Tips For Applying For The Gates Scholarships And.pptx

8/14/2019 Tips For Applying For The Gates Scholarships And.pptx

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Keith L. Anderson, Ph.D.



What are scholarships? Scholarships are a source of money you get through

doing something well such as sports, music,academics, etc.

The Gates is no different. You win the Gates becausethe information you provide, proves to the readers that you have a bright future and deserve to win help

paying for your college. Football and basketball playersdo the same thing.

Non-Gates scholarships are also awarded for variousreasons.



How the Gates and other

Scholarships work. The Gates picks up any tuition that your financial aid

packet doesn’t pick up. Your GPA, ACT and SAT scoreslimits you to which institutions the Gates helps you toattend.

The Gates and most other scholarship are competitive.

The Gates and most other scholarships have

requirements to be eligible to win. (next slide) The Gates Scholarship is intense. They make you work

for it. However, it isn’t really difficult work if you havean idea about your future.



Gates Eligibility Requirements Are African American, American Indian/Alaska Native,

Asian & Pacific Islander American or Hispanic American

Are a citizen, national or legal permanent resident of theUnited States

Have attained a cumulative high school GPA of 3.3 on anun-weighted 4.0 scale

Will enroll for the first time at a U.S. located, accreditedcollege or university in the fall of 2014 as a full-time,degree-seeking, first-year student

Meet the Federal Pell Grant eligibility criteria



Other Scholarships’ Eligibility

Requirements Make sure you meet scholarship’s grade point averagerequirements. Cumulative high school GPA.

Are a citizen, national or legal permanent resident of theUnited States?

Will you enroll for the first time at a U.S. located,accredited college or university in the fall of 2014 as afull-time, degree-seeking, first-year student?



GMSP Website http://www.gmsp.org/

How to access the GMSP application (log-in)

http://www.gmsp.org/




Scholarship Websites See handout



Number of Scholarships Awarded 1,000 students are selected as Gates Scholars annually

1,300-1,500 students are selected as Finalists

Last year 54,000 applications were started, but only17,000 were completed

Only 1,736 applications referenced Upward Bound orEducational Talent Search

Of those, 73 were selected as Scholars (120 as Finalists)



Other Scholarships Awarded There are $46 billion in free scholarship money

awarded each year by the Department of Education.

There are $35 million in college scholarships that areavailable through private companies, foundations, andcivic groups.

Colleges award federal grants, state scholarships and

their own scholarships that are funded through theirendowments.



Cont. Other Scholarships Awarded 1. Federal Grants Awarded by the Colleges

Pell and Supplements Education Opportunity Grants Awarded to the students with family income of less that $38,000 with no reportable assets

Federal Academic Competitiveness Grant Awarded to Pell Grant recipients witha 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale in their first two years

National SMART Grant Awarded to Pell Grant recipients in degree programsdeemed critical by the Department of Education, who are in their third andfourth years of college

National TEACH Grant Awarded to students pursuing teaching credentials whoagree to teach in high need fields at low-income schools

The TEACH Grant is not a need-based award 2. College Need-Based Scholarship

This is free money Awarded to students who meet the college's criteria for financial aid eligibility

and it supplements federal and state funds



Cont. Other Scholarships Awarded 3. College Awarded Scholarships and Grants (FAFSA form not required)

College Merit Based Money Determining factors • SAT Scores • GPA

• Above average achievement in academics, art, etc. • Ethnic, gender, geographic, or religious group of the student applicant withother students in the college's application pool

4. College Recruitment Scholarships (aka - Discounting) Funds awardedby colleges to increase the likelihood that student will choose to enroll at thatschool

May have specific requirements attached Minimum GPA requirement Specific course of study requirement Require 5 courses per semester, with no incompletes

Note: 50% of students receiving recruitment scholarships lose the scholarshipby senior year because they could not meet the requirements



Deadline for the Gates Wednesday, January 15, 2014 at 11:59 PM Eastern

Standard Time (EST)

Check the deadline for every scholarship you apply for.



