Scholarships

Scholarships are a great way to help pay for college. Do the work to earn the money!

There are three main sources of scholarships:

1. Institutional Scholarships (from the College)

2. Local Scholarships

3. National Scholarships

Check out these resources to help you get started:

Student Scholarship Workshop Presentation Slides (from January 2024)
Parent/Guardian "Learn A L.A.H.-tte" Presentation (12.6.22) Recording (Basically the slides from above but with discussion.)
Watch Mr. C's Scholarship Overview video HERE.

Identify possible scholarships from trustworthy sources:

Check out this "Where To Find Scholarships & Grants" resource!
File the FAFSA and any other required financial aid forms for need-based scholarships.

INSTITUTIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS

(From the colleges directly)

Check the Admissions and Financial Aid webpages at the colleges you are considering.
Look for automatic merit scholarships, as well as others that may require a separate application.
See THIS LIST and THIS LIST of out-of-state colleges that offer special scholarships for Illinois residents. (These lists are not maintained by JHHS, but crowd sourced from area high school counselors.)
TIP: This is typically where the largest scholarship awards come from!

LOCAL SCHOLARSHIPS

All local scholarships received by the JHHS CCC are entered into THIS LOCAL SCHOLARSHIP SPREADSHEET, which is a great way to look through some potential opportunities! Bookmark it!
- Most opportunities are for Seniors, with the majority becoming available during the 2nd semester of Senior Year.
Don’t forget that parent and student employers, churches, professional organizations or trade unions are also good sources of local scholarships as well.
TIP: Local scholarships usually have the best chances of being awarded because the pool of applicants is the smallest. Many local scholarships, including ones offered ONLY to Hersey students, often end up with few-to-no applications!
Contact Mr. Chiakulas or our Postsecondary Counseling Assistant with local scholarship questions.

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS

Search for national scholarships using online scholarships searches such as College Board, Fast Web, Scholarships.com, Hispanic Scholarship Fund, MALDEF (Latinx students), and UNCF (African-American students).
Common App has a scholarship matching program. Their partnership with the National Scholarship Providers Association may notify you if you're matched to a scholarship before applying for it within your Common App account. (You must complete the Profile, Education, and Activities sections of your Common Application.) - Can do this prior to senior year!
Harper College also has a great list of EXTERNAL SCHOLARSHIPS that are not specific to Harper.
TIP: National scholarships are often the most competitive and have the least chance of being awarded. Don't get too caught up in the big dollar amounts. Oftentimes these websites use your data to sell to other organizations. You may want to really think about how much time, if any, you want to dedicate to applying for national scholarships.

OTHER TIPS TO CONSIDER!

1) Pay close attention to DEADLINE DATES on the applications.

If letters of recommendation are required, ask the writer at least three weeks in advance of the deadline so that they have time to write a thoughtful recommendation. See the "Letters of Recommendation" menu for teacher and counselor letters of rec information.

2) Organize your work and complete the application.

Save any essays or other common information in a Google doc before submitting so you can access it again for future scholarships.
Many scholarships use the same, or very similar, essay questions. Here are some Common Scholarship Questions you can get started on.
Review these "12 Tips on Winning a Scholarship"

Remember, scholarships are meant to be free money given to the student. Beware of anything that guarantees money, costs money to search, or asks for personal financial information.

Transcripts

For any scholarship applications requiring a transcript, hopefully you can send in an unofficial transcript from Infinite Campus.

If not, you will order a transcript through SchooLinks (starting in the 2025-26 school year). More info coming!

OR, you can fill out a Transcript Request Form with our Registrar, Mrs. Schwichtenberg.

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