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100 weird scholarship ideas
http://www.savingforcollege.com/articles/100-weird-scholarship-ideas-812
Posted: 2015-07-29
From our friends at The Penny Hoarder Blog
What’s one of the easiest ways to bring down the cost of college? Scholarships, of course! But what if your child isn’t a straight-A student, and kind of stinks at sports? Don’t worry - there might be scholarships for them, too. And don’t be fooled, scholarships are not just for low-income students and minorities. In fact, according to Sallie Mae’s How America Pays for College 2014 report, 38 percent of students from households with incomes over $100,000 received scholarships. What’s more, scholarships aren’t just for incoming freshman. Students should continue to apply for awards until they pay their last tuition bill.
But what if you’ve been saving for your child’s college in a 529 plan? What happens to your savings if they win a free ride? Although the chances of getting a scholarship to cover the full cost of college are pretty slim, the normal 10 percent penalty on non-qualified withdrawals will be waived up to the amount of the tax-free award. This is a special exception that is granted in cases where a student receives a scholarship, dies or becomes disabled or decides to attend a U.S. Military Academy.
So let’s say you’ve saved $25,000, which will cover the total cost of your son’s senior year. He is awarded a lacrosse scholarship for $10,000, so now you have $15,000 left in the account. But remember this will be your last year to pay tuition. You would withdraw $15,000 to pay for your qualified college expenses, and then you would be able to take a non-qualified withdrawal of up to $10,000. You would avoid paying the 10% penalty on the non-qualified withdrawal but the earnings would be subject to income tax.
Or, you could avoid paying any taxes by saving the money for graduate school or changing the beneficiary of the account to another relative who will attend college.
So how do you find unique scholarships for students who don’t quite fit the mold? You’re in luck! Our friends, the money saving experts at the Penny Hoarder blog, have already done the legwork.
Check out their list: 100 Weird Scholarships: Wacky Ways to Pay for School.
RELATED: 10 things you need to know about getting scholarships
From our friends at The Penny Hoarder Blog
What’s one of the easiest ways to bring down the cost of college? Scholarships, of course! But what if your child isn’t a straight-A student, and kind of stinks at sports? Don’t worry - there might be scholarships for them, too. And don’t be fooled, scholarships are not just for low-income students and minorities. In fact, according to Sallie Mae’s How America Pays for College 2014 report, 38 percent of students from households with incomes over $100,000 received scholarships. What’s more, scholarships aren’t just for incoming freshman. Students should continue to apply for awards until they pay their last tuition bill.
But what if you’ve been saving for your child’s college in a 529 plan? What happens to your savings if they win a free ride? Although the chances of getting a scholarship to cover the full cost of college are pretty slim, the normal 10 percent penalty on non-qualified withdrawals will be waived up to the amount of the tax-free award. This is a special exception that is granted in cases where a student receives a scholarship, dies or becomes disabled or decides to attend a U.S. Military Academy.
So let’s say you’ve saved $25,000, which will cover the total cost of your son’s senior year. He is awarded a lacrosse scholarship for $10,000, so now you have $15,000 left in the account. But remember this will be your last year to pay tuition. You would withdraw $15,000 to pay for your qualified college expenses, and then you would be able to take a non-qualified withdrawal of up to $10,000. You would avoid paying the 10% penalty on the non-qualified withdrawal but the earnings would be subject to income tax.
Or, you could avoid paying any taxes by saving the money for graduate school or changing the beneficiary of the account to another relative who will attend college.
So how do you find unique scholarships for students who don’t quite fit the mold? You’re in luck! Our friends, the money saving experts at the Penny Hoarder blog, have already done the legwork.
Check out their list: 100 Weird Scholarships: Wacky Ways to Pay for School.
RELATED: 10 things you need to know about getting scholarships
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