How to Choose an Online Scholarship Search Service

By tamara

Today’s Question: “What should I look for in an online scholarship search service?”

Have you ever typed ‘scholarship search’ into Google? You literally get back over 200 million results. No, that’s not a typo; there are seriously that many possibilities. But with so many options, how can you possibly know which scholarship services will give you good information? There are actually a few characteristics you should be looking for when choosing a free scholarship search tool, especially if you want to avoid being scammed. Want to know what they are? Check out this short video!

1. First, make sure the scholarship search tool you choose is free — remember, you’re looking for money for college, so you shouldn’t have to pay money to find money.
2. Next, be sure to use a site that does the matching for you, and does it well.  A good scholarship website will ask you to complete a profile in an effort to learn more about your background and family, which schools you are interested in attending, the activities you are involved in, and more.  Answering some of these profile questions may take 10 or 15 minutes of your time, but this is necessary to help the scholarship website match you with quality results.
3. Make sure the website allows you to save or store the profile information, too – this will save you time when you return each month to look for more scholarships – you won’t have to start from scratch and fill out the profile all over again every time.
4. It’s also important that the website allows you to edit your profile, just in case there are changes in your grades, tests scores or other areas of your life.
5. Finally, when looking at different scholarship websites, make sure the results are accurate, relevant and up-to-date. The best scholarship websites will give you a list of scholarships that are matched to your profile so you can begin applying right away; they should give you good, detailed award information and should lead you straight to the scholarship application, so you don’t waste time hunting for forms or jumping around websites.

Oh, and remember, the primary purpose for a good scholarship search service should be to match up students and scholarships, without a lot of distractions.  Be sure to use websites where you feel comfortable about their privacy policies and terms, and use sites where advertising is relevant and tasteful (not overwhelming or interfering).  Try starting with Unigo.com, one of the most trusted scholarship websites, to find scholarships that match your unique skills and interests.  Complete your profile and get matched to scholarships today! For more great tips and info about scholarships, subscribe to our YouTube channel and get new Ask the Experts videos delivered straight to your inbox.