As March comes to an end and April begins most seniors now know where they are going to college, or at least what options they have. Due to this it is time to start looking for and applying to scholarships to help lesson the heavy financial burden that college places on students shoulders. The great thing about attending Yorba Linda High School is that our amazing counselors and staff provide students with all the necessary tool to find scholarships, as well as being available to aid students in the process of applications.  

The first place you should go to look for scholarships is the counseling office. Here you will find a stand full of application packets, most of which have a minimum reward of $1,000. After obtaining the applications you will need to get letters of recommendation from your counselor, a teacher, and possibly a volunteer supervisor. Every application has different requirements so it is important that you make sure you are eligible for the scholarship before you complete the application. You do not want to waste your time or that of the people judging the scholarship competition.

Many applications also require previous volunteer work and essays. One of the great things about attending a Placentia Yorba Linda School District school is that each student is required to have completed at least 40 hours of community service by graduation. Samantha Bohling (12) says she “really appreciates that we were required to do community service because when it came time to apply for college and scholarships it really helped.” This means that you should be eligible for a greater number of scholarships, as well as having something to discuss in essays and personal statements.

When applying for scholarships it is important to remember that all the staff members here at Yorba Linda High School want you to succeed and are always more than willing to help. If you need something all you have to do is ask. If you want to apply to more scholarships than what is available in the counseling office you can also go to ylhs.org on the counselors page and from there you can find links for websites that will connect you to even more scholarship opportunities.

More than two million dollars in grants and scholarships go unused every year, so it never hurts to apply–even if you think you will not receive the scholarship. Many scholarships are so obscure that they get no applications so if there is a short application for a 5’9, red headed, person who is left handed, you may be none of those things but no one else may be either so you might as well apply.