In this issue:
- Introduction
- Featured Sponsor: FAFSA Online Application Services
- Featured Article: Job Hunting Advice
- Scholarship Notes
- Scholarship: Mitte Foundation Scholarship, $5,000 per year
- Scholarship: Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship, Two Year Full Tuition
- Scholarship: Jeannette Rankin Foundation, $2,000
- A Word From Our Sponsors
- Public Service Announcement: Free Antivirus Software
- Privacy and Subscription Information
- Back Issues
- Sponsor this newsletter!
Welcome to the February issue of Financial Aid News! This month, we look at plenty of advice, from job hunting skills to protecting your PC, plus our assortment of high-value scholarships, such as two years of paid tuition & expenses for graduate school. As always, we appreciate the mail and feedback we receive with each newsletter, and we strive to improve the next issue based on your feedback.
Sincerely,
The Staff at the Student Loan Network
Featured Sponsor: FAFSA Online Application Services
In case you didn't get last month's newsletter or the special bulletin, now is the time to complete your 2004-2005 FAFSA, and FAFSAOnline.com is the professional service that will prepare and file your FAFSA for you. For a processing fee of $49.99, two financial professionals will review your FAFSA application and ensure that it is correct and optimized to help you receive the maximum amount of federal financial aid you are qualified for.
Millions of people each year choose to have their taxes professionally prepared in order to save a few hundred dollars. Doesn't it make sense to have your FAFSA professionally prepared so that you can potentially save even more in federal financial aid?
Have your FAFSA done today at http://www.FAFSAonline.com!
Featured Article: Job Hunting Advice
Hunting for a job is never easy, whether you're in school or just graduating. Long-term job seekers will quite rightly tell you that job hunting is a full time job in and of itself. This month's feature article is written by Christopher S. Penn, CTO of the Edvisors Network and a former technical recruiter for R2 Services (now R2 Staffing).
Top 5 Tips for Job Hunting
1. Job hunting is first and foremost a sales activity. The product you are selling is, not surprisingly, you. The only difference is that the product - unlike sweaters, computers, or cars - can talk a customer out of the sale as easily as you can make the sale. Thus, you need to develop good sales skills in order to help prospective employers understand your real value. How do you develop good sales skills? Lots of training. Take a look at Zig Ziglar's book, Secrets of Closing the Sale, to understand how you can position yourself better. You can get it at:
2. Job hunting is a numbers game. Assume the rule of 10: for every 1 job you land, you will need 10 interviews. For every 10 interviews you land, you will need 100 valid applications. For every 100 applications you land, you will need 1,000 good leads. If you want to consider two or three offers, you need to send out two or three THOUSAND resumes. How? That's the joy of email. Focus on sending out at least 25 - 30 emails a day with your cover letter and resume.
3. Job postings are a hidden treasure mine. Keep this in mind when you surf Monster.com and other job boards - a company generally will only post for positions it is most desperate for - enough to pay money for. That tells you two things: One, the company is serious about hiring. Two, the company probably has more than one position open. Consider applying for jobs at companies that meet your geographic and industry needs but don't necessarily have the exact position you're looking for. This is one of the best kept secrets in recruiting!
4. Followup is the name of the game. Respond politely but clearly to EVERY response you get from your solicitations. A company may not have a job for you now, but might in two weeks, two months, or two years. Keep a record of those companies that respond with something other than an auto-reply, and touch base with your contacts every month or so. Be polite and non-intrusive.
5. Positive mental attitude. Nothing will fail to sell a product faster than a negative emotion about it. Don't give people a reason to discard you immediately. Project a positive attitude, even if you feel anything but.
After last month's newsletter, we received a number of letters from people around the country, asking about scholarships for non-minorities. We wanted to take a moment to explain that when we put together the Financial Aid News, we simply search the Web and our own database for awards that stand out. Just because we don't list awards for a certain group doesn't mean there aren't thousands, if not millions, of awards available. We just don't have room to list them all.
Do you need to find scholarship money? Take a few moments and $30 to enroll in our premium scholarship search service. Our database contains 2.3 million scholarships, worth over $14 BILLION, and your $30 gives you access for an entire calendar year. If you can't find an award, then you're probably dead. Visit:
http://www.financialaidofficer.com/scholarship_search/
to gain access to our premium scholarship search service.
Scholarship: Mitte Foundation Scholarship, $5,000 per year
Graduate students may receive Mitte Foundation Scholarships for up to three years by maintaining a cumulative grade point of 3.5, passing at least 12 semester graduate hours leading toward the degree each long semester (fall and spring), and volunteering for meaningful community service. Additional criteria to be considered: those students exemplifying leadership potential, career experience and internships, undergraduate accomplishments (awards and student activities and memberships and study abroad programs), and good communication skills. Apply at:
http://www.gradcollege.txstate.edu/Scholarship/mitte.html
Scholarship: Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship, Two Year Full Tuition
Only United States citizens will be considered. Applicants must have a minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.2 or higher on a 4.0 scale. At time of application, candidates must be seeking admission to graduate school for the following academic year. Winners are expected to enroll in a two-year full-time master's degree program (such as public policy, international affairs, public administration, or academic fields such as business, economics, political science, sociology or foreign languages). U.S. graduate institutions only. Apply at:
http://www.woodrow.org/public-policy/graduate_foreign_affairs_fello.html
Scholarship: Jeannette Rankin Foundation, $2,000
Each year the Jeannette Rankin Foundation awards grants to low-income women who have a vision of how their education will benefit themselves, their families, and their communities. The JRF grants are for $2000 and will be awarded in the fall of 2004. The funds are not limited to just tuition expenses, but can also be used for books, supplies, transportation, childcare, or any other living expenses. Apply at:
http://www.rankinfoundation.org/apply/apply.html
Public Service Announcement: Free Antivirus Software
Viruses affect everyone on the Internet - even if your computer doesn't have one, you are affected by the slowdown of services and network traffic. No one wins. We encourage you to keep your systems up to date. Do you have antivirus software that's out of date and you're on a tight budget? Download AVG Free Edition from Grisoft to your Microsoft Windows PC and keep your computer clean. AVG keeps their definitions up to date nicely. Please visit:
http://www.studentplatinum.com/education/antivirus.php
If you would prefer to invest in the most trusted name in antivirus software, try Symantec Norton Antivirus.
http://www.studentloan.net/go.php?id=119
And now a word from our sponsors...
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Learn about and study in the UK!
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International Calling Cards!
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Privacy & Subscription Information
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