Roselyn Romero

As a current high school senior, senior year is incredibly demanding, especially during college application season. Seniors are frantically rushing to meet the November-January college app and scholarship deadlines while homework assignments continue piling up by the minute.

It can be incredibly taxing to complete your assignments at midnight and have to research scholarships until the early hours of the day. Luckily, I have compiled a list of my favorite websites that I think all seniors (and college-bound students in general) should know!

The following websites are useful for scholarship searching, internships, tutoring, homework help, etc. I highly recommend bookmarking your favorite sites so you can access them easily!

1. Chegg (www.chegg.com)
   Chegg is a phenomenal resource for students who are currently in high school or college. This website provides a comprehensive scholarship search tool, internship searches, résumé assistance, textbook rentals (used, new, and electronic), standardized test prep, online tutors, and so much more. In fact, Chegg is considered the #1 textbook rental website, with many textbooks discounted by up to 90%.
   I personally utilize Chegg for mostly scholarship information, but I would highly recommend this website to anybody on the road to higher education.
2. Fastweb (www.fastweb.com)
   Like Chegg, Fastweb is an amazing tool for high school and college students who are interested in finding scholarships and more. They offer a completely free college search tool, tips and tricks on how to win scholarships, information on student loans and financial aid, a plethora of college and career advice, and test prep.
   My favorite aspect of Fastweb is how they categorize their scholarships into very specific niches – such as scholarships for high school seniors, veterans, bilingual students, African-American students, etc. – to facilitate the scholarship search.
3. Scholarships (www.scholarships.com)
   Featured on CNN and Forbes, Scholarships allows students to search for scholarships ranging from all criteria. Their scholarship directory is abundant with local and nationwide awards, with many scholarships offering thousands of dollars for essay writing or other similar submissions. In addition to scholarships, they also provide a college search tool, which is perfect for anyone still researching universities to apply to in the future.
4. Unigo (www.unigo.com)
   With over $3.6 million in scholarships and over 650 thousand college reviews, Unigo is a high school senior godsend. They provide a college matching tool, which allows students to see in which universities they would most likely thrive and excel. Additionally, they offer a super simple scholarship search tool, along with detailed reviews for thousands of colleges around the world.
   I mainly use Unigo as a scholarship search engine because they provide comprehensive eligibility requirements, instructions, and tons of other information pertaining to each award.
5. Make Me a Freshman (makemeafreshman.com)
   Out of all the websites listed on this blog post, Make Me a Freshman is the most underrated, yet practical websites I have ever come across. Every high school senior must sign up on this website!
   Make Me a Freshman essentially breaks up the entire college admissions process into very manageable, simple steps to follow. All you have to do is register (it’s free!), type in what colleges you are applying to, and what financial aid you are planning on receiving (FAFSA, Dream Act, etc.). Once you enter all the necessary information, they give you all the tasks you need to complete as well as all their deadlines to ensure you’ve got the entire college admissions process under control.
   If you are a first-generation student or have little to no access to college application assistance, Make Me a Freshman is your best friend! Because it breaks down the college admissions process into tiny steps, you will feel less overwhelmed and have concrete deadlines to meet, making the entire process seem like a breeze.
6. Niche (www.niche.com)
   Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Niche is a completely free resource for all high school and college students who are in the midst of the college search or looking for scholarships. Niche gives a “grade” for every university and city in the United States using information compiled from scientific research and personal anecdotes from locals and current students. They allow students to explore the pros and cons of each college, as well as share their experiences at a specific school. As for scholarships, they provide a thorough scholarship search tool, as well as a monthly no-essay $2,000 scholarship for anyone who signs up on Niche.
   I love utilizing Niche for insight on which cities in which I could potentially live someday, as well as reviews on the universities I am considering attending. Their scholarship search tool is also wonderful, with an infinite number of scholarships to look for and apply to every month.
7. JLV College Counseling (jlvcollegecounseling.com)
   Believe it or not, this website is actually another blog that I follow! JLV College Counseling provides resources on a wide range of scholarships, college admissions advice, test preparation, essay advice, words of wisdom for parents, and tons more! Their blog posts never fail to captivate me, and their wealth of knowledge on scholarships and financial aid is astounding. They also provide a monthly list of scholarships to apply to for high school and college students of all criteria, which I highly recommend taking full advantage of!