Bonner is not a program offered everywhere, but many small liberal arts colleges have it, and many schools have similar AVID programs. So, always do your research!
Now let’s talk about QuestBridge, which is a scholarship that you can apply to in the late summer before your senior year. If you’re a high-achieving, low-income junior, start preparing now: the deadline is in the last week of September, so if you start now, you’ll have around 5 months of preparation. Through QuestBridge, I received a full-ride scholarship to Macalester College, which included my study abroad experience. The QuestBridge application is long but so worth it. You’ll need essays, recommendations, and a strong academic record, but you don’t necessarily need perfect grades. You will, however, need passion, resilience and a clear story.
Which leads to my biggest piece of advice: your story is your superpower! Every scholarship award body wants to know who you are beyond your GPA and high school. What obstacles have you faced? What keeps you motivated? How have your background and community shaped your dreams? When you write your personal statement, you don’t just want to list achievements. You have to share your journey. One of the key ways to express this is through a simple format: choose a specific part of your life, outline an obstacle, acknowledge your situation and explain how you overcame. Finally, describe what you learned from this experience. This situation doesn’t have to be something extraneous, just something that mattered and impacted you.
Once you have one strong essay, rescue and repurpose it. Seriously!
