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There are Scholarships Right Under Your Nose


How many times have you torn up your room looking for something only to discover that it was right in front of you in plain sight?

We see this happen time and time again with scholarships. Students look far and wide for awards when there is plenty of cash right under their noses.

Really, it’s true!

We call these awards "backyard scholarships" because they are found right in your own community. These local scholarships are a potential gold mine. Plus, since many online scholarship databases and books don't index these local awards, they attract far less competition—which means you have a much better chance of winning.

But finding backyard scholarships takes a little more effort than simply searching an Internet database. You’ll need to do some detective work.

Here’s how:

Pick up the telephone to contact local community groups, service clubs, churches, charities and civic organizations. You can find them listed in your phonebook and by asking the people who work at your local community center and public library. You can even drive out to the city limits and look for the sign that says, "Welcome to Your City." Beneath that sign are often plaques of the names of the local civic groups (e.g. Lions, Kiwanis, Knights of Columbus, VFW, etc.) that are active in your area. When you speak to a member ask if they award scholarships or if they know of other local organizations that do. Many of these organizations do not publicize their awards effectively so you need to take the initiative to find them.

Get parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts involved by having them inquire with their employers and other clubs or organizations to which they belong. It’s surprising how many supermarkets, drug stores, unions, etc. offer scholarships. Often just by making your relatives aware that you are looking for money will help them to spot awards that you would not have known about.

Use the resources of your school or college. Just about every high school counseling office and college financial aid office has a database or directory of local awards. If your school does not have a good list, visit the website or offices of neighboring schools. Many high school counseling offices have dedicated sections within the school’s website where they post information about college including local scholarships. No need to limit yourself to the resources of your school!

Go to the library. The public library and the librarians who work there are huge repositories of knowledge. They might not only know about specific scholarships but they can also lead you to other sources to find organizations in the community.

Scan back issues of the local newspaper or news website for announcements of scholarship winners. If you’re lucky the community newspaper or website has an online archive. If not you may need to search actual back issues. Look for announcements of students who have won scholarships. Note who the awarding organization is and contact them to find out how to apply next year.

Big businesses and organizations. Most large corporations, businesses and organizations such as sports teams award scholarships to students that live within their community. If your city is home to one of these, contact them directly and see what scholarships may be available. Businesses like Target, Wal-Mart and many major league teams offer awards as a way to thank the community for supporting them.

This should give you a good starting point. As you begin your search for backyard awards you will find many more places to look.

And keep in mind that while some of these backyard scholarships may be small in amount, they don’t require you to compete against every student in the country—just those who live in your area--and even then only against those who took the time and effort to find the awards.