Student Insider's Guide

[Find Monday] How Volunteering Can Impact Your Scholarship Profile

This is one of my favorite times of the year. For Texans, the weather has finally cooled down; for sports fans, we have multiple seasons occurring; but most importantly, there are numerous opportunities to give back to our communities and others.

While I personally believe that you should volunteer all year long, there are tons of events taking place over the months of November and December. This holiday season, let’s give of ourselves like we’ve never given before because all of us can create change in the world.

Here are just a few reasons why you should consider or continue volunteering:

Helping Others: The biggest win is that you’re able to help other people. It’s always a great feeling to help someone in need or to give your time to a group or cause.

Learning New Skills: Volunteering creates a myriad of opportunities for you to learn new skills. Maybe you’ll have the opportunity to learn how to market an event or fundraise. You may even learn how to cook by serving at a soup kitchen!

Meeting New People: Volunteering is also special because it brings together individuals from all walks of life. It presents the chance for you to meet new people from the community and possibly even make a few new friends.

All of these wins can be used to strengthen your profile.

Keep volunteering! All of our hard work will create a season of giving! :)

[Weekly Selections]
Voice of Democracy Scholarship: The Voice of Democracy Program is open to students in grades 9-12 (on the Nov. 1 deadline), who are enrolled in a public, private or parochial high school or home study program in the United States and its territories. All you have to do is write and record a 3-5 minute recording answering “Why Veterans are Important to our Nation’s History and Future”.

Awards: $1,000-$30,000
Deadline: November 1, 2015 http://www.vfw.org/Community/Voice-of-Democracy/
________________
Young Writers Awards: Students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades during the current academic year may enter in one of the following categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), or nonfiction (a personal or academic essay).

Awards: 1st - $500, 2nd - $250
Deadline: November 1, 2015 http://www.bennington.edu/NewsEvents/YoungWritersAwards
________________
Bluetooth Breakthrough Awards 2016: Are you innovating and building for the Internet of Things? Does your innovation use Bluetooth technology to bring about experiences that make our lives, work, and even play just better? The Bluetooth SIG is looking for the best of the best in Bluetooth® products, applications, prototypes, and student-led projects that deliver the convenience, efficiency, and benefits of the Iot. The Bluetooth Breakthrough Awards program highlights the most innovative products and applications available today, prototypes coming soon, and student-led projects in the making. This scholarship is open to high school, college, and post-graduate school students.

Award: $5,000
Deadline: November 2, 2015
https://www.bluetooth.org/…/…/bluetooth-breakthrough-awards/
________________
Prudential Spirit of Community Awards: The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program is the United States' largest youth recognition program based exclusively on volunteer community service. Students in grades 5-12 are eligible to apply.

Award: $5,000
Deadline: October 31, 2015, http://spirit.prudential.com/view/page/soc/14830

Have questions? Make sure you ask!

[Find Monday] What Taught Me This Weekend

The internet and social media have been buzzing about Adele’s new song, “Hello”. It’s a soul-stirring piece that I’ve found myself listening to since it came out.

Being the nerd that I am, every time I go to YouTube to pull it up, I notice how many people have viewed the video. At the time of this writing (Monday, October 26th, 2015) the video has been viewed over 70 million times. Of that, over 1.6 million people gave the song a thumbs up and roughly 27,000 gave it a thumbs down. Let’s keep in mind that the video was released Oct 22nd.

Think about those numbers. Compute the math if you’d like. The staggering number of people that have given it a thumbs up, indicate that it’s a hit and will continue to break records. Some are even saying that it’s the song of the year.

Let’s not forget a very important piece here – the comments. Around 125,000 people have left comments on YouTube. I won’t even get into the social media posts that have popped up from everyone, including celebrities. This is where I found my lesson, and most importantly where we can learn.

Most of the comments wrote about how the song made them reminisce of past love, crushes, relationships, and pain. The number of strolls down memory lane has caused massive action. Everyone is talking about the power behind the lyrics.

In anything, whether , , or – people connect with authenticity. Adele has confirmed that for me this weekend. She’s created a song that has a heart-to-heart connection.

Seriously, I’ve read so many stories on social media regarding the memories people have had as they’ve listened to her voice and the actions that some have taken to rectify the past or to create a better future.

Evaluate your authenticity. Are you having heart-to-heart or head-to-head experiences with people?

There is power in honesty; there is power in vulnerability; and there is power in transparency. It’s okay to show that you’re a human. Seek to be authentic, rather than approved. Be yourself. Period.

Photo Credit: JustJared.com

[Weekly Selections]

CARiD Scholarship Program: Just getting the essentials can add up quickly and CARiD wants to help - books, food, backpacks, some sweet spinners for your commuter vehicle, or whatever else you need to get ready for school!

Award: $1,000
Deadline: October 31, 2015
http://www.carid.com/scholarships.html
________________
Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation: The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation supports more than 1,400 college students each year, with annual scholarships of $3.4 million through two nationally recognized programs on behalf of the Coca-Cola System. This scholarship is open to high school seniors, but there are additional scholarships open to college students on the site.

Multiple Awards: Up to $20,000
Deadline: October 31, 2015
http://www.coca-colascholarsfoundation.org/applicants/
________________
Veterans United Foundation Scholarship: The program's primary goal is to assist military service members and their families by awarding scholarships to help pay for tuition and books each semester. To be considered, the scholarship applicant must have a connection to the United States Military through falling into at least one of the following categories: A current active-duty service member, veteran of the United States Armed Forces, spouse of a service member or veteran, surviving spouse or child of a fallen service member, or a child of a service member or veteran.

Award: $2,000
Deadline: October 31, 2015
https://www.veteransunited.com/about/scholarships/
________________
Zombie Apocalypse Scholarship: This scholarship is open to students ages 13 and older. All you have to do is submit a short response regarding a question about zombies! Hopefully you’ll “survive” the application.

Award: $2,000
Deadline: October 31, 2015
https://www.unigo.com/scholarships/our-scholarships/zombie-apocalypse-scholarship

Find Money Mondays start tomorrow! If you need help finding money for college, make sure you stay tuned. 😊