It is no secret that college in America can rack up some big bills for young adults. Between tuition, room and board, and all the additional costs that come with being a college student, pursuing higher education can come at an overwhelming price, with today’s students paying double what students in the 1970s paid.

Scholarships can help ease the financial burden, and with college decision day for most seniors approaching in less than two months, the time to look for money will soon be a priority for many students. 

Searching for scholarships was the next item on the list for Madi Pittman once she committed to her college.

“As soon as I committed to Slippery Rock University, I knew that I had to start looking for scholarships that would help me pay for my tuition,” she said.

Some seniors, however, started working on scholarships long before they knew where they would be attending.

“I started scholarships at the same time I began applying to college, because a lot of them pertain to certain colleges. Also, my parents were on me to complete them early,” Julia Wonsettler said.

As scholarships are offered for almost every high school grade, school counselors often encourage students begin to search for scholarships once they know they want to pursue higher education after high school graduation. However, senior year is often coined as the year of scholarship searching.

Scholarships vary in almost every factor. Awards can be as small as $100 or as much as full tuition. Because of the varying amounts, the requirements are also different. Some require rigorous application components, such as essays, recommendation letters, transcripts, and even interviews. Others require almost no work at all. There are many “random winner” scholarships that select a winner through a raffle-like process. 

Because of the wide variety of scholarships available, every single senior has opportunities to apply. They are often categorized by major, hobby, or gender. Finding ones that fit a student’s individual needs is as simple as conducting a Google search.

Some seniors at NASH select scholarships by the likelihood of being able to win them.

“I only applied to scholarships that related to my activities and career goals,” Sandy Cho said.

Although scholarships are meant to be helpful, they can also add stress to seniors’ lives. Many feel pressured to apply for several scholarships but get anxious about whether they will win.

Anna Mott feels burdened by the looming pressure to win many prestigious scholarships.

“Completing scholarships has increased my stress amount this year. I feel like I need to win the best scholarships with the largest amounts of money,” she said.

Overall, scholarships are meant to help students in affording a college education and decrease stress caused by potential financial burden. Any amount of money can help decrease the cost of attendance. Scholarships can be found through a quick Google search, or for NASH seniors, on the college scholarship tab of Naviance.