If you’re an SDSU student, you probably want to know how to get the university to pay for as much of your education as possible. SDSU scholarships are your goal, but it can be a confusing route to get to them.
I don’t blame you. Throughout my various programs there, I was the same way. And you know what?
It worked!
By leveraging the various financial aid options at SDSU, I managed to get almost my full tuition paid for the entire time I was there. In my credential program, I received a hefty bit of money. Additionally, I got to study abroad for free!
I firmly believe that most people can absolutely get scholarships; it’s just a matter of knowing where to look and how to qualify. With that in mind, here’s my ultimate guide to SDSU scholarships in 8 tips!
#1: Aztec Scholarships Is Your Friend
Your first stop when looking for SDSU scholarships is always Aztec Scholarships. A few years ago, SDSU centralized everything so that you could apply to scholarships in one place. After filling out a general application, you can see what you qualify for and what you’re best matched for. This can eliminate some of the unnecessary digging and save you time! From there, everything is on one platform, and you can track it all at once.
While a few of the scholarships have different due dates, a vast majority of them are open for applications from May to early August. That gives you the whole summer to perfect those applications and look up more tips on how to write the perfect essay.
One thing to stress about Aztec Scholarships is that is has something for everyone. Whether you’re an athlete, a teacher, a woman in STEM, a native San Diegan, or a fourth generation student at the school, you can find at least one scholarship to help you.
#2: When In Doubt, Apply
As a general rule of thumb, you don’t know how many people are applying for this scholarship. It could be 100,000. It could be 10. Like that famous quote goes, you don’t know what will happen if you don’t try (or you’ll miss 100% of the shots you don’t take). For me, scholarships worked much the same way. While it was frustrating to sit there and write up different essays and such, it was absolutely worth it in the end. At some points, I applied to so many scholarships that I got ones that I had no recollection of even applying for. Many of these were through Aztec Scholarships, which, again, is your best friend in this process.
#3: If You Can Join an Honors Program, Do It
As I wrote in another article, and Honors Program has so many fantastic upsides to it, and one of these is money. When I was still a senior in high school, freshly accepted to SDSU and the Weber Honors College, I applied for a few scholarships that only Weber Honors students could apply to. Like I mentioned above, you never know how many people are applying for something. When that pool is limited as it is, your chances are even better! Plus, money is often pretty good in an Honors Program. For that reason alone, it’s usually worth it to explore your options.
Even if you don’t initially get a scholarship through your Honors Program, you’ll have support from Honors admin. At SDSU, these are the friendliest, most knowledgeable, and most helpful people on campus! They give you access to more resources throughout the year, help you plan your applications, and offer support for everything you might possibly need. When I applied for my Fulbright program (which I learned about from them), they were incredibly helpful. Just having this support is crucial during your application process!
#4: Use Google
If you saw the amount of times I googled things like “scholarship for San Diego teachers” or “scholarships for people interested in conflict resolution,” you might laugh. It sounds ridiculous and way too simple to work, but it does! Many sites either want to advertise their own scholarships or have lists they’ve collected. Very much in line with the rest of the advice in this article, make sure to utilize your resources!
#5: Check Out Your Major’s Homeroom
For every major and minor that I ever had, the advisors were fantastic about giving us opportunities through the homeroom. Whenever a scholarship or research opportunity came up, they posted it immediately. At SDSU, you have access to this through Canvas, and some send out email announcements as well. It helps to check this regularly, that way you can stay up to date on the opportunities that are out there and not miss a deadline. Additionally, as I mentioned before, this helps to narrow the field down even more to something that is more relevant to your field of study–i.e., women in conflict resolution. Talking to your major’s advisor in person is something that can also be super useful, as they can offer you more information and guidance on what the committees are looking for.
#6: Check Reddit
This may (or may not) be your first place to look, but it’s a good one! By looking things up on the SDSU subreddit, I’ve found a ton of useful information about the school. Whether this is where people found their own SDSU scholarships, tips they had when applying, things they did to qualify, or ways they saved money, this is extremely useful. If only for general advice, it’s definitely worth it to check in it sometimes. Even though I went to SDSU for my undergrad, I still used the SDSU subreddit to compare credential programs, figure out how to best study for things, and more.
#7: Get Involved
Think of this as an insurance method or a door opener. Many SDSU scholarships want to see how involved in the school you are. Think of it from their perspective–they want to make sure the money is going to good use, not to a slacker. By getting involved in various things, especially on campus, you not only show this to committees, but you also open doors for new opportunities. On Aztec Scholarships, they give you the option to check off boxes for many, many on campus organizations, sports, and programs. By doing things like the Leadership Certificate, I was able to qualify for more scholarships. Similarly, this could help you to find a niche area to excel and earn that money!
#8: Have Other People Read Over Your Stuff
Most scholarships require you to write a bit. Whether it’s a general introduction of yourself, responding to multiple prompts, or essentially bragging about your accomplishments, this is what will set you apart from others. Like with college applications, it’s what will make you seem human to the scholarship committee. When needing to humble brag, it can often be difficult to strike the balance between humble and arrogant, even though you absolutely need to prove to them that you are a fantastic candidate! For this reason (and for typos), it helps to have a pair of outside eyes on your essays. When they read over it, have them look for the following things:
- Answering the prompt
- Putting specific examples
- Avoiding typos
- Meeting all requirements (word count)
- Demonstrating how you will use the scholarship to be involved and give back
- Providing a compelling argument for why you deserve the scholarship
- Humble bragging the right way
Once you do that and get their feedback, you can feel much more confident when you turn it in.
A Final Word
Applying for scholarships isn’t fun, but it can be incredibly rewarding. Through using your resources, setting yourself up well by being involved, and taking chances, you can qualify for way more scholarships than you’d think. Once more, you never know what kind of money you could get unless you try! Have any questions? Leave them in the comments below.
Good luck on your scholarship journey!
