Finding Scholarships Top 10 Scholarship Tips Written by Shannon Vasconceloson December 16th, 2018 I came to College Coach with close to 10 years of experience in college financial aid offices. I began my career at Boston University, where I counseled students and their parents on the financial aid process and reviewed undergraduate financial aid applications. At Tufts University, where I served as assistant director of financial aid, I developed expertise in the field of health professions financial aid. I was responsible for financial aid application review, grant awarding and loan processing, and college financing and debt management counseling for both pre- and post-doctoral dental students. I have also served as an active member of the Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrator’s Early Awareness and Outreach Committee, coordinating early college awareness activities for middle school students; as a trainer for the Department of Education’s National Training for Counselors and Mentors, educating high school guidance counselors on the financial aid process; and as a volunteer for FAFSA Day Massachusetts, aiding students and parents with the completion of online financial aid applications. Learn More About Shannon scholarship search, scholarships, You’ll often hear it said that millions in dollars in scholarship funding goes unclaimed every year, and while this statement is (at worst) out of date and (at best) intentionally misleading, it is true that there are thousands of private scholarships available from organizations outside of the colleges and the government (the two best sources of college financial aid) that you do not want to leave on the table. Today’s highly competitive scholarship landscape actually makes it extremely rare that a scholarship goes unclaimed, and makes it all the more critical that you approach the private scholarship application process in a strategic way in order to maximize your funding opportunities. College finance consultant and former financial aid officer at Boston University and Tufts, Shannon Vasconcelos, shares her insight on the private scholarship application process on the TeenLife blog. Click here to access “10 Tips to Help You Win a Private Scholarship.” Related Resources Read | Posted on September 20th, 2023 Full-Ride Scholarships: Effective Strategy or Fairy Tale? Read | Posted on August 4th, 2023 Identity-Based Scholarship Series: Scholarships for Hispanic Students Read | Posted on February 16th, 2023 Identity-Based Scholarship Series: Gold Star Children and Families
