Teradata, known as specializing in data warehousing and enterprise analytics, is sponsor of the FIRST Robotics Competition known at the FIRST Tech Challenge. To be eligible for the scholarship high school seniors must show an interest in science and technology and demonstrate strong leadership roles at school and within their community. In addition, students must plan to attend a sanctioned university in a science, math or engineering related field.

Susan Baxley, the director of community relations at Teradata Corp, says, “It’s exciting to see what theses students have accomplished already in their lives. They are great academic leaders in their schools or community”. It is hoped that their interest in technology will continue and they pursue science and technology as a career.

Teradata is also a supporter of the development of young minds. They support the LEGO League. At the FIRST LEGO League, elementary and middle school students build LEGO robots that perform a variety of tasks. There are several categories depending on the age groups and interests including:

• FIRST ® Robotics Competition (FRC ®)
• FIRST ®Tech Challenge (FTC®)  for high school aged students
• FIRST ® Lego® League (FLL) for 8 to 14 year olds
• Junior FIRST  ® Lego ® League (Jr. FLL) for 6 to 9 year olds

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For those who have not been guaranteed a full scholarship to their choice of school or who have not been able to put away enough cash in a college savings plan, this is the time to get prepared to find financing.

Experts advise families start now to take the necessary steps for financing the costs of higher education. Here are some guidelines to make the most of the time left:

Start Applying
Too many people are under the false notion they do not qualify for different types of financial aid. There are many scholarships and grants available from local resources like the government on both state and federal levels. They are also available from the colleges being attended.

Get Ready
The FAFSA form (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is available online at fafsa.ed.gov. Representative say students and families should begin applying by mid-February if this is their first year in college. For returning students, the form should be received in the office by early March. It is advisable to wait until after tax returns for the previous year have been completed and filed so that filling out the FAFSA form is more accurate. Experts also encourage families to complete the form on their own and not seek out special consultant services for help. The fees for help can be exorbitant and unnecessary. The people at FAFSA can assist with the application process for free. Acceptance for FAFSA will likely be available by the end of March so families will know relatively early where they stand and how much they are eligible to receive.

Loans Should Be An Option
Many families are only looking at free scholarships and grants but experts say loans are still a good way to finance higher education. Apply for loan amounts that are not outrageous so they can feasibly be repaid after graduation.

Student Involvement
There are many colleges and universities that offer on-campus working opportunities. Students can find an on-campus job to earn money towards their education and expenses. It is also a good way to socialize in a new environment. Caution should be directed towards off-campus employment because it has been shown to cause distractions and other problems. During busy times like exams and holidays, on-campus employers are sympathetic to a student’s studies and are more apt to being flexible. The same is not always true of off-campus employers.

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For many experienced potential students, there is a lot of concern about money and time in reviving an education. However, many of those back-to-schoolers are unaware that there are indeed scholarships and other financial assistance options for those returning to school in their later years. It is common to think that only those fresh out of high school are eligible to pursue and receive scholarships in order to go on to college. In fact there are several monetary scholarship awards that have been created only for those students who are older.

If you are interested in returning to college but have been prevented by financial difficulties, do not give up hope. Instead, start focusing on the places that award funding to adults going back to school. Existing work and life experiences can be an integral part of the application process and many professional associations do offer such awards.

Here are some additional tips for finding scholarship money.

• Start out at the financial aid office of the school you are interested in attending. Use the resources at the school to seek out additional opportunities. Ask the academic department for information about scholarships that are based on profession.
• After you have gathered information from the school’s resources, seek out advice and additional resources from your local adult education office. They may be knowledgeable about local scholarships for those returning to school.
• Once you have exhausted your local searches, you can do some internet work to find national scholarships aimed at adult students. You may even qualify for traditional scholarships that are typically doled out to recent high school graduates.
• While it is not the same as a scholarship, you may also want to check with your employer about tuition reimbursement programs. Many companies will offer full or partial reimbursement of tuition costs for those employees who plan to further educate themselves provided the degree is relevant to their present job. Find out what the requirements and stipulations are before committing to any arrangements, as many companies will require an agreement to be signed that requires you to remain at the company for a specific period of time.

Yes Virginia, There is a Scholarship was created by and is property of American Consumer News.

You can focus your search by using a site like Scholarships.com – an online database containing over 2.7 million scholarships and grants that are worth over $19 billion!  Instead of searching multiple websites to find several opportunities you can apply for; you can just start with this site and find millions in one place.  With that many opportunities, you would think it would be difficult to find anything that you qualify for, but you can use the search function of the site to narrow the results down to just the scholarships and grants that interest you.

Whether you’re looking for the Bill Gates scholarship, or want to search based on your special skills and interest, you will probably find a number of potential scholarships that you can apply for at scholarships.com.  For example, if you have artistic abilities in music or painting; you can see available scholarships in those areas.  Athletic scholarships are available, as are academic scholarships. If you attend to major in science or engineering, you can view possible scholarships based on your academic area of interest.   There are even a number of scholarships that are not specific to any field of study or student expertise; but are awarded based on your ethnicity or based on where your parents work.  This ensures that everyone has an opportunity to qualify and apply for several scholarships to help reduce the cost of their education- whether they’re going into their freshmen year of undergraduate school or finishing their final year in graduate school.

