In this YouTube presentation, Shellee Howard, founder and CEO of CollegeReady, explains how middle‑class families can win large merit‑based or institution‑based scholarships. She cites that CollegeReady students earned over $17.6 million in scholarships last year and outlines three concrete steps to secure big awards: (1) develop a standout strategy that clarifies a student’s core values, gifts, and talents so the application reads as unique and compelling; (2) choose the right college—one whose majors, alumni network, and academic environment align with the student’s long‑term goals and maximizes scholarship opportunities; and (3) submit a flawless application and essay, avoiding ghost‑writing and ensuring the essay authentically conveys why the student matters to the institution. Howard concludes by offering a free 30‑minute discovery call to diagnose families’ current scholarship approach and provide focused fundamentals, positioning the college degree as a strong return on investment.
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Hello, this is Shellee Howard, founder and CEO of CollegeReady, and today I get to share with you how to find the big scholarships. Many people are just discouraged, and so they just throw up their hands and say, oh, we probably make too much money. But I will— I wanted to share that that's not always the case. There are a lot of middle class families that are getting a ton of scholarships, and those are called merit-based or institution-based. Last year, our students earned over $17.6 million in scholarships, and we know how to find them, we know how to apply to them, and we know how to win them. That's what I want to talk about today. So the top 3 things that will get you a big scholarship. Number 1 is a standout strategy. When colleges want a student, they pay for them with scholarships. Think of college as a business, right? And you're the business owner, you're the college, and I come to you and I say, "I really don't have much experience, but I really want to work for you," or a student that says, "I haven't really done much, but I really want to attend your institution." versus the student who has a really thought-out standout strategy, the one where the application reader's gonna be like, "This student, you've gotta read about their application. They're amazing." What is that for your student? Because that's where the big money lies, right? Remember the old saying, you get what you, you know, you get, and you can do something to change that. That's what we do at College Ready. We help the student figure out their core values, their gifts, their talents, the things that will help them stand out, and then we apply, or they apply. We support them, and that is number one. So the standout strategy number one. Number two to get big scholarships is picking the right college. It sounds so simple but so confusing at the same time. I talked to a family today and they're like, yes, we would like to pick the right college, but how do we find out what is the right college, right? Because not every college has every major. That might shock you. Not every college has the alumni group that you'll need in your future. Not every college can you graduate at the top 5% of your class to apply to medical school, law school. Dental school, MBA, PhD. So picking the right college, that's number 2. And number 3 is having a flawless application and essay. Do not count on somebody writing it for you. Colleges know. Colleges want to know who you are and why it matters, and that is the essay. So if you can really think about how to put together a standout strategy apply to the right colleges, and have a perfect application and a beautiful essay to wrap it all together, you will receive the big scholarships. If you have no idea how to figure that all out by yourself, I'm happy to offer you a complimentary discovery call, 30 minutes with me where we can diagnose what's working and what is not working, give you some really great fundamentals of what needs to be focused on, so that way you're not feeling overwhelmed, you're not feeling you're going to let your child down. You have the information to make some wise decisions. Your college degree can be a great return on investment. That is what we want for you. Reach out, let us know how we can help. Thank you so much.
