Caveat Emptor or Buyer Beware 7: A Few Typical Scholarship Scams

Saturdays we share tips of cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoiding problems

Jenny had two daughters. One in high school. One still in junior high school. Jenny desperately wanted her daughters to attend college, but did not have the money to pay their tuition. Few students from their high school went on to college. As a result, the guidance counselors in her daughter’s school did not provide much help. So, Jenny went online and found a company that guaranteed they would apply for more than 100 scholarships on behalf of her daughter—and they guaranteed she would receive scholarship money. They would only charge $1,500 for the service. She paid the money. Her daughter earned exactly $450 in scholarships.

Cost of Scholarship Scams and Schemes

FinAid, an expert on financial aid for students, tells us “Every year an estimated 350,000 students and parents fall prey to scholarship scams, at an annual cost of more than $5 million. The lure of "Free Money" fools even skeptical people.”

The Federal Trade Commission warns “According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, unscrupulous companies guarantee or promise scholarships, grants or fantastic financial aid packages. Many use high pressure sales pitches at seminars where you're required to pay immediately or risk losing out on the "opportunity.”

Signs of Scams

The FTC says you can notice the following warning signs and avoid those that promise:

• “The scholarship is guaranteed or your money back.”
• “You can’t get this information anywhere else.”
• “I just need your credit card or bank account number to hold this scholarship.”
• “We’ll do all the work. You just pay a processing fee.”
• “The scholarship will cost some money.”
• “‘You are a finalist in a contest you never entered.”
• “You’ve been selected by a national foundation.”

FinAid suggests:

• “If you have to give money to get money, it might be a scam”
• “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”

Report scams to your Better Business Bureau or send an email to scams@finaid.com.

Tuesday we review ScholarshipLibrary.com a wiki with information about sources of funding

Reusable Materials 12: Draft Letters of Recommendation for Referrals

Thursdays we discuss how reusable materials help you WOW committees and save time

Joel applied for several scholarships. His master application impressed scholarship committees with his leadership, athletics, service, and creative talent. We still use one of his home run statements as an example in our workshops. Joel also went the extra mile to prepare people he asked to write letters of recommendation. He would send 2-4 specific home run statements that applied to that letter writer. He even offered to draft the letters of recommendation on behalf of the letter writers. His letters of recommendation confirmed the home run statements listed in his applications, thus enhancing his credibility and reputation.

Offer to Draft Letters for Them to Edit

Writing letters of recommendation can be difficult for the letter writer. The task becomes especially daunting when years elapsed between the letter and the event described. You need to make preparing a letter of recommendation very easy for the letter writer.

A trend started developing 7-8 years ago. People requesting letters of recommendation either

• Offer to draft the letter themselves or
• Provide the letter writer with home run statements to use in the letter

You should clarify that you recognize they will want to edit the letters and use their own language. You also want to keep the letter in an electronic version rather than on paper.

Outline for a Good Letter of Recommendation

A good letter of recommendation consists of three parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. The body of the letter should contain the results sections of 4-5 home run statements that will impress the committee. For example:

“I recommend <your name> to receive your scholarship. I worked with <your first name> as their <their position>. Allow me to share a little of what I observed in our work together.

• Result 1
• Result 2
• Result 3
• Result 4
• Result 5

This represents some of the reasons <your name> would represent your scholarship committee well. I recommend you award the <scholarship name> to <your name>.”

Saturday we share some cautions about various scholarship scams you want to avoid

Sources of Money 11: National Scholarships, Fellowships & Programs

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

Heidi met with our coaches 4-5 times to work on scholarships. She worked very hard on her own to apply for scholarships. Her mother worked for a university which provided a tuition discount. Heidi reported that she paid for her entire undergraduate degree using scholarships and her mother’s tuition discount. Now, she’s applying for scholarships to pay for graduate school.

Advantages of National Scholarships, Fellowships, and Programs

Brigham Young University maintains information about scholarships on their web site BYU.edu. They call their collection National Scholarships, Fellowships, and Programs. Some of the information may only be opened with secure account using BYU username and password. Anyone may access others parts of the web site.

One portion lists scholarship search engines. We found several of the search engines listed in other places. Yet, we also found several search engines that we have not seen on other sites. We suggest you follow the link to the site and see which search engines you have not used before.

