If you couldn’t otherwise afford to attend college, applying for financial aid is a no-brainer. Of course you should complete a FAFSA! The decision may not quite as simple, however, for families who may be able to pay for college on their own. Is there any reason you should submit a FAFSA if you don’t expect to qualify for financial aid? Find out from former Boston University and Tufts University financial aid officer, Shannon Vasconcelos, in the first installment of the Bright Horizons College Coach video series, Ask the College Finance Expert.

There are over 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. And while the media tends to focus on just a handful of schools, we at College Coach encourage students to think outside the box during their college selection process and explore a wide range of colleges. As such, we are highlighting a new college each week in our School Spotlight series. Check out the college below, along with the other posts in our series, and you may just stumble upon your dream school!

School Spotlight: Centenary College of Louisiana
Shreveport, LA

There is a college scholarship (or many scholarships) out there for everyone.  Every student has some skill, interest, experience, or characteristic that may make them an attractive candidate for one scholarship or another.  And while we often refer to scholarships as “free money,” scholarships don’t actually come for free.  It takes work to thoughtfully consider your strengths and research the scholarships that might be most appropriate for you.  While the effort that goes into finding and winning scholarships may be akin to a part-time job, we at College Coach want to make your job a little easier.  This on-going scholarship series highlights a new scholarship each week.  Check out the below, along with the other posts in the series, and you may discover a funding resource that will make covering that college bill a little (or a lot!) easier.

Over the past few years, Canada has seen a rise in applications from US high school students.  A national initiative to increase international student enrollment at all levels, friendly immigration policies allowing students to work during school and after they complete their program of studies, combined with high college costs back home in the States make Canadian universities attractive to many students. If you want an international experience close to home, why not consider the University of British Columbia? This highly ranked university actively recruits top students to campus with merit scholarship opportunities aimed at the leaders of tomorrow.

Scholarship:  Karen McKellin International Leader of Tomorrow Scholarship

by Shannon Vasconcelos, former financial aid officer at Tufts University

Once upon a time, the college application process was simple.  By and large, students applied to just one or a couple of local colleges, they were easily accepted, and they could often pay for tuition with not much more than a summer job.

Nowadays, lots of students are considering a much more expansive network of the more than 4,000 colleges available across the country, many of those colleges have grown increasingly competitive, and paying tuition with no more than a summer job?  Forget about it!

In another in our series of stories from our team, Sai Somboon will share his decision to apply to and attend college in the United States despite growing up in Thailand. We’re also offering tips for the Georgetown application essays and previewing the FAFSA and CSS Profiles so that you can pull together the information you’ll need to complete these when they become available this fall.

by Abigail Anderson, former admissions officer at Reed College

Students utilizing the Common Application will notice a question regarding their disciplinary history just after they fill out the Essay Section. This question, which is required, states:

“Have you ever been found responsible for a disciplinary violation at any educational institution you have attended from the 9th grade (or the international equivalent) forward, whether related to academic misconduct or behavioral misconduct, that resulted in a disciplinary action? These actions could include, but are not limited to: probation, suspension, removal, dismissal, or expulsion from the institution.”

Online applications have made it really easy to apply to college. Applicants no longer need their best penmanship or—imagine this—to find a typewriter to fill them out. On the Common Application alone, an applicant can access roughly 900 colleges and universities. But how many applications should students submit? And is there such a thing as too many?

There are over 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. And while the media tends to focus on just a handful of schools, we at College Coach encourage students to think outside the box during their college selection process and explore a wide range of colleges. As such, we are highlighting a new college each week in our School Spotlight series. Check out the college below, along with the other posts in our series, and you may just stumble upon your dream school!

School Spotlight: Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA

by Sara Calvert-Kubrom, former admissions officer at Lewis & Clark College

On September 1, 2020, a California State Court judge issued a preliminary injunction stating that the University of California system may not use standardized test scores like the SAT and ACT in their admission evaluation process. This ruling was made in response to the extreme limitations of testing during COVID that have been exacerbated for students with disabilities. These students have had less access to testing sites and/or needed accommodations during testing which are protected by the California Disabled Persons Act and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. Although the judge’s ruling bars the use of standardized test scores by the UCs for applicants to the fall of 2021, the legal process is not yet complete and we will learn more after a litigated case management conference on September 29, 2020.

There is a scholarship (or many scholarships) out there for everyone. Every student has some skill, interest, experience, or characteristic that may make them an attractive candidate for one scholarship or another. And while we often refer to scholarships as “free money,” scholarships don’t actually come for free. It takes work to thoughtfully consider your strengths and research the scholarships that might be most appropriate for you. While the effort that goes into finding and winning scholarships may be akin to a part-time job, we at College Coach want to make your job a little easier. This on-going scholarship series highlights a new scholarship each week. Check out the below, along with the other posts in the series, and you may discover a funding resource that will make covering that college bill a little (or a lot!) easier.

Boren Scholars are highly motivated learners with sights set on a career in the area of national security. This competitive scholarship offers students the chance to secure funding for study abroad opportunities that focus on learning languages around the world.

Scholarship: Boren Scholarship