Toot Your Horn and Get Paid
If you’ve been a part of your chorus, band or orchestra during high school, you can put that talent to work to earn money for your college education.
Many schools provide music scholarships to students with musical talents—even if they don’t plan to pursue a music degree.
At the University of Louisville, participation in marching band in the fall automatically qualifies you for a minimum of $900 toward your spring semester’s tuition. At Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, students who play in the Big Red Marching Band or the WKU Basketball Bands are eligible to receive $300 just for their participation. And you don’t have to be a music major in order to be eligible for these scholarships.
Morehead State University’s music program is among those throughout the state that offer a number of full-tuition talent-based scholarships, regardless of need, to students planning to major or minor in music.
As a rule, most music programs that award scholarships require an audition. But don’t let the audition process scare you away. Go ahead and toot your own horn or sing your own praises—and earn some money along the way!
Take Note …
- Keep practicing—most schools require auditions.
- Turn in applications as early as possible.
- Get as much info as possible—check out Web sites and call the schools.
- Many schools offer scholarships to non-music majors.
- Apply for several different scholarships in case the one you want doesn’t come through.
Play to Win
Even if you’re not the star quarterback of the football team or the starting center for basketball at your school, don’t automatically count yourself out of the running just because you’re not a superstar. There are scholarships out there for a wide variety of sports.
Kentucky might well be the basketball capital of the world, but Kentucky colleges also offer athletic scholarships in field hockey, lacrosse, cycling, wrestling (for both men and women), gymnastics, rodeo and rifle. And don’t forget cheerleading. You can even get a scholarship for wearing a mascot’s uniform. But colleges don’t always come to you. You have to let the colleges know you’re there.
If you’re interested in pursuing an athletic scholarship, here are some tips to get you going:
- Start by exploring different colleges and the types of scholarships they offer. (The Internet is an invaluable resource, and nearly every school now has a Web site.)
- Ask your coaches about which schools might be a good fit for you.
- Collect news clippings and videos that highlight your achievements and abilities.
- Get the name of the head coach at the colleges in which you are interested and send a letter directly to him/her. State your interest in their program and include information about yourself (such as honors, athletic statistics, press clippings, etc.).
If you are truly serious about a particular program, submit an application. Schools will be much more interested in you if they see you are genuinely interested in them.
After you apply, stay in touch with the coach to keep your name in the running.
Last—but not least—keep your grades up! You won’t get anywhere if you don’t remain eligible!
For more information on college athletics, check out the following Web sites:
National Collegiate Athletic Association
www.ncaa.org
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
www.naia.org
National Junior College Athletic Association
www.njcaa.org
Source: FastWeb, Inc.
