by Steven Tagle
Seven Habits of Highly Effective Scholarship Seekers
In the more than 20 years that I’ve been a teacher and mentor, I’ve given my talk on how to perform effective scholarship searches online to hundreds of college and graduate school students. Many of them asked me, “Do you have a list of scholarships for me?” In response, I always smiled and said, “No, but let me tell you how to make your own personalized list.”
I encouraged them to schedule follow-up appointments, and although plenty started the process and some stuck with it through a few applications, I rarely encountered students who truly took on the challenge, integrating scholarship work into their weekly schedules.
The students who did became my “scholarship ninjas.” They carefully considered the tools, methods, and skills I shared with them, consistently put in the work, and knocked it out of the park.
Jin: A Scholarship Success Story
One of these ninjas–I’ll call him Jin–approached me during his freshman year of college. Like many students who wandered my way, Jin was panicked about his college expenses. Because of his family’s income, he did not qualify for financial aid, but his tense relationship with his parents meant that he had only limited financial support from them. So, despite not qualifying for aid and being claimed as a dependent on his parents’ tax returns, Jin was responsible for the full, in-state cost of attendance at UCLA, which at the time totaled $34,000 per year.
As I walked him through the scholarship landscape, tears came to his eyes as he realized the kind of commitment it would take to earn $34,000 in funding. But then Jin wiped away his tears, thanked me for the information, and got to work.
The Importance of Persistence
Over two years, I worked with Jin almost weekly. The first year was rough: he received disappointing rejections from many organizations. While he made it to the finalist rounds for more than one extremely competitive scholarship, he was ultimately not selected. Those were probably the worst phone calls of the year, for both of us. But along the way, several smaller scholarships came in, some for a few hundred dollars, some for a few thousand. Jin just kept applying. By the end of freshman year, he had covered roughly half the cost of attendance for his sophomore year with scholarships. At the same time, he also pursued work opportunities on campus that significantly reduced the cost of housing.
An Exercise in Hard Work
Jin returned for his sophomore year and continued his application efforts. Based on his work the previous year, he recalibrated his internet searches. As he learned to identify which opportunities were most relevant to him, his personalized list of scholarships grew shorter and clearer. He reapplied to one of the extremely competitive scholarships that had previously rejected him, made it to the finalist round, and was selected as a scholarship recipient.
Along with several small wins, that competitive, renewable scholarship enabled Jin to fund his junior and senior years of college. After two years of intense, strategic, and continuous work, he was suddenly done. He also had a portfolio of written materials about his life and future goals that he could save for his graduate school applications. Later, Jin got into graduate school and received full funding for his studies.
Scholarship Work’s Literal Payoff
I’ve learned a lot from students like Jin, and I’ve grown to appreciate their willingness to share their stories over and over again, despite painful rejection. Applying to scholarships is an arduous and intensely personal exercise but ultimately a necessary one, given the rising cost of education in the United States. For these students, participating in the scholarship search offered benefits that went far beyond the reduction of student debt.
As they pushed themselves to compete for scholarships, they developed drive, resilience, and confidence. The most successful students I’ve worked with have actively adjusted their expectations, frequently engaged in self-reflection, and approached the scholarship process as a chance to develop long-term strategies, routines, and habits.
The Seven Habits of Successful Scholarship Applicants
1. They played the long game.
Even though some students – like Jin – were overwhelmed at first, they learned to think about the scholarship search and application process as a long-term commitment. Over time, every hour that they set aside to hunt for opportunities, write essays, or request letters of recommendation contributed to their self-knowledge, sense of community, and ultimately, their confidence.
2. They grew knowledgeable about campus resources.
As they sought opportunities to fund their degrees, these students became extremely familiar with campus opportunities to engage in research and clinical experiences, create hands-on engineering projects, and work with the greater community. As a result, they learned to seek out a variety of experiences that greatly enhanced their time in college, regardless of whether or not those experiences offered funding.
3. They generated and updated valuable written materials.
Even when they were not actively applying to scholarships, my students habitually updated their resumes, CVs, and personal narratives of their accomplishments as they progressed toward their degrees. When new scholarship opportunities, potential internships, and research roles appeared, these students could quickly submit polished documents that clearly displayed their eligibility as qualified candidates.
4. They carefully organized and integrated scholarship deadlines into their busy schedules.
Staying organized allowed these students to benefit from their previous work. They kept clear records of the scholarships they had considered, crossed off their lists, and applied to. By the end of one annual cycle, these students already had a calendar full of deadlines for the following year, and they treated the application process as part of their regular routine.
5. They learned to think outside the box.
Once they learned how to manage their time and find scholarships, my students regularly broadened their search techniques. When searches started to feel repetitive or unsuccessful, they reassessed and changed their strategies.
6. They applied to scholarships frequently.
Rather than setting their hopes on winning one dream scholarship that would solve all of their financial woes in one fell swoop, these students applied to as many opportunities as they could without compromising their studies and well-being. By tailoring each set of application materials to a specific scholarship opportunity, my students improved their personal essays, proposals, and short summaries with every submission.
7. They made time to reflect.
As part of their routines, these students actively reflected on the relationship between their ongoing activities and their aspirations. By regularly jotting down thoughts about their future goals, my students opened themselves to an evolving vision of their trajectory. This enabled them to be more comfortable writing a variety of proposals and to gracefully overcome multiple rejections. They also reflected on how their work habits changed over time and identified strategies that worked best for them. These students gradually developed a resilience that allowed them to continuously improve and pursue their goals regardless of the potential for negative outcomes.
A Stanford graduate and the recipient of prestigious fellowships from the Fulbright Program and the Institute of Current World Affairs, as well as a Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, Steven Tagle has taught and mentored students for 20 years. As a published writer, journalist, and former speechwriter for the U.S. ambassador to Greece, he knows how to draw out applicants’ unique stories and craft compelling personal statements that help their applications stand out from the pack. Click here to get in touch.
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