA. For the most part, this is not the case. Do not throw away your freshman year out of the belief that “it doesn’t matter”. All of your grades go into your GPA, so keep up with your schoolwork.

Also, if you get involved in activities your freshman year, you’ll have more flexibility to move up and take on leadership opportunities that a person who starts in a club their sophomore or junior year won’t have.

5. Plan Your Summer Smartly
The summer going into your sophomore year can really set the pace for the rest of your high school career and college search.  Think about your priorities.  What do you want to be able to tell colleges when you apply to them?  If you want to show them your work ethic, perhaps taking on extra hours at your summer job is key.  If you want to show them you’re passionate about volunteering, volunteer! Apply for an internship at a local charity.   Use your time in the summer not only to have fun, but to keep yourself growing as a college-bound student.

6.  Keep an Eye Out for Scholarships
Paying for college is no small feat. In fact, if it were feet, it’d be huge feet.  There are tons of scholarships out there. Some are small. Some are huge.  The earlier you start looking and applying for scholarships, the more likely are you to acquire some scholarship money before you head off to college.

The sooner you start, the more ahead you’ll be in your college search.

Do you have tips for high school freshman about beginning their college search early? Comment and let us know!

Part of the college search, that is supremely helpful if you start early, is the scholarship quest.  We’ve made list of 8 great scholarships for juniors that they can apply to now!

1. The Discus Award
Every month, there’s a new $2,000 scholarship winner.  The Discus Awards recognize well-rounded, versatile students following their passions.

2. National Peace Essay Contest
Over 50 scholarships will be awarded between $1,000-$10,000.  What do you have to do to win? Write a killer essay.

3. The Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
This is a merit-based program that helps students fulfill their dreams of a higher education.

4. Avar Press Literary Essay Scholarship
Avar Press is seeking to recognize, encourage, and reward scholarships to high school students who read a specific book and write an essay about it.

5. Abbot & Fenner Scholarship
This $1,000 scholarship is for a student who writes a 500-1000 word response to specified question. Easy!

6. Castle Ink’s Green Scholarship
Applicants must generate awareness of recycling by writing something inspiring and posting it online, including a link to castleink.com.  Not too difficult and good for the environment!

7. B. David Scholarship
College-bound juniors have the opportunity to win one of three $1,000 scholarships.

8. Win Win Plus Scholarship
Scholarships between $500 and $25,000 will be awarded to college-bound students who make a difference in at-risk kids’ lives.  It’s a win-win situation.

Looking for more scholarships? Go here!

For this reason, we’ve decided to attack the rumors, gossip, hearsay, and overall gross fallacies about college and university admissions with the truth.

Here are seven college admissions myths, busted!

1. There are only one or two perfect schools for me.
A true classic when it comes to college or university admissions myths, the there’s-only-one-school-out-there-for-me-state-of-mind is akin to saying a Bonobo chimpanzee takes one mate for life–it’s just not true!  While Bonobo chimps are probably more promiscuous than you will be (or can be) in your college search, you should at least take on a little Bonobo mentality of not settling when it comes to the college you go to.

So maybe your dad and his dad and his dad and your brother and your brother’s fiancée and your sister went to a university that has a particular and special place in the family tree–does it mean it’s right for you?

Schools change over time.  The campus culture when your dad went to school might be totally different now.  Another school, similar in size and distance from your home could have a program you’re interested in that the other school doesn’t offer.

Cappex alone has nearly 3,000 colleges in our database, so whatever your tie to a specific school is, see what other schools might surprisingly fit you.

2. Private colleges are always more expensive than public/state schools.
This is a widespread myth that probably holds a lot of college-bound students back from researching private schools. While the difference in sticker prices on the two types of institutions may have a wide gap, in many cases, private schools will offer more financial aid and scholarships, making it a comparable, if not cheaper, option.

The moral of debunking this myth? Don’t count out private schools right away for financial reasons.

3. Only the top students receive scholarships.
There’s more to life than earning the top grades in your class–not to say that great marks hurt your college admissions chances–but you shouldn’t count yourself out of college scholarships if your grades aren’t top notch.  In fact, if you are accepted into a school and demonstrate financial need (fill out the FAFSA on time!), colleges will make it possible for you to pay for it with grants, scholarships, and loans.

On top of that, there are countless scholarships out there, and they’re not just looking for grades. You can find scholarships that fit you at www.cappex.com/scholarships.

4. It’s too early to look for scholarships before your senior year.
Whoever started this myth wasn’t making good decisions because it’s never too early to start looking for scholarships.  There are multiple reasons for this.  For one thing, many scholarships are annual, meaning they return every year.  If you’re familiar with the recurring scholarships, when you’re actually eligible to apply you’ll be more prepared than even that girl in your class who finishes her homework before it’s assigned because you’ll know what you’ll need to submit way ahead of time.

You might even be able to find scholarships to help pay for college long before you actually apply to college.  And these might have less fierce competition since fewer people are thinking about scholarships. The early bird gets the worm, and then the bird can go on to afford its dream college.

5. If I haven’t heard of this school I shouldn’t apply.
As smart as you are, there are plenty of super great awesome things you’ve never heard of, like Bonobo chimps or this secret sandwich sauce my grandma makes..  The same thing goes for colleges and universities.  A recognizable or popular college name  doesn’t inherently mean it’s the perfect fit and an unfamiliar college doesn’t mean it’s a worse school because you haven’t heard of it.

There are so many small colleges out there that it’s impossible to have heard of them all, and one of them might have the perfect program for you.   If you want some guidance looking for your college fit, log into Cappex and get some advice from our Virtual Admissions Coach.

6. I won’t get in if my SAT or ACT isn’t high enough.
When you look at the “What Are My Chances?” Calculator for any college you’ll see that almost every college has a range that they tend to accept students from, but there are plenty of exceptions.

You might fall below the average admitted student’s SAT or ACT score, but you have to remember it’s an average.  That means both students with scores higher and lower-than-average have been admitted.  If you feel like a college is a great fit for you, don’t let your SAT or ACT scores inhibit you from applying to them.

7. The more extra-curricular activities, the better.
If you’re running from student council to key club to yearbook to Spanish club to Honors Society to musical rehearsal to softball practice all in the name of how your college application will look to admission officers, you can take a breath.

Colleges don’t necessarily want to see how overextended you can be; they want to see that you’re committed and passionate about your extra-curricular activities.  A bunch of unrelated surface-deep activities don’t have the same impact or say as much about you to admission officers as a couple highly-focused activities do.

Not only should busting this myth save you time from phoning in activities you don’t truly care about, but it will give you more time to spend with your passions.