When students think of college, they most likely think of how they are going to pay for an education. According to Student Loan Hero, 69% of college students of the class of 2018 took out student loans, and they graduated with an average debt of $29,800, including both private and federal debt. Meanwhile, 14% of their parents took out an average of $35,600 in federal Parent PLUS loans. Student Loan Hero says that Americans owe over $1.56 trillion in student loan debt, spread out among about 45 million borrowers. That’s about $521 billion more than the total U.S. credit card debt. But, no need to fret, because scholarships are here to save the day! 

Before looking for scholarships, the student should know there are many different types of scholarships, according to SchoolGuides: academic, average academic performance, athletic, community service and scholarships for women and minorities. 

Scholarships are the best option to pay for college! There are many ways to apply to scholarships! One example is to look at scholarship websites!  Going Merry, Fastweb, and The College Board are all great options to look for all your scholarship needs. Before browsing scholarship websites, consider the following information:

• Email address
• Current year in school
• Graduation year
• Grade Point Average (GPA)
• Test score such as the ACT, SAT 
• Address
• Phone number
• Parents’/parent’s name and email address
• Username
• Password
• Ideal colleges 
• Prospective major 
• Goals and interests 
• Letter of Recommendations
• High School Transcript

Another example is to look at local businesses or schools for scholarships! There may be scholarships given out for local students! Jayla Pendleton stated, “Looking for scholarships as a senior has been a breeze with Mrs. Kissner, the guidance counselor,  helping me!”