Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Sources of Money 3: FastWeb Scholarship Search Engine

FastWeb LogoOn Tuesdays we review a source of financial aid available to help you pay for college

John returned to school when his back prevented him from working in construction anymore. He and Jill, his wife, had three children. Vocational Rehabilitation would pay a very little money, but would not pay for his degree. They had struggled through his first year of school, but money would run out during the second year. They did not see how they could continue. They attended our workshop and went to work. Eight months later Jill visited the center. She excitedly told me that scholarships would now pay for all of his last two years tuition and books. They had even earned enough scholarship money to help pay their rent.

Advantages of Using Fastweb

I visited Fastweb before seeing any other scholarship engines. They really impressed me with the strategy, style, and results. Students regularly qualified for 150-300 scholarships. No scams, contests, promotions, and surveys appeared in their results. I still recommended everyone register on Fastweb and create a profile, but lately the results impress me less.

Like other scholarship search engines, Fastweb requests that you register and complete a profile. The profile will ask you to indicate your past memberships and activities. Each item in the profile indicates someone who is giving money away. So, include all your activities. For example:

  • Memberships in clubs and civic organizations
  • Participation in sports and athletics
  • Leadership experiences and positions
  • Creative arts, performances, or writings
  • Civic and community service
  • Parent's employment and memberships
  • Military experience

Fastweb will also notify you of additional scholarships as they find them.

Cautions

Fastweb requires fewer cautions than most of the sources we recommend. However, you still need to:

  • Click "No thank you" every time you see it (in very small font)
  • Very few contests, promotions, and surveys appear on Fastweb (that's good)
  • Delete them if you see them, unless they are legitimate contests for videos, performances, or similar situations
  • You may wish to create a separate email address for all scholarship searches

Thursday we review the sections of a reusable master application

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