Timeline for Notification Applications are read and evaluated (by 2 readers) the

last full week in February

Finalists will be notified in mid-March Scholars will be announced in mid-April



Student Nominee Education

Leadership

Honors and Awards Community Service

Paid Employment

Academic Record – 11th and 12th Grade

Financial Aid Info

Essays (8)



Student Form, continuedGo to www.gmsp.org; Click on “GMS Application”





Nominator Form Must be a principal, teacher, guidance counselor,

higher education representative or a professionaleducator

Should I select one of my teachers or my counselor asmy nominator?

Evaluates your academic record

Subject areas in which you outperform your peers Rigor of your coursework

Most compelling reason you deserve to be selected



Recommender Form Must be an adult who is familiar with your community

service and leadership activities

Demonstrated leadership experience/potential

Intellectual curiosity

Service/Community ethic

Evidence of selection by, or influence on, peers

Goal setting



The Essays



Essay Tips General Guidelines Essays should be 2 to 3 paragraphs (Gates) Hand-out

Essays should be however many words the scholarshipsuggests

Try to use examples to illustrate important points

Write to EXPRESS not to IMPRESS

Show your leadership, community service,

extracurricular activities, and how you plan tocontribute to the community



Gates #19 & General Scholarships Discuss the subjects in which you excel or have

excelled. To what factors do you attribute your success?Use specific examples to illustrate how you succeeded.

TIP: Write about your strengths academically. Gates &colleges in general are looking to see that you have a

positive self-image and that you have confidence in your abilities.



Gates #20 & General Scholarships Discuss the subjects with which you had difficulties. What

factors do you believe contributed to your difficulties? Howhave you dealt with them? In what areas have you

experienced the greatest improvement? What problemareas remain? Explain how you have identified yourproblems, and give examples of how you made orattempted to make improvements.

TIP: Write about your weaknesses academically. What are

your problem solving skills when you encounterchallenges? How do you overcome such difficulties or

weaknesses? What changes or measures are you willing tomake in order for you to succeed?



Gates #21 & General Scholarships Describe a situation where you or others were treated

unfairly or were not given an opportunity you felt youdeserved. Why do you think it happened? How did you

respond? Did the situation improve as a result of yourresponse? Explain why you thought your situation wasunfair and why your response made a difference.

TIP: Pull from your experiences in your community.

How did you deal with the difficult situation? Whatproblem solving skills did you use? Write about thetimes you had to stand up for what was a hard choiceto make.



Gates #22 & General Scholarships Discuss your short and long term goals. Are they

related? Which are priority? Be specific. Provideexamples of having met any of them.

TIP: Look at your goals in terms of 10 or 20 years fromnow. Be sure to include how you plan to give back to

your community.



Gates #23 & General Scholarships Discuss your leadership experience, in the area of

school, work, athletics, family, church, community,etc. How and why did you become a leader in this

area? How did the experience influence your goals? Donot just provide the list from the leadership section.Pick the most important leadership experience andprovide more details.

TIP: Pull from experiences within your community orlook at some of the roles you listed in question 22.

EXAMPLES: See Hand-out



Gates #24 & General Scholarships Discuss your involvement in and contributions to a

community near your home, school, or elsewhere.Select an experience different from the one you

discussed in the previous questions. What did youaccomplish? How did the experience influence yourgoals? Be sure to explain how your involvement made adifference to others.

TIP: Pull from experiences within your community orlook at some of the roles you listed in question 20.




Gates #25 & General Scholarships Other than through classes in school, in what areas

(non-academic or academic) have you acquiredknowledge or skills. How? Explain how you acquired

the knowledge.

TIP: Here you write about anything (music, familytraditions, hobbies). Try writing about culturalactivities that you are involved in.




Gates #26 & General Scholarships Is there anything else you would like to tell us about

personal characteristics, obstacles you have overcome,etc. that may help us evaluate your nomination? Please

do not reiterate information you already haveprovided. This is your opportunity to state somethingabout yourself that was not asked previously.

TIP: End the essay with a “Thank you”. The readersappreciate students who thanked them for readingtheir essays.

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Tips For Applying For The Gates Scholarships And.pptx