Another page lists more than 750 scholarships. Their list offers several advantages:

• The page divides into four columns
  • The 1st column lists the name of the scholarship and serves as link to a page that summarized information about the scholarship including
    • The name of the scholarship
    • A link to the website
    • A description of the scholarship
    • A summary of the qualifications
  • The 2nd column provides a description of the scholarship and how to apply
  • The 3rd column lists the qualifications of the scholarship
  • The 4th column gives you a link to the scholarship’s own web page
• You may  search at the top of the page either by a keyword or selecting an area of study from a list.

The site provides all the information free of charge. It does not restrict access to these two sections to those with an account.

Disadvantages of the Site

BYU does not sell your email or other information, nor offer ads or list scams.

Thursday we review how to use your reusable letters of recommendation

Tips to Get Money for College 6: Start Young to Prepare for Scholarships

Saturdays we share tips or cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoid problems
Vicki, an eighth grader, attended our scholarship workshop with her sister who was a junior. She decided to start working to earn scholarships right away. She completed profiles on three search engines and found disappointing results. We encouraged her to wait until she finished ninth grade to use the search engines. Instead, she started keeping track of her accomplishments, joined clubs, and performed service. As a result, she qualified for many more scholarships and impressed committees with her accomplishments and service.

When to Start Working on Scholarships

When we began teaching people about scholarships, very few scholarships were available to eleventh graders. We knew of none given to tenth graders. Today, we know of more than 200 scholarships available only to eleventh graders and more than 100 for 10th graders. We still know of none for ninth graders.
Therefore, we do not encourage youth to look for scholarships until they finish ninth grade. They tend to get discouraged when the search engines shared indicate they qualify for so little. However, they may begin preparing, and recording details about their activities, for scholarships as soon as 2nd grade.

What to Do at Each Age

You may consider the following timeline for scholarship preparation:

• 2-13 Years Old
  • Perform well your activities, service, and studies
  • Begin your master application by recording the details of what you do including numbers, dollars, and percentages
• 7th-9th Grade
  • Become involved in school clubs, activities, service projects, dance, drama, choirs, bands, and student government as your interests guide you
  • Participate in student athletics and sports if your interests tend that way
  • Compete in science fairs, math competitions, and writing contests
  • Update your master application with additional details, numbers, dollars, and percentages
• 10th-12th Grade
  • Continue all the above activities, competitions, and performances
  • Ask teachers to substitute classwork essay topics for scholarship topics
  • Use scholarship search engines, counselors, and other sources to find and apply for scholarships
  • Gather letters of recommendation from those you serve

Tuesday we review the National Scholarships, Fellowships, and Programs sponsored by BYU

Reusable Materials 11: Reuse Your Master Application Throughout Life

Thursdays we discuss how reusable materials help you WOW committees and save time
Denise completed her master application and began applying for scholarships. She won more than $160,000 in her sophomore and junior year. She kept updating her master application as she completed more online applications. During her senior year, she started applying for college. She used her master application to complete the school applications. She found her master application very useful to impress the schools. She was accepted to three of the four schools to which she applied. She felt her themes and home run statements helped.

Information on Your Master Application

Your master application contains all the answers that typically appear on school, employment, housing, and utility applications. For example,

• Personal information: name, address, city, state, phone number, email address
• Parent or Guardian information: names, occupations, current and past club memberships
• School information: names, addresses, cities, phone, web site, teachers & counselors
• Academic information: grades, GPA, classes taken, transcripts, test scores
• Work History: job titles, company names, addresses, phone, duties, web sites
• Civic and Volunteer History: organizations, addresses, phones, leaders
• Themes with home run statements for questions about your experience in leadership, academics, athletics, creative talent, service, and other questions

Use Your Master Application to Apply for Schools & Jobs

You will reuse your master application throughout your working life. You will complete applications for multiple schools, jobs, housing, and utilities. Most of the questions requiring answers in the applications are already in your master application.
You can keep your master application current by doing the following:

• Write an answer for every new question you encounter
• Add a home run statement for each month you are on your job
• Complete information for companies about every job you obtain
• Add information about the post-high school education you attend
• Add new home run statements from your extracurricular activity

As always, remember, create your master application on the cloud so that you can access it anywhere in the world. Ask someone to review and edit it annually.
Saturday we share a tip about how and when to start working on scholarships

Sources of Money 10: The Institute of International Education

Tuesdays we review a source of financial aid available to help you pay for college
Michael qualified for 148 scholarships according to the search engines. He used the steps we teach to apply for nine of them. He received $47,000 when he earned 7 of the 9. He stopped applying because he Felt that he had enough money to pay his tuition. Unfortunately, Michael—like a lot of high school students—failed to consider all the costs to attend college: books, lab fees, food, transportation, computers, and more. We encourage you to avoid Michael’s mistake. Consider all the expenses associated with college and get all the money you can.

