Improving your chances of earning college scholarships

It might seem overwhelming to secure scholarships to help pay for college, but there are plenty of opportunities available to you. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, nearly 66 percent of all undergraduates received some form of financial aid during the 2007-2008 school year, which means that the odds are in your favor. However, you'll still need to distinguish yourself from other students in order to impress scholarship judges. Here are some tips on improving your chances of earning college scholarships.

Maintain your GPA
While grades aren't the main qualification for many scholarships, maintaining a good GPA will help demonstrate to judges that you're an ambitious and hardworking individual. Not only will this improve your shot at earning financial aid not directly related to classroom performance, but you may also qualify for additional academic scholarships.

Apply like crazy
Just like finding a job, securing scholarship money is all about playing the numbers - the more applications you submit, the better your chances of earning financial aid. If you're serious about offsetting the rising costs of college tuition, apply for as many scholarships as you can before high school graduation.

Keep track of deadlines
With so many different dates floating through your mind, it's important keep track of scholarship deadlines so they don't pass you by. Consider creating a detailed schedule about when you plan to work on each application so that you have plenty of advanced notice.

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