Thursday, January 10, 2013

Reusable Materials 1: Overview

Online ApplicationThursdays we discuss how reusable materials WOW committees & save time applying

Diane, a single mother of three, went back to college in her 30s. Charity from her Church and the government allowed her to attend. She attended our workshop because she no longer wanted to be a “charity case”. She wanted to earn her money by what she did. She worked with two coaches every week for 7 months. She completed 3-4 applications a week using the methods we taught her. In twelve months she had received enough scholarships to pay for tuition, books. lab fees, and housing (her mortgage) for the last two years of college—and she had $98,000 awarded to cover her entire masters in chemical engineering.

Assembly Line Rather Than “From Scratch”

Many people think they will complete 2-6 scholarships or grants because they won’t qualify for more. So, they approach every application from scratch.  They gather all the information from a variety of sources, scraps of paper their mother saved, or wing it from memory for each application. This time consuming and inefficient method frustrates, confuses, and overwhelms potential students or their parents. So they stop applying.

Most students, with a 3.0 or better and an active life, will complete 60-150 applications over three years. We suggest that you prepare materials to use repeatedly to copy and paste information into applications. It takes longer in the beginning, but once finished, you can complete an entire application in 30-60 minutes. You assemble and complete applications like an assembly line at a factory using reusable materials .

What Reusable Materials to Prepare

You will need to prepare:

  • Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year February through May
  • Master Application containing answers to applications, lists of achievements, and themes with home run statements
  • 5-6 Reusable Essays you can adapt, attach, or paste into applications
  • Letters of Recommendation from at least 5 people from school, work, and the community

We will share tips for preparing these reusable materials each Thursday in this blog.

Saturday we emphasize that you are the person they want to reward with money

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