Advantages of the Institute of International Education

The Institute of International Education (www.iie.org) states that their mission “is to advance international education and access to education worldwide.” They accomplish this, in part, by “managing scholarships, training, exchange, and leadership programs.”
The institute, founded in 1919, claims to be “among the world’s largest and most experienced international education training organizations.” Managing scholarships remains only one of the institute’s purposes.
They state “IIE is at the forefront of increasing the number and diversity of Americans studying overseas, encouraging study in places of growing strategic importance to the United States, and helping U.S. students gain skills to succeed in a global economy and interconnected world.” Most of their scholarships will help Americans study abroad.
They manage several programs including:

• Educating Global Citizens: David L. Boren, Gilman, and English for Heritage Language Speakers Scholarships
• Science and Technology Awards: Global Engineering Education Exchange, Whitaker International Fellows and Scholarships Programs, Whitaker International Fellows and Scholars Program, and KAUST
• Creating Mutual Understanding: Fulbright Scholar, US Student, Foreign Student, and Foreign Language Teaching Assistant; and the Hubert H. Humphrey Programs
• Managing Corporate Scholarships: GE Foundation Scholar-Leaders, Baker Hughes Scholars in Angola, Alcoa Foundation Technical Education Support in Russia, The SMBC Global Foundation Asian Scholarship, and ExxonMobil Scholars Programs

Disadvantages of the Institute of International Education

They limit service to Americans who want to study abroad, or foreign students.
Thursday we review how to use your reusable master application for other purposes

Tips to Get Money for College 5: Add Sparkle to Your Master Application

Saturdays we share tips or cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoid problems

Beverly attended our workshop. She contacted us nine months later complaining that she had applied for 178 scholarships. She received absolutely no money for her efforts. She said she did everything we asked and did not earn any money. She felt she wasted her time. We asked her to let us review her master application. We noticed that she had not followed every instruction. She did not include any #s, $s, or %s (numbers, dollars, or percentages).

Compare What Stands Out to You

Read the following comments:

• As chair of our school’s Sub-for-Santa program, I supervised a committee that raised money to provide Christmas to disadvantaged families
• Our marching band competed against other bands and won an award at the El Cajon parade
• I maintained all A’s for math in high school including AP and concurrent classes

What you remember about each of the sentences?

Now read these comments:

• As chair of our school’s Sub-for-Santa program, I supervised 26 students. We raised $12,000 and provided Christmas to 255 disadvantaged families
• Our marching band competed against 45 other bands and won 1st place at the El Cajon parade
• I maintained a 4.0 GPA for 32 credit hours of math in high school including 2 AP classes in geometry and calculus and 6 hours of concurrent college math courses

What impressed you the most about the second set of phrases?

• The alpha-numeric numbers, dollars, and percentages draw the eye
• The exact, or estimated numbers, glitter better implied numbers
• Multiple numbers in each sentence enhance the reader’s attention
• The mind remembers precise numbers rather than words

Violate the Rules of Written English

Home run statements do not follow the rules of written English. They follow rules of design sense and influence. For example, home run statements may

• Begin sentences with a number
• Use alpha-numeric numbers in all cases not just numbers over the number 15
• Use the $ and % instead of dollars and percentages
• Use incomplete sentences

Tuesday we review the Institute of International Education source of funding

Reusable Materials 10: Translate Jargon in Your Master Application

Thursdays we discuss how reusable materials help you WOW committees and save time
Bill, the son of 2 school teachers in California, applied for a scholarship offered by the teachers union of the AFL-CIO. As a 15-year old, he served as the president of the local chapter of a religious organization. The church called the organization for 14-15 year-old young men Teachers. He recorded “President, Teacher’s Quorum” on the scholarship application. The union perceived a “Teacher’s Quorum” as a local chapter of the teacher’s union. They would never elect a 15 year old as president. As a result, they doubted the rest of his application.

