SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Every year, nearly two million scholarships are awarded to students across the United States, but finding the right opportunities can be daunting.
A new program, Scholarship Owl, leverages artificial intelligence technology to generate personalized scholarship lists tailored to individual students.
Scholarship Owl is a paid online platform that connects students to scholarships that best fit their unique profiles.
Jennifer Finetti, the director of student advocacy for the website, explains the mechanics of the service: “Students input their own information, they set up a profile, then we use that information and match that to scholarships that are available in our platform.”
Scholarships available through the service can range from $500 to over $1,000, with possibilities for even higher amounts. The platform also allows students to track how many people have applied for specific scholarships.
The cost for accessing the website starts at $15 a month, although a free 7-day trial is offered.
To date, over 10 million students have utilized the platform as they seek financial assistance for college expenses.
According to recent data from Search Logistics, 58 percent of families depend on scholarships to fund their education.
The average cost for attending a private college is approximately $43,000 per year, while public in-state tuition averages around $11,000, and public out-of-state college costs about $25,000 annually.
When it comes to applying for scholarships, a counselor from San Diego College of Continuing Education stressed the importance of self-presentation in the application process.
“You know what? This is no time to be humble. If you don't tell me about your greatness, I will never know,” the counselor remarked.
Additionally, she emphasized the necessity of careful reading of application requirements.
“I feel like reading is going out of style, but the application is going to tell you what they want, what do you need in order to qualify for these funds, so you need to really read every application; it’s going to have something different,” she noted.
Students are also advised to allow ample time before deadlines to revisit their applications.
“If you can wait like one day, just let it sit, go back, and read. And you might even want to have someone read it, you know, on your behalf, do an edit for you,” the counselor added.
As the demand for financial aid continues to grow, platforms like Scholarship Owl are becoming invaluable tools for students navigating the complex process of securing funding for their education.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