Scholarships and grants are the best way to reduce the amount of money (or fully fund your college education).  They do not have to be paid back, so it is like having free money! It only takes a few minutes to create your (free) account and start searching, and the possibility of saving a few hundred dollars- or maybe a few thousand- on your college education is well worth the time you’ll spend on the site.

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In Free College Money Part 3 of this five-part series, college grants were defined as “a gift of money…not a reward that you have to pay back or compete for…” Unlike grants, you do have to compete to win scholarships and they are awarded based on prearranged criterion, creativity and a unique application. While grants are usually given from a budget and awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis, scholarships are given all year long and have definitive deadlines that you must keep in mind when applying. Also, where grants are given to any number of students, scholarships are awarded to a select few applicants.

In the past, it was common for scholarships to be awarded largely based on merit, but nowadays, scholarships are awarded for a large variety of reasons including where a student lives, goes to school, the profession they are pursuing, and personal interests. The key in searching for scholarships is to apply where your student fulfills the largest number of criteria, thereby eliminating the competition and increasing the odds of taking home the award.

Listed here are seven places to begin your scholarship search:

1. Federal Student Aid: The U.S. Department of Education has set up a website (Student Aid) to provide free college money information, as well as money for technical schools, trade schools or career enhancement. This handy little website has a Scholarship Matching Wizard that anyone can use to create a search for free college money. You simply enter as much of the student’s information as possible to find all types of related scholarships. Once entered, this site will match you with hundreds of potential scholarships based on race, ethnicity, high school, college, national merit status, Greek organization, sports, religion, disability, profession, affiliations, marital status, art, interests and other miscellaneous criteria.

2. By State: One of the best ways to find available grants and scholarships is to do a search at the website of the state a student resides in or is planning to attend school in. State websites gather information for legally registered programs within their boundaries, and scholarships listed there have the best chance of being legitimate as well as having a more narrowed criterion. These scholarships are often state-related and generally awarded first to residents of the state.

3. By College: Each college a student may wish to attend (whether community college, trade school or university) has a financial aid office. This is an excellent place to begin a search for free college money since they have lists of scholarships created strictly for their own attendees. These scholarships often come from local contributors and corporations, but the college financial aid office will also have the 4-1-1 on other scholarships frequently awarded to their students. Drop by the prospective colleges and find out from their financial aid officers exactly which scholarships your student might receive for attending their college instead of another.

4. By Major/Minor: Once a student has stated their desired major, they will be able to find a long list of scholarships awarded strictly to that major. However, just because a student has declared a major, this does not mean they cannot qualify for scholarships in other fields as well. Declared minors also open up the possibility of winning more free college money. Therefore, apply for everything your student is interested in regardless of whether you think your student will qualify or not.

5. By Trade Affiliations: Checking with your job is an excellent way to find money for students. Not only can you deduct up to $5,250 of money given to you by a job for college expenses, but it gives your employer tax advantages as well. If this is out of the question, look for trade associations related to your student’s future profession since many of these trade associations offer discounts or scholarships that are never awarded. These programs are not advertised as widely as other scholarships, so your student will have a better chance of winning them.

6. Online: Fastweb.com, Scholarships.com, and CollegeBoard.com are three excellent online resources to begin your search for college scholarships. You simply fill out a free application and within minutes, thousands of scholarships will be listed that are related specifically to your student’s future. Through these websites, you can also download scholarship applications, apply directly in some instances, find out the amount of the awards before you apply, review detailed deadlines at a glimpse, and quite possibly win hundreds of thousands of dollars for your student’s college education. As an added bonus, these companies will e-mail you whenever a new scholarship becomes available that fits your students application.

7. Books: Although I would recommend doing a search online before getting a book, there are many books available that provide excellent resources on scholarships and their qualifying criteria. Some of these books include: the Fiske Guide to Colleges, The College Board Scholarship Handbook 2008, and Kaplan Scholarships: Billions of Dollars in Free Money for College. However, you can also find books dedicated specifically to your student’s criteria, grades or major, like College Guide for Performing Arts Majors 2008: Real-World Admission Guide for All Dance, Music, and Theater Majors, Financial Aid for Asian Americans 2006-2008, and Technology Grant News : Everything Technology 2008. These are just a few that you could look for in your local bookstore.

BEWARE OF SCAMS

A scholarship or grant is free money…money you should never need to pay for. Beware of companies that charge an application fee, demand money to pay out an awarded scholarship, claim you’re a finalist in a scholarship contest but need money for that scholarship, or request your social security number, credit card number or bank account information in relation to “holding a scholarship or grant for you.” Be wary of free seminars that turn into high-pressure sales pitches regarding financial aid since financial aid information is easy to find for free. Also, do not believe companies that “guarantee” a scholarship. Any and all claims should include qualifications or disclaimers.

Now that you have an idea of where to begin looking for scholarships, don’t forget to check out Parts 1, 2 and 3 of this series (Starting with Pennies, Tax Programs and Hundreds of Grants) for other great resources on Free College Money. Also, check back next week for the last article in this five-part series: “Free College Money Part 5: Rock Bottom College Alternatives.” This last article discusses the little-known options that can help your student get their degree for a fraction of the cost.

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