Looking for Graduate School Scholarships? Get Creative…

So you have made the decision to go graduate school. Have you decided how you are going to pay for it?

Many students finance their graduate education through federal and private loans. Other students utilize school scholarships designed for their specific program of study. And although these are all great resources for paying the tuition bill….many students continue to miss out on other great opportunities for free money. Fortunately looking for scholarships is a lot easier now than ten years ago. With the age of the internet…access to free money is only a stroke of a keyboard away. Here a few some tips on finding money for graduate school:

• Explore local and community resources for scholarships and grants.
  Sometimes the money is right under your nose. If you are picking a field such as the health sciences for example, local hospitals and clinics will offer small community scholarships. Also research local chapters of chamber of commerce, Kiwanis organizations, church groups for assistance.

• Research professional organizations. Some industries have very strong organizational memberships. These organizations provide scholarships to their members who wish to pursue professional development or graduate education. If you are working and belong to one of these organizations, be sure to inquire about support funding. A few examples of such organizations include: The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE); The America Bar Association (ABA); Daughters of the American Revolution; The American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA);

• Go Corporate. Believe it or not….the corporate world can be very generous. Companies ranging from Walmart to Target offer scholarships for students wishing to study in just about any field. Look up some of your favorite companies and see if they offer any educational competitions for grants and scholarships.

• Lastly, DO NOT PAY for free information on scholarships! There are plenty of scholarship websites available that provide free search engines to locate grants and scholarships. Some of these include (www.gradschools.com; www.fastweb.com; and www.scholarships.com) However….there are companies out there that host websites that require students to pay for scholarship information. Mostly likely these sites are making money on something that is otherwise free and accessible for everyone.