申请美国大学奖学金的重要性

每年，毫无疑问，绝大多数高中生都会在一系列的网站上征求有关填写大学申请的建议，这是可以理解的，大学的申请会令人困惑，压力重重，而大学的评估流程也并非总是那么清晰明了。即使在提交申请之后，事后的等待有时也比填写申请表本身更为痛苦。然而，人们常常认为大学申请和录取过程就是最终的一切。

Every year, without fail, there will be dozens of dozens of threads posted on a litany of websites of high school seniors asking for advice on filling out college applications. It’s understandable—college applications are confusing, stressful, and the evaluation process by colleges isn’t always clear. Even after they’ve been submitted, the wait afterwards is sometimes even more excruciating than filling out the applications themselves. However, too often, people believe that college applications are the end all, be all of the college admissions process.

其实决定接受哪所大学有很多因素，其中一项就是金钱。

There are a lot of factors that play into ultimately deciding what college to go to, and one of those factors is money. 

如今，一所四年制大学的学费每年可能在10,000美元到80,000美元之间。

Today, tuition fees for a four year college can cost anywhere from $10,000 to up to $80,000 a year.

由于大学教育每年都在涨价，因此可以说申请奖学金比填写大学申请更为重要。像大学申请一样，奖学金通常也会包含许多篇幅较长的论文。因此，写作能力对于增加获得奖学金的机会非常重要，这样你就可以减轻自费或需要借贷来支付大学学费的负担。

Because of the enormous price tag that comes with a college education, applying for scholarships is arguably even more important than filling out the college applications themselves. Scholarships, like college applications, often have numerous essay portions that can be lengthy. As a result, writing ability is incredibly important in increasing your chances of winning scholarships so that you can lessen the burden of paying out of pocket or needing to take out loans to pay for a college education. 

像大学一样，奖学金种类繁多。主要是一些企业公司提供的奖学金，例如可口可乐学者基金会奖学金，就提供了150个奖项，价值20,000美元;而汉堡王麦克拉莫尔基金会奖学金，主要提供不可再生的奖学金，价值1,000美元。其他基金会为盖茨基金会和杰克·肯特·库克基金会等为所有四年制的本科学习提供资金，尽管这两者都考虑到了财务需要。一些较小的本地团体也提供了奖学金，例如扶轮社，狮子会和教堂，但这些组织通常只允许本地人提出申请，这些奖学金通常只向在美国高中毕业的学生或美国永久居民开放。

Like colleges, there is a wide range of scholarships. Some scholarships are offered by corporate businesses, such as the Coca Cola Scholars Foundation scholarship, which offers 150 awards worth $20,000 award or the Burger King McLamore Foundation scholarships that offer mostly non-renewable awards worth $1,000. Other foundations offer funding for all four years of undergraduate study, such as the Gates Foundation and the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, although both of these take into account financial need. Some smaller local groups also offer scholarships, such as Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, and churches, however, these organizations generally only allow applications from local applicants. These scholarships are generally only open to students who are graduating from a high school in the United States or U.S. permanent residents.

然而，仍有许多国际学生奖学金。许多大学提供优秀奖学金，无论申请人的居住地如何，如USC和Emory大学。在这两所大学，所有申请人都在被考虑获得奖学金的范围内，从所有四年的全额学费到一半学费到四分之一学费不等。其他奖励国际学生的奖学金包括NextGen奖学金和BoroDrive提供的国际学生奖学金。NextGen奖学金基金适用于最终在华盛顿特区，马里兰州或弗吉尼亚州学习的国际学生。而国际学生奖学金是一项在一年中提供10个奖项的项目。

However, there are still many scholarships for international students as well. Many universities offer merit scholarships that are awarded regardless of the applicants’ place of residence, such as USC and Emory University. At both of those universities, all applicants are automatically considered for the many scholarships available, which range from full tuition for all four years to half tuition to quarter tuition. Other scholarships that award international students include The NextGen Scholarship and the International Student Scholarship provided by BoroDrive. The NextGen Scholarship Fund is available for international students who end up studying in Washington D.C., Maryland, or Virginia. The International Student Scholarship is a program that offers ten awards over the course of the year.

查找适合国际学生的奖学金的另一个资源是Collegeboard中的奖学金搜索功能。通过输入有关你自己的信息，例如你的国际学生身份，你感兴趣的大学专业，职业兴趣和个人信息，就可以找到适合你的奖学金。

Yet another resource for finding scholarships that cater to international students is the scholarship search function in Collegeboard. By entering information about yourself, such as your international student status, the major youâ€re interested in entering in college, career interests, and personal information, you can find scholarships that are suited to you. 

申请奖学金的关键是从高年级开始就密切关注它们。由于许多不同的组织都提供奖学金，因此有各种各样的截止日期。一些奖学金的截止日期是10月、11月和12月。

The key to applying for scholarships is to keep an eye on them from the moment senior year begins. Because so many different organizations offer scholarships, there is a wide ranging set of deadlines for them. Some scholarship deadlines are in October, November, and December.

通常，这些都是由大型组织提供的奖学金，如可口可乐、汉堡王、盖茨基金会等。这些奖学金也吸引了更多的申请者。因此，尽早提交申请，以便于各组织有充裕的时间筛选申请人并淘汰竞争对手。

Generally, these are scholarships offered by large organizations, such as Coca Cola, Burger King, the Gates Foundation. These scholarships also see a lot more applicants; hence, the early deadline allows the organizations to sift through applications and weed down the competition.

在整个高三学期的春季学期中都会提供较小的奖学金，其中大多数将在二月，三月或四月下旬颁发。

Smaller scholarship awards are offered throughout the spring semester of senior year, with most of them due in late February, March, or April.