Unfortunately, in their efforts to
pay the bills, many students and their families are falling prey to
scholarship scams. The FTC cautions students to look for tell tale
lines:
The
scholarship is guaranteed or your money back
You can't
get this information anywhere else
I just need
your credit card or bank account number to hold this
scholarship
We'll do
all the work
The
scholarship will cost some money.
You've been
selected by a 'national foundation' to receive a scholarship"
or "You're a finalist" in a contest you never entered.
A number of privately operated
scholarship search services charge fees that can range from $50 to
well over $1,000. It is important to understand what information
scholarship search services can provide.
Some can be helpful in
identifying sources of aid for students who meet certain criteria, such as
academic achievement, religious affiliation, ethnic or racial heritage,
artistic talents, athletic ability, career plans, or proposed field of
study. However, bear in mind that funds from these sources are usually
limited and not all applicants will receive awards.
ScholarshipSearch
Listed below are some of the services
you might reasonably expect from a private scholarship search service.
Most scholarship search services provide a list of sources of
financial assistance you may apply for. After studying the list, you
then send a separate application to each source that interests you.
The scholarship search service does not apply on your behalf or pay
any additional application fees that may be required.
Many search services offer to refund your fee if you do not receive
any award. However, some services require you to provide a rejection
letter from every source on the list to claim your refund. You should
be aware that many scholarship sources do not routinely send rejection
letters. Make sure you get the scholarship search service's refund
policy in writing before paying any money.
What Are Some Questionable Tactics I Should Watch Out For?
Some services will tell you that millions of dollars in student aid go
unclaimed every year. The large figures you may hear or read about
usually represent an estimated national total of employee benefits or
member benefits. Usually, such benefits are available only to the
employees (and their families) of a specific company, or to the
members of a specific union or other organization.
Some claim that you can't get the same information anywhere else. Many
services make you pay to get information you could have received for
free from a college financial aid office, state education agency,
local library, the U.S. Department of Education, or the Internet.
Remember that you can find out about student aid without paying a fee
to a search service.
Others request your credit card or bank account number to hold student
financial aid for you. Search services do not, in most cases, provide
any awards directly to applicants, apply on behalf of applicants, or
act as a disbursing agent for financial aid providers. You should
never give out a credit card or bank account number unless you know
the company or organization you are giving it to is legitimate.
Others try to get you to send them money by claiming that you are a
finalist in a scholarship contest. Most sources of financial aid have
application deadlines and eligibility criteria; they do not,
generally, operate like a sweepstakes.
Scholarship seminars frequently end with one-on-one meetings in
which a salesperson pressures the student to "buy now or lose out on
this opportunity." Legitimate services don't use such pressure
tactics.
Each year, the U.S. Department of Education receives numerous
complaints from students and parents who did not receive the
information they expected from a search service. The Department does
not evaluate private scholarship search services. If you decide to use
one of these services, you should check its reputation by contacting
the Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.com), a school guidance counselor,
or a state attorney general's office. Additionally, investigate the
organization yourself before making a commitment:
Ask for names of three or four
local families who have used its services recently.
Ask how many students have used
the service and how many of them received scholarships as a result.
Find out about the service's
refund policy.
Get everything in writing.
Read all the fine print before
signing anything.
Continue searching for
Scholarships
Sources: Dept. of Education, FCIC
This
site is dedicated to
Scholarships The information
is derived from reliable government sources
and is not meant to be financial advice.