Financing Post-Secondary Studies

Kevin J. Benoy

Who is this Session For?

• My target audience is grade 11 students, but grade 12s who have not attended 86% Club meetings are also welcome.

• Younger students can attend if there is space in the room.

Why am I Here?

• I am from a family that struggled financially.

• I saved for university from when I was 12 years old – but had all of my tuition and fees covered by scholarships and academic awards.

• I have been paying this on since early in my teaching career.

What do I Need to Know?

• How much will college, university, or trade school cost?

• Look at institution web sites.• Talk to people doing what you hope to do.• Write or e-mail for information that you need.• Find out what outside help is available.

How Much Will it Cost?• Post-Secondary education

costs money.• Different institutions and

courses of study vary widely in cost.

• Decide what you are interested in and begin researching costs.

• It is never too early to begin saving and planning for how you will finance your studies.

How Much Will it Cost?• UBC is not only hard to get into,

but is much costlier than Cap for almost all programmes.

• Foreign study is generally much more expensive than studying near home.

• Professional Schools can cost tens of thousands per year.

• Don’t forget to factor in living expenses and travel if you live away from home.

• Residence costs must be balanced against travel time costs.

Be Realistic

• What and where would you like to study?

• Is this practical, given your resources?

• What, exactly, is practical?

• Take the steps needed to make it happen.

Financial Planning

• Ask your parents or significant others if they are intending to help.

• Start saving.• Look where else

money can be found: scholarships, bursaries, grants and loans.

Family Savings?

• Many families plan for the day when their clever little darlings graduate.

• Some take advantage of government savings plans.

• Others find that raising you is all that they can manage on the funds available.

• Now is the time to ask about your situation.

Your Contribution

• Do you have savings for this moment?

• If not, why not?• Most students will

take on part-time work to help fund their studies.

Outside Sources of Funding

• Believe it or not, there are people who give away money to help others get an education.

• The three main categories of this help are: – Grants

– Scholarships

– Bursaries.

Grants

• These are funds provided by governments or organizations to people who are working on special projects that these groups support.

• Most of you won’t see this kind of money until Graduate School.

Scholarships

• Governments, organizations and individuals give away money to help people who meet set criteria.

• Money is given for:– Academic, sports, musical or

other special achievement.

– Affiliation with a group – a club, union, business, ethnicity or the like.

Bursaries

• Bursaries are given to those with financial need.

• Donors generally require evidence that this need is real.

• They generally also consider other criteria – in the same way as scholarship donors do.

Bursaries

• Make sure that your grade 12 counselor knows that you are a bursary candidate.

• Sometimes the school fails to nominate good candidates for bursaries because we are not aware that individuals are in need.

• If you know of someone in need, consider telling the grade 12 counselor in confidence, or at least encourage the person to identify themselves to the counselor or other members of the Sutherland Scholarship Committee.

If All Else Fails – Student Loans

• You can’t get far with just a high school diploma.

• Work out what you want in life and seek the training to get there.

• If it costs money, borrow if you have to – but be sure to do so judiciously.

Where to Start?

• Coming here today is a good start.

• Begin collecting the information you will need to apply for outside money.– Identify programmes and

costs.– Build a master resume.– Identify your affiliations.– Identify potential referees.– Research scholarship and

bursary databases.

Identifying Programmes

• Talk to people with special knowledge.– High School and post-secondary counselors.– People doing what you hope to do.

• Research schools online.– Start with the admissions page.– Move on to departments.

• Are there several ways to reach your goal? – For instance, you can get a degree and move on to veterinary

school in Canada or you can go straight into veterinary school in Edinburgh. One costs more in time; the other may cost more in terms of having to study abroad, but you may begin earning faster.

Your Master Resume• You need one of these no matter

what you hope to do.• On a computer file, record

everything about yourself:– Achievements.– Education.– Work background.– Interests.– Hobbies.– Potential Referees and contact

information.