Identifying Jargon

Google defines jargon as “Special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand.” Almost all groups develop jargon to shorten sentences and simplify communication within the group.
The problem occurs when different groups use the same word for different meanings. For example consider the word execute as used by two different groups

• In football or other sports execute means to run a play or series of steps with precision
• It means something completely different to a prison official or guard

Identify any term used in your school, work, or community. You may become accustomed to  jargon so that you do not recognize you are using it. Try some of the following ways to discover your jargon:

• Ask someone not affiliated with the same group to review your master application for jargon or phrases that confuse them
• Check a dictionary or thesaurus for words that may have multiple meanings as jargon
• Monitor comments from scholarship committees to identify misunderstandings

Translate Jargon to Avoid Misunderstanding

Submitting applications using terms that may be misinterpreted may lose you the scholarship, grant, loan, or financial aid. For example:

• Church does not mean the same thing to all people substitute for community organization
• Use generic titles like supervisor, manager, local chapter officer for titles that may be misunderstood
• Never lie or exaggerate

Saturday we share a tip about how to make your application stand out with sparkling gems

Sources of Money 9: The Search Engine College Board

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

James knew he wanted to go to college after he graduated. He attended a workshop during his sophomore year of high school. The scholarship search engines listed more than 220.  James procrastinated applying for scholarships. He did not apply for any scholarships during his sophomore year. Nor did he apply for any during his junior year. He finally started to apply for scholarships during the last semester of his senior year in high school. By that time his list of 220+ had dwindled to less than 70. He earned a total of $2,300 when he could have earned $120,000 if he had started in his sophomore year.

Advantages of College Board

A handful of colleges created the College Board in 1900 to expand access to higher education. They wanted to simplify the application process for students and college admission offices. The board created the standard College Entrance Examination Boards or College Boards.

College Board explains “The College Board is driven by a single goal—to ensure that every student has the opportunity to prepare for, enroll in and graduate from college.” College Board established The College Board’s College Scholarship Service in 1954.

College Board administers the SAT tests, the CLEP programs, and more. College Board provides a program with videos and stories called YouCanGo to inspire students to attend college. Check out the section “how others pay for college.”

They describe a three step program to pay for college:

• Submit the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
• Find out if other financial aid forms are required
• Search and apply for private scholarships

They offer a nice search engine based on your interests, skills, activities, and grades. About 60% of their scholarships may also appear on other search engines you use.

Disadvantages of College Board

College Board’s strong reputation and experience overshadow concerns for using this site. Though you still use caution on contests, surveys, and always click “No Thanks” when you see it.

Thursday we discuss how to translate jargon in your reusable master application

Caveat Emptor or Buyer Beware 6: Scholarship Financial Planners

Saturdays we share tips of cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoiding problems

Dianne had three daughters. One daughter attended high school. Two daughters still attended junior high school. Dianne wanted her daughters to earn as many scholarships as possible. She doubted her own ability to help them. She believed the school counselors overworked with case loads to large to focus on her daughters. So, she hired a scholarship expert $1,500 to help her daughters find scholarships. She discovered that the expert was just completing applications she could have accessed through Fastweb, Scholarships.com, and other search engines. She called us to complain. Yet, as we discussed her doubts about her own abilities, she decided having that person complete the applications provided a good return on investment—especially when her first daughter earned $68,000 on her $1,500 investment.

Pay Someone to Do What You Can Do for Free

The caution about scholarship experts relates to paying people to do what you can do for free. Some scholarship experts maintain a private list of scholarships, but the Internet makes it hard to hide private sources. So, most experts will apply for financial aid you could have applied to receive. No national certification or licensing exists to govern financial planners who specialize in scholarships and financial aid for school. We recommend you check your Better Business Bureau for any complaints.

Save Your Time by Paying Someone Else

However, you may value paying someone to do what you can do for free. You may find it worth your money because:

• Their repeated experience gives them a professional skill you lack
• They can turn a phrase on the application better than you can
• They know tricks to applying that you don’t
• They can complete applications much faster than you can
• They already know the best search engines or sources of information
• You, or your children, may not have time to complete applications

We will not tell you what to do. We present the pros and cons so that you can make a better decision.

Monday we review College Board source of funding, scholarships, grants, and more

Reusable Materials 9: Social Media Enhances Your Scholarship Message

Thursdays we discuss how reusable materials help you WOW committees and save time-

Evelyn prepared a great master application, reusable essays, and letters of recommendation. The search engines listed she qualified to receive more than 150 possible scholarships. Her themes included service, leadership, and academics. Luckily, Evelyn liked posting about her life on Facebook. She commented on service projects, science fairs, debate competitions, and more. She and her friends took lots of pictures on their phones and posted them too. More than one scholarship committee commented about what they saw on her Facebook page.

Post Comments and Pictures on Facebook

Scholarship committees review applicants’ social media posts. You can enhance your success when your social media collaborates the home run statements in your application. The timeline feature of Facebook, for example, let’s you outline a chronological history of your themes.

