When applying for scholarships, what is the best way to tell if it is a scam or not?
Because college isn't exactly cheap, I've been looking into a bunch of different scholarships and applying to many of them to possibly gain some financial help for when I start attending college. I have also recently discovered that these scholarship opportunities can be a group of scammers gathering personal information. Is there a way to tell if you are being scammed when applying for scholarships? Are there scholarshiping websites that you know are safe?
#scholarships #scholarship #college #financial-aid
2 answers
Blaine’s Answer
- Essays or short response questions
- minimum GPA requirement
- Supporting documents such as transcripts, and SAT/ACT scores
- recommendation letters.
Angel’s Answer
Here are some common signs of fake or scam scholarships:
-Application fees: be wary of application fees even small ones
-No phone number posted or contact information not available
-Open to everyone: most scholarships have special requirements to qualify, so be wary of ones that accept everyone
-No proof of past winners: scholarships usually like to present the impact they have so if nothing available be careful
-Fake nonprofit or federal status: most scholarships are non-for-profit so their registration with the government can be searched
-Requests for personal financial information: It's completely unnecessary for a legitimate scholarship provider to ask you to provide a credit card, bank account, or social security number
-Winning a scholarship that you didn't apply to: definitely a scam
Paying for college is unfortunately a hassle when it comes to paying for it so hope these can help you weed out the fake ones.
Best,
Angel