Spring Scholarships

You are probably sick of hearing about scholarships. You may have been applying to scholarships all year, or you may have been putting it off. Either way, spring is a great time to head down to your counselors office and see what kind of local scholarships you can apply for! An extra $1-5K can really help make your college option more affordable!

What spring scholarships can do:

Spring scholarships can help bridge a small gap between your financial aid award and the amount that your family can pay for college. If you work hard, adding $2-5K to your financial aid award can really help make your first year more affordable!

What spring scholarships are unlikely to do:

Cover a gap of $10K or more. If your dream schools aren't affordable and leave with you with a large gap between what your family can afford to pay and the cost of the college, spring scholarships are unlikely to net you more than $5K. Don't rely on the vague promise of "scholarships" to turn an unaffordable offer into your college of choice!

Resources for Spring Scholarships

1. Your School & Community

The spring is all about local scholarships. They may be smaller in award but you might be more competitive for these scholarships since there are fewer students applying. Apply, apply, apply!

Ask your high school guidance counselor for a list of local scholarships — Your school's counseling office should be your first stop to find local scholarships.
Look at your high school's website...and the websites of other schools in your district — If your counselor is busy, then take a moment to look at your school's website. You may be surprised that there is a list that no one has ever told you about! If that is still not producing results, think of a school in your area that is maybe larger than your school or a "college prep" school, if your school is not one. Sometimes they may have a better list on their website, or at least a different list than your school, filled with local scholarships.
Check with organizations around you — Many times, organizations that you have connections with offer small scholarships for which you might be eligible! Check with religious institutions you attend, volunteer organizations you're involved with, and jobs where family members work to see if they have scholarships.

2. Your Colleges

Although most large admission scholarship deadlines at colleges are typically in the fall or winter, you can still check two sources of funding.

Scholarship Portal

Many colleges have scholarship lists or portals with smaller scholarships for both incoming & returning students.

Departmental Scholarships

Usually departmental scholarships are for returning students, but there are often some opportunities for incoming students as well. Check on the department website or with a professor in the department for any opportunities for incoming undergraduate students.

3. Online Search

There's no easy way to do scholarships, but after exhausting your local school & community, and your top choice colleges, you can try searching online to see what scholarships are still out there.

Scholarship Lists from College Possible

Scholarships for Students without U.S. Citizenship/Permanent Residency

If you do not have U.S. citizenship or permanent residency, see below for some larger lists of scholarships that you may be eligible for:

Immigrants Rising Undergraduate Scholarships — Contains scholarships for undergraduate studies that don’t require proof of citizenship or legal permanent residency.
MALDEF Scholarship Guide — MALDEF is a civil rights organization that supports the next generation of civil rights advocates for the Latino community.
ScholarshipsAZ.org also has some great resources you can look into...
- Including this Complete ScholarshipsAZ List.
DREAMer's Roadmap Scholarship List and the Free Mobile App that helps undocumented students find scholarships to go to college.
The Davis-Putter Scholarship for student activists will open in the spring!
Scholarships for International Students