I applied to the Masters in Social Work (MSW) program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) in January of 2016. I was extremely anxious because I wanted to get the acceptance letter. The anxiety led me to forget to apply for scholarships. When I got my acceptance letter in April, