Be sure to take the opportunity during the upcoming FRC regional events in our area (Silicon Valley or Davis) to visit the FIRST Scholarship Program table.  Here you can get information about the $9.7 million in college scholarships available only to FIRST high school students – most available to students that participated in FRC or FTC.  

 

 

Be sure to check out the FIRST Scholarship web page (visit www.usfirst.org/scholarships and follow the link to the 2009 FIRST Scholarship Opportunities) and check for last minute changes to this year’s scholarship offerings.   Hint:  you can sort the scholarship list by Date Posted by clicking on the Date Posted column header.

Recent changes to FIRST Scholarships:

• University of Massachusetts Lowell – Engineering has generously increased their scholarship from $4,000/year to $5,000/year.
• University of Massachusetts Lowell – Sciences has generously increased their scholarship from $4,000/year to $5,000/year.  The application deadline is April 15th.
• Oregon State University is extending their scholarship to students that participated in FRC  or FTC
• Teradata Corporation – the scholarship application is now available.  The application deadline is April 15th

Scholarship Advice

• Seniors: if you will be attending a college that does not offer a FIRST Scholarship, be sure to check out the following national FIRST Scholarships that can be used at any college and whose deadline dates are still in the future:
  • Raytheon Company (deadline 4/30)
  • ASME-ASME Auxilliary (deadline 3/15)
  • Fabricators & Manufacturers Association Foundation (deadline 4/3)
  • International Fluid Power Society (deadline 5/31)
  • Fluid Power Educational Foundation (deadline 5/31) – can be used at 16 different colleges and universities (see list in scholarship description)
• There are also some regional/state FIRST Scholarships that can be used at any college or university.  When searching the 2009 FIRST Scholarship Opportunities on-line, be sure to search by both the state in which you live and the state in which you will be attending college (use the Select Area drop down menu, then click GO).
  
• Juniors:  Did you know there are still four scholarships that you can apply for this year?  Check out the following scholarships:
  • College of Southern Maryland
  • ITT Technical Institute
  • Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute/BAE Systems (only available to juniors!)
  • Virginia Tech/BAE Systems (only available to junior women!)
• Remember that some scholarships go unawarded because no one applies for them.  If you fit the eligibility requirements for a scholarship, go for it!
• Pay attention to those application deadline dates.  There are over 32 scholarships whose applications are due within the next month.
• What if you have just missed the application deadline date?  Call the school or organization and ask if they will accept a late application. Some schools will accept applications even after the deadline date.   It certainly can’t hurt to ask!