We recommend that you take pictures at the following events and post them, and other comments, in social media:

• Leadership activities in your school, church, or community
• You presiding at a school assembly, club meeting, or social activity
• You conducting meetings at a church camp, dance, or Sunday School class
• Successes your leadership created by increasing attendance, participation, donations, or service
• Service projects you did for your community, church, or school. Include you and a group
• Assembling supplies for victims of natural disasters
• Cleaning a widow’s yard, battered women’s shelter, park, or highway
• Delivering presents disadvantaged family for a Sub-for-Santa, birthday, or other special event
• Math, science, spelling, or other academic competitions
• Science projects or fairs that you compete include any awards you receive
• Spelling bees, writing, or math competitions
• Creative endeavors that you perform or participate in
• Video of you performing a musical solo, marching band halftime show, choir or drama performance
• Poems, articles, or compositions you submit to contests, publications, or blogged
• Art, videos, games, or photographs you produced

Avoid Sharing Potentially Negative Comments or Pictures

Some people publish pictures of them drinking, partying, or other potentially embarrassing moments—Don’t. They will be seen by others. You may lose scholarships.

Saturday we share a caution about scholarship financial planners

Sources of Money 9: FindTuition.com Sponsored by Classes and Career.com

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

Benefits of FindTuition.com

www.FindTuition.com displays a very simple web site. Each page use very few words. The bottom of each page displays columns listing the number of scholarships by eligibility, by college, and by major. The columns do not link anywhere.

The simple design directs you to “Start here” and follow each page with the prompts “Next”. The site offers a linear process without much branching, distractions, or other options.

Disadvantages of FindTuition.com

The site also branches to other sites seamlessly. For example, I was following the prompts to identify possible schools. Yet, I suddenly found myself in a site called CampusCorner. In addition, you can click an arrow and find yourself at a school’s web site, like ITT Technical Institute.

I never found any lists of scholarships or grants that gave me information to act upon.

The fine print at the bottom of the site states

“We are able to provide this free service due to the willingness of our users to be contacted by colleges and our other marketing partners. We will keep you informed of the latest scholarship opportunities; plus, you could receive FREE information about colleges and promotions from top companies. If you choose not to receive information at this time, you can opt-out.”

In addition to the fine print, you must complete a personal profile to get to the list of scholarships or schools. In step three of the five step process you must click a button that says you will allow them to send you promotional information. You cannot complete the next two steps unless you click that you agree.

The privacy statement says

“REMEMBER: IF YOU MAKE USE OF THE SITE, REGISTER WITH THE SITE, REQUEST INFORMATION THAT WE MAY OFFER OR SUBMIT INFORMATION IN ANY WAY TO OR THROUGH THE SITE YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS. AS WE UPDATE AND EXPAND OUR SERVICES, THIS POLICY MIGHT CHANGE, SO PLEASE REVIEW IT FROM TIME TO TIME.”

Thursday we discuss how social media can enhance your applications and qualifications

Caveat Emptor or Buyer Beware 5: If it Appears to Easy, It May be a Scam

Saturdays we share tips or cautions to facilitate getting scholarships or avoiding problems

Beth went to scholarship search engines and completed the profiles. Her results amazed her. One search engine indicated she qualified for more than 200 possible scholarships. Some of them seemed so easy as she began applying for them. Many of them asked only 3-5 questions, mostly about her contact information. When she completed the questions the site informed her that someone would contact her is she won the scholarship. Then, the sites instructed her to click on a link on the page if she was interested in another scholarship. She called us wondering about these quick and easy applications. She found her answer when she received 1,000s of spam messages in the next few weeks.

If Its Too Good to Be True…

This represents the newest variation on an old scam. These “scholarships” are really contests. They share some of the same characteristics as a lottery. The sponsor asks you to do some minor action to “qualify” for a certain amount of money. They announce winners as recipients. You complete whatever they ask, and you become one of the people who qualify for the award.

The purpose of these “easy” scholarship/contests is to gather your personal information and sell it to others.

A New Angle to an Old Scam

The new angle involves the link to another “scholarship”. These fishing expeditions net a lot of people in their deception. One contact, generates another, which links to another. Some of these patterns include 5-6 opportunities to gather you email address, name, and other information.

In addition, the very fine print (.00001 point font or invisible text color) gives them permission to use your information to send you additional information about schools, education, or other educational related promotions.

I need to clarify, however, that while I use words like deception or scam, what they do is legal. These companies really provide the awards they advertise. Someone always wins.

You need to decide if the consequences validates the chance of winning.

Tuesday we will review the scholarship search engine www.FindTuition.com