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Average college costs have doubled in the past two
decades, and this financial pressure, along with new
technologies, makes today’s students particularly
vulnerable to financial aid and scholarship scams.
“Scammers know to take advantage of those who are
stressed,” said Robert C. Ballard, president and CEO of
Scholarship America, the nation’s largest nonprofit schol-arship
and education support organization. “Fortunately,
there are some ways you can avoid getting duped.”
To help you spot scams, Scholarship America offers the
following insights.
Fees, other red flags
Scholarship programs charging a fee to apply often look
legitimate. But look at the bigger picture: if the provider
is awarding $500 in scholarships and collecting fees from
thousands of applicants, it’s not funding education so
much as making money. Your chances of earning a schol-arship
are slight if not impossible — sham providers often
collect fees and disappear.
Some providers claim to have a no-strings-attached
grant or an incredibly low-interest loan to offer, as long
as you pay a tax or “redemption” fee in advance. Others
offer to match you with guaranteed scholarships — if you
pay for a premium search service. Keep in mind, there’s no
such thing as a “guaranteed scholarship.”
Free, comprehensive scholarship searching and match-ing
services, such as Fastweb and Cappex, will connect you
to legitimate, competitive scholarships that don’t charge
application fees.
Too good to be true
Be wary of the “too-good-to-be-true” scam model: an
official-sounding organization tells you about an incred-ible
opportunity, offers you a coveted spot at a scholarship
seminar, or just sends you a check with a note of congrat-ulations,
using messaging designed to get your adrenaline
pumping and make you act fast.
Remember, scholarship providers aren’t in the practice
of sending funds out randomly; it’s likely the check will
bounce, or you’ll be asked to send money back for “pro-cessing”
or an “accidental” overpayment. Your safest bet?
Tearing up the check and, if you have time, filing a com-plaint
with the Federal Trade Commission.
Often, unexpected “opportunities” are attempts to get
you to divulge personal information. Even clicking on links
can expose your data to scammers.
Be cautious: Google the name of the scholarship or
organization. Scams have often been flagged by the FTC
or Better Business Bureau.
Social scammers
A new scam making the rounds starts with a random
friend request on Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat. Ac-cept,
and your new friend will start messaging you about
a foolproof way to make money for college: they work for
a scholarship provider and have found a loophole. They
just need to enter you as a winner, and you can split the
money.
If this was real, it’d be incredibly unethical. However,
in the midst of stress, you might be tempted — and that
could cost more than money. While you might be asked to
send cash as an advance, most such scammers are phish-ing.
Give them enough info, and you’ll be worrying about
getting your identity back.
For more scholarship tools, resources and opportunities,
including the annual Scholarship America Dream Award,
please visit scholarshipamerica.org.
“Scholarship scams seem to work just enough for
people to keep trying it,” Ballard said. “However, two main
rules will help you avoid them: never pay to apply, and if it
sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”