The Scholarship File
Twenty years of scholarship research, gathered into one free PDF — yours no matter which college you choose.
What’s inside
Everything I wish someone had handed me
I started this file in 2006 because students kept asking me the same question at college fairs: where do I even start looking?
- Hundreds of scholarships — national and local, with working links
- Scholarship search sites worth your time, and a note on the ones that aren’t
- Scam warning signs, so you never pay a fee to apply for free money
- A recommended reading list on paying for college without loans
- Counselor tips gathered from hundreds of guidance offices over three decades
- Application and essay advice from people who actually judge these things
Frequently updated. New scholarships come my way constantly. I update the file regularly so you can download the current version not something I wrote in 2011 and forgot about.
How to use it
Three steps, starting tonight
1
Start earlier than feels necessary
Sophomore and junior year are not too early. The students who graduate debt free are almost always the ones who started before senior spring.
2
Go local first
National scholarships get thousands of applicants. The $500 award from a local civic
organization might get eleven. Both spend the same at the bursar’s office.
3
Treat it like a part-time job
A few hours a week through senior year adds up fast. If you win $4,000 for forty hours of work, that is $100 an hour.
Get the file
Free, and free forever.
Get The Scholarship File
Hundreds of scholarships and college-planning resources in one PDF.