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FINANCIAL AID LINKS AND ADVICE

1. The time to start thinking about scholarships and grants is not at the last minute.  Start thinking about scholarships and grants at the same time you are considering schools and preparing for SAT’s.  (Plus it helps to have and maintain your grades well above average when you are seeking academic-based financial aid).

2. Visit your high school guidance counselor and speak with him or her about your interest in getting information about any scholarships or grants for which you may be eligible.  Do not do this just one time. Continue to make follow up visits to your counselor throughout the year because new information about resources for school can come in at any time in the school year. Remember, you are on a quest for financial aid; you cannot wait for people to come to you to give you financial aid.

3. Do your own research for financial aid!

• You are very fortunate that you can access Internet financial aid search databases wherein you can answer a questionnaire and they will sift through all the sources for only those that apply to your situation.  It is much easier than the book searches I had to do in the past- it was real research. 
• You may think it may take a while to complete the questionnaires, but it is so well worth your time when you see the scholarship information that they yield.

Below are a few Financial Aid Internet Web Sites you can use in your search for financial aid for school:

1. Fast Aid 
2. FastWeb 
3. Financial Aid Org 
4. Free Scholarship Information
5. Collegenet 
6. SRNExpress
7. College Board Organization
8. Sallie Mae (this may sound like it is all about loans, but it is not- this site has an excellent scholarship search engine)
9. College Quest
10. College Foundation of North Carolina(This is NC's Excellent Gateway for Financial Aid!)
11. Peterson's Financial Information

Other links:

• federal student aid programs
• postsecondary schools
• Your state's web site for scholarships your state has to offer for students. (North Carolina)
• Financial web sites of the colleges you are considering. In North Carolina: 16 institutions of the UNC system.

Scholarship Pages

1. Gates Millennium Scholarship
2. Scholarships for American Indians- courtesy of University of Miami
3. Native American Financial Aid- courtesy of Eastern Oregon University
4. Native Health Education Fund
   1701 Pleasant Green Road
   Durham, NC 27705
   (919) 383-1038 phone or fax
   NAHEFSCHOLARSHIP@aol.com
   

4. You have visited your counselor, visited the websites, so now what do you do?  Organize your information, prepare correspondence, and begin to complete applications.

Organize Information. It helps to keep all financial aid information in one binder.  All the information you will need is there in one place. 

1. One section of this binder/notebook could be set aside for scholarships/grants/financial aid applications you have obtained from your counselor or through correspondence.  Placing the applications in descending application deadline date order would also be helpful.
2. Another section could be set aside for the financial aid Internet search results. Using this method, you can record when you requested an application, when the application was received, whether the scholarship did/not apply to you and rejections received.
3. The last section could be a place to keep copies of: (a) completed scholarship applications, (b) scholarship essays, and (c) other additional information that may be requested to complete scholarship applications (e.g., copies of tribal enrollment card, admission letters of college acceptance, and school transcripts).  The benefit of keeping this information is that you will have it to refer to later and it will save you the trouble of locating this information later.  (Also, you may want to consider saving any word-processed scholarship essays in a separate folder in your word-processing program.)

Prepare Correspondence

• For Help and Reference with Grammar/Writing/English: Visit BJ Pinchbeck's Homework Helper English Page this is an excellent site with links that will help you in your letter and essay preparation. (Don't think it is just for kids because it is on the Discovery Channel Website/ it has links that will help college students!)
• Letters: Save all word-processed letters in a separate folder in your word-processing program for additional ease.
• Addressing: Always use titles of address to show respect where appropriate (ex:  Mrs./ Ms./ Miss/The Honorable/Rev./Dr. /Mr., etc.)
• Financial Aid Application Request:  Here is a sample letter format for requesting more information from the organizations identified from your Internet searches:

   

  Month, Day, Year

  
  Organization’s Name
  Organization’s Address

  Dear Sir or Madam:

  I am (Your Name), an American Indian (describe here who you are a high school/college/graduate student, teacher/what profession).  I have been accepted at (Name of Your University) and I plan to pursue a (tell what degree) in (tell what major).

  (If you have any other special considerations that would be beneficial to inform the organization of concerning the application, ex: if your mother/father was a veteran or an employee of this organization this would be good to let them know very briefly).

  Please forward an application and any other additional information concerning your financial aid program for higher education.  Your time and effort is greatly appreciated.

  Sincerely,

  
  Your Name
  Your Address
  Your Phone Number
  Your E-mail Address
  Enc: SASE (Enclosing a self-addressed stamped envelope, SASE, is very important. You are seeking financial aid, help them to get the information you need!)

• Letters of recommendation. Here is a sample letter for requesting letters of recommendation.

Month Day, Year

Individual’s Name
Individual’s Position/Title
Organization’s Address

Dear Individual’s Name:

I am applying for a scholarship from (name of organization, organization address here) and I would like to ask you for a letter of recommendation to accompany the request.

(Give here all the information your reference will need about the organization and the scholarship in this part of the letter.  Include copies of information on the organization.  Remember, the purpose of this letter is to get a letter of recommendation from this individual and as such you need to supply them with the best information you can so they can write the best letter of recommendation about you for you.  If it would help, include a copy of your resume, a list of your accomplishments, awards, etc.)

Enclosed is a self addressed stamped envelope so you can send the recommendation with your signature across the seal to my home so I can mail the recommendation along with the application by (date that is at least 6 weeks before the application due date so you don’t have to worry about getting late recommendations). 

Your help is greatly appreciated! If you have questions or need more information, please feel free to contact me by phone (give #) or email (give email address).

Sincerely,

Your Name
Your Address
Your Phone Number
Your E-mail Address
Enc: SASE (and any other documentation you need to attach)

Complete applications 

1. Always make a copy of your blank applications to complete first before you actually type on the original.  This way you have a guide to type from and you will not make mistakes. If you do make mistakes you have a blank application you can use to start again. Again, by keeping a financial aid binder, you will have most of the information organized that may be requested on the application being completed.
2. Essays: make sure your essay addresses what the application asks, is clear and is understandable.  Include in your essay information about how you will use the funds to contribute to society and in your Indian community. That is the ultimate goal of scholarships and grants - to help you so you will in turn be better able to contribute and give back to others.  Be sure to save your essays in your word processing program.  Sometimes essays can be recycled or they can be used as a starting place for new ideas as you write.

5. Always complete a "Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FASA)."  This comes from the US Department of Education, Student Financial Assistance web site and is used by the school's financial aid office to evaluate not only financial need, but other resources the university has for which you may be eligible.

6. Keep in mind as you conduct your financial aid search that the worst they can tell you is "no." Why? If you do not ask or try, you will never know if you could have gotten the scholarship that you applied for.  It is better to deal with rejection, but regret is much harder.

Happy and Successful Scholarship Hunting!

TNAS Contact Information:
Triangle Native American Society
P.O. Box 26841
Raleigh, NC 27611
www.tnasweb.org
tnas@tnasweb.org

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Site Maintained & Updated 3/31/07 by HK Dial- Please Give me feedback- contact me

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