Sign #1: It costs money to apply. Applications taken by legitimate scholarships are done for free. It should not cost more than a stamp to mail it in.
Sign #2: The scholarship is guaranteed. No legitimate scholarships can be guaranteed as many people apply and there are only so many scholarships to award. The only guarantee you can get out of a guaranteed scholarship is that it is not genuine.
Sign #3: The application has a spot for your credit card number. As scholarships do not cost anything, this is a big red flag.
Sign #4: You need to pay a fee for additional information about the scholarship. Again, legitimate scholarships do not cost anything for the application or for anything else.
Sign #5: The scholarship is available to anyone who applies. Scholarships are award for reasons, whether it be merit or need, there is a reason for the person receiving it. If the scholarship says it is for anyone, it’s not a scholarship.
Sign #6: All of the work will be done for you. Scholarships take some work. A rule of thumb here is if it looks too easy, it is probably not lawful.
Sign #7: The application was unsolicited. If you didn’t send for it, where did it come from?
Sign #8: You will receive notification by phone. Legal scholarships notify you in writing and do not call you on the phone.
Sign #9: You are offered your money back if your teen doesn’t get any scholarships. See above. You shouldn’t be paying anything in the first place. It is a scholarship, not the lottery.
Sign #10: Your teen’s high school guidance office or college admissions office has not heard of this particular scholarship. This is their business, they know the legitimate scholarships.
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