Because Funding is Cool

I'm having high school flashbacks.

 

I have applied for scholarships in the past. The first time I was in high school. It was the Juliette Gordon Low Scholarship from my local Girl Scout Council. I got to go to a fancy-schmancy luncheon to accept it. I sat next to a prominent Tulsa lady who was wearing trout earrings. Or perhaps they were bass. I'm not sure. Anyway, fish earrings. The fish was jumping through her ear. It's weird the details you remember. As an undergrad, I applied for one of the scholarships offered by the local chapter of my sorority. I received it twice. I never worried too much about obtaining scholarships as an undergrad or in my Master's because I had the grandaddy of all scholarships at OU: National Merit. OU was (and is) lousy with us National Merit kids.

 

My thought process has changed since then. Although I am paying for my education with money left by my grandmother, it is MY money. That fact gives me so much more motivation to apply for scholarships. And I have decided that now is the time to start. I have investigated scholarships through the two organizations that were my extracurricular passions in college: my honor fraternity and my sorority. I have asked questions, received answers, and begun the process of filling out paperwork and writing personal statements. And, sadly, this process has made me slightly nervous. Am I worthy of these scholarships? How many other people will apply? What's the competition like? I want to be like the cartoon cat in the humane society commercial that says, "Pick me!" Of course, continuing my education is not contingent on these scholarships. If I get one, would I be stealing it from a deserving person? When they see my income level, will I automatically be disqualified?

 

Maybe I shouldn't question it.

 

I also feel awkward asking for recommendations. I really shouldn't, considering I have written recommedation letters for other people in the past and actually kind of enjoy it. There's just something about giving your honest assessment of a person's strengths and weaknesses, and in many cases telling how wonderful someone is. I just hate imposing on people, so for me that is the hardest part of the application process. Personal statements are cake.

 

My goal is to acquire the "que sera, sera" attitude toward the scholarships. If I receive them, fine, but if not, neither my education nor my self-worth are based on receiving those honors. And I will keep telling myself that every day after I send off the paperwork :-)