REAL LIFE: COLLEGE

Paying for College

By Cindy, age 17, Texas

From the moment we embark on the long journey of going through elementary, middle, and high schools, we have all heard the word "college." One moment you're still thinking what the word means, and the next you're preparing to enter its world. Sometimes we already have a school in sight, one we have dreamed about our whole lives, while others might have an idea of their top five choices. But ultimately you need to pay for the school.

At times like these in our world economy, we'll be having a harder time digging up financial resources to pay for a higher education. We all know that we need to head off to college to start a career, so putting it off is not an option. Yet, we still have to locate those hidden money trees that will aid us in paying for college.

The best options for those financial resources are mostly scholarships. You can apply for financial aid later on in your senior year and that might help with some of the cost, but in some cases we still need more money. Scholarships are a great option to earn some money, and they can be based on your academic successes, interests, intended majors, or your involvement in school and community. Other scholarships are based on some pretty eccentric things, such as your height, or require you to do some project like a duct tape dress for prom.

The point about scholarships is that you want to research as much as possible, and even though it might seem like you never find any new ones, you need to keep going. Hundreds of scholarships are available, but if you don't put any effort into searching for them you'll never earn that valuable money. Besides, you don't have to pay a single dime for applying for these scholarships; if you win one, the money is all yours.

I am entering my senior year, and I know the difficult process of searching for scholarships. They can be a hassle sometimes between school and other activities, but no fairy is going to pop out and hand me money. Nope, I have to do the work and write essays and collect recommendation letters. I have spent dozens of hours on the Internet searching for a scholarship, and sometimes my work is not that productive, but I keep trying.

If you're in the college process and already searching for ways to pay for it, scholarships serve as a great opportunity. There are tons of companies and people out there who give scholarships to students who want to go for a higher education, and that's the first thing you need to know: you are not alone in the process of payment. The only thing they ask of you is to put in a couple of hours.

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