<br><div><aside class="gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el" aria-label="Video - Former walk-on from Ocean Twp. gets surprise scholarship at College of Charleston"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Even with the May 1 deadline for <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2024/05/01/fafsa-rollout-issues-college-decision-day-impact/73243536007/" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">college decisions come and gone</a>, many students may still be undecided about which school to attend, or they may have given up after a botched FAFSA roll-out and other problems <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2024/03/22/fafsa-biden-botched-college-students/73068650007/" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">securing financial aid</a>.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">But education experts want students and families to know, that it isn’t too late to get scholarships or even apply to a school to attend this fall.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Students have access to <a target="_blank" href="https://educationdata.org/scholarship-statistics" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">1.7 million private scholarships and fellowships</a> whose total value tops $7.4 billion, according to the independent nonprofit foundation Educationdata.org. Some applications for that funding require essays and academic or athletic achievement. But many don’t. Some take <a target="_blank" href="https://studentscholarships.org/" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">as few as two minutes</a> to complete, with a chance to win as much as $25,000. Scholarships are also gifts and don’t have to be repaid.</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">“This is important both from an emotional standpoint and a practical, financial standpoint,” said James Lewis, president of the National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS), a private foundation that works as a nonprofit to honor high-achieving students. “With the FAFSA delays and confusion, millions of young people <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2024/05/01/biden-fafsa-delays-financial-aid-college-enrollment/73513243007/" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">feel helpless</a>," he said, "But there is one area where they can take control and that’s applying for scholarships.”</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p"><strong>Learn more:</strong> <a target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-t-l=":body nav (pl)|e|auto spike click:6|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" href="https://www.usatoday.com/money/blueprint/personal-loans/best-personal-loans/">Best personal loans</a></p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><h2 class="gnt_ar_b_mt">Who can apply for scholarships?</h2><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Anyone.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">“<a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2024/01/26/fafsa-school-financial-aid-alternatives/72354973007/" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a" rel="noopener">Scholarships</a> are available on a year-round basis and they’re not just for high school seniors – students of...</p></div> <style> .wrapper { text-align: center; } </style> <div class="wrapper"> <a class="button" href ="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2024/05/19/fafsa-woes-college-scholarships-grants/73722567007/">Read more <span>➤</span></a> </div>
