Reduce College Debt with Scholarships

Six Scholarship judges were sitting around an oval

table. Forms were piled into 50 boxes. Each one

had the name of a state. I looked at the boxes and

wondered why some of them were overflowing and

others had just a few. This was the first round of

judging. By the time the contest was over almost

16,000 applications would be examined. Some of the

comments were really critical, "Why did this

person bother to send in an application? It's so

sloppy." "This person put the wrong address on

the envelope, even though the correct one is at

the top of the application." One had a cassette

tape inside. We played it and it was a country

song. The applicant was a good musician.



That was twelve years ago, and many people still

do not know or realize that College Scholarship

Planning could reduce or totally eliminate college

financial debt.



One of the first questions I am always asked is,

"When should we start looking?" Then some answer

their own question with, "I'll bet we're too late

already huh?" The ideal time is to start is the

8th grade to freshman year. Good planning starts

early, but scholarships are posted monthly, and if

you start planning early, you have a chance to

win, big. Many win the very first time. If you are

a junior or senior in high school, go for it. But

remember, your chances to win increase with every

completed application.



You should start College Scholarship Planning even

if there is a chance your child may decide not to

go to college. But if the decision is yes, you

will have everything in place. And the planning

experience is more than filling out a few

applications.



Another common concern is assuming your family

income is too high to win scholarships. Fact: 80%

of all scholarships are need based and income

related, but 20% are not. This means millions of

dollars are still available. It makes good solid

financial sense to make an effort to win

scholarship money regardless of income.



Always remember: the college scholarship effort is

truly a family affair.



©2005 The Scholarship Doctor, Dale Clifton - All

Rights Reserved - Dale is an educational consultant

and expert at helping families win college

scholarships. To learn more about planning to win scholarships, visit http://ScholarshipDoctor.com