• You will never use it all at once, but you will cut-and-paste from this document so make it thorough.

Affiliations• Sometimes money is available for what

you are, in addition to what you do.• Identify the organizations you belong to.• Identify organizations your parents and

grandparents belong to.• Consider work and beyond:

– Unions.– Professional Associations.– Clubs.– Teams– Ethnicities.

• Are there umbrella groups that any of these are associated with?

Affiliations - Sports Scholarships

• Some sports have high profiles that help in general recruitment.

• Tuition rebates or full-ride scholarships are offered to star athletes to ensure programmes’ continued success.

• This can be a ticket to a degree.

Affiliations - Sports Scholarships

• On the other hand, it can also lead to an inferior education if the institution is not strong or if sports are given priority over learning.

• If offered a sports scholarship, ensure that you will be able to take the courses you need.

• While this is generally true in Canada, caution is needed elsewhere.

Affiliations - Sports Scholarships• In most sports, recruiters are dispatched to

look at prospects.• Coaches often know when this is happening.• There are also professionals who work at

marketing athletes – for a price.• Successful programmes invariably get the

most attention.• Girls’ sports at US universities are the best

bet – since Title IX Legislation funded male and female sports equally, resulting in huge expansion of programmes.

• Be careful. Even the best athlete is one injury away from an end to playing days.

Referees

• Most donors don’t just take your word for things.

• They want you to provide credible references who can back up what you say.

• List people who are prepared to help you in this way.

Referees• Consider them carefully.

– They need to be credible.– They need good communication skills– Above all, they must have good things

to say about you.

• Provide them with ammunition. Make sure they have as much information about you as possible, so they have plenty to draw from when they write or talk in support of your applications.

• Always thank them for helping you – preferably in writing. Their good-will is vital to your success.

Writing About Yourself• Many applications will ask you to write about yourself – to identify

your goals in life or to provide an autobiographical account.• This is probably the hardest writing you will ever do. You need to

sell yourself, but to avoid looking vain. • If possible, think about this in advance and gather information that

you can massage later. Identify your goals, knowing full-well that they will likely change with time. Write this sort of thing during the summer, when you are not pressured for time.

• Write a short account of how you identified these goals and why you believe you can attain them.

• Keep this material with your master resume.

Let the Search Begin!

• Winning scholarships and bursaries requires hard work – not only to meet the demands of the awards, but to hunt them down as well.

• Do as much of this work outside of school time as possible, so as not to disrupt your studies.

Where to Start?

• Ms. Clark maintains a web-page for exactly this.• Go to:

http://sutherlandscholarshipinformation.weebly.comhttp://sutherlandscholarshipinformation.weebly.com/• If you are not in grade 12, do not fill out the Sutherland Scholarship and Bursary form yet. Wait until you are in your graduating

year.

Scholarship & Bursary Applications• Some awards require that you apply directly for them. They

publicize their awards themselves or, occasionally, they ask the school to bring them to your attention.

• Others require the school or another organization nominates you and that you then apply.

• Yet others have the school decide on their behalf, feeling we know you best.

• The school has money it distributes directly – mostly raised by the school PAC.

• Most fall into the first category, requiring you to find out about them. Ms. Clark’s web page is a good starting point. She links to scholarship search engines on her Scholarship Info Sites page.

National Awards

• The application process begins as you enter grade 12.

• National Awards take a long time to judge, so applications begin for these in the fall and winter.

• They rely mostly on grade 11 data.

National and Regional Awards

• National Round scholarships are very hard to win – but some Sutherland applicants have won them.

• Regional scholarship applications tend to begin in the winter. Logically, we have more winners in this group.

• You will hear directly from these organizations if you win. Be sure to tell the Grade 12 Counselor!

Local Awards

• Applications begin in the Spring.• These are the most accessible awards.• Some are won through district-wide competition – like

those of the North Vancouver High School Education Foundation or of service clubs.

• Some are allotted to every local school – such as the Sianna & Nicole Strongman Memorial All-Rounder Scholarships.

• For many of these awards that involve school input, you will not hear of your win until the Graduation Ceremony.

Entrance Awards• Most post-secondary institutions award

scholarships to new entrants.• Amounts vary from full-ride scholarships

to smaller amounts or tuition rebates.• Be sure to check whether you need to

apply directly for such awards or whether you are automatically considered when you are accepted at your new school.

• Inform any school you decline – the money is now freed to be awarded to someone else.

• Make sure the Grade 12 Counselor knows of any and all offers made to you.

Why Do We Need to Know What You Win?

• You’ve noticed that we always want you to inform the Grade 12 Counselor of your awards.

• This is to ensure that you are given recognition at the Graduation Ceremony.

• Even if the award is formally presented elsewhere, we want to also recognize you at our ceremony.

• This is not just for your benefit.• In recognizing you, we also recognize them and

provide them with publicity for their generosity. This encourages them to continue.

The Graduation Ceremony

• Graduating from school is one of life’s significant events.• We mark it with a ceremony that has great importance for

your families.• All students have their walk of fame and are introduced to

the audience.• Award winners are given a little extra attention.• After you shake hands with the Principal, you will be

greeted by the representatives of organizations who will shake hands, present you with an envelope, and will have their picture taken with you.

The Graduation Ceremony

• Do not lose the envelope. It contains one of the following:– A note of congratulation.– A cheque (replacing this, if

lost, is difficult).– Information about how to

receive your cheque.– Contact information so that

you can send a formal thank you to the organization.

• It is essential that you send your thanks.

Is Everyone a Winner?

• Unfortunately, no.

• However, it is difficult to predict who will win, past the obvious suspects with their gaudy grade point averages and exceptional abilities.

• Remember the special criteria for awards mentioned earlier.

Is Everyone a Winner?

• Sometimes few people qualify for an award – or few apply.

• Sometimes it is a peculiar combination of factors that generates a win.

• Every year there are surprised winners.

How Much Money is There

• Amounts vary widely, from $100 honorariums, which are mostly an opportunity to afford recognition to great peoople who would otherwise go unnoticed, to full-ride scholarships at pricey institutions having face values of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

How Much Money is There?

• Most awards are in the $500 to $1000 range.

• Some are up to $2500.• University Entrance Scholarships

(in Canada) are mostly about $5000.

• This is often not enough to pay for school, but when combined with Passport-to-Education money and second or third awards can go a long way to paying off first year. At the very least it pays for books.

…And in the Future?

• Scholarships and bursaries are also available at post secondary schools.

• Mr. Benoy won two scholarships leaving high school, which paid for first year. He did not win a UBC Entrance Scholarship. After that he won tuition payments for placing in the top 5% of his faculty. In the end his university was free.

• For those in need, every institution has a financial aid office – which will help you with loan applications and, perhaps, bursaries.

…And in the Future?

• …of course there is part time work to help pay the bills.

• Give strong consideration to opportunities for Co-op placements. These offer work experience in areas that you are studying and may seek full time employment in later – and they pay real wages. This is not volunteer work.

Conclusion

• Scholarships and bursaries can help a great deal in funding post-secondary studies.

• Winning them takes time and effort – and must be balanced against other demands in life.

Conclusion• Create a master resume for

this and other purposes.• At the very least, get a school

application in, so you will be considered for local awards.

• Try for bigger ones if it looks like there is a chance and keep all of your material on file – it can often be recycled in later applications.

• Keep up with Ms. Clark’s postings and try for those that look within reach.

Conclusion

• Remember, you can’t win anything if you don’t try – but don’t risk your academic achievement by spending an inordinate amount of time applying for everything.

• Employment income is guaranteed; scholarship income is not.

• In grade 12 your biggest problem will be keeping a healthy balance in life: school, play and work. Think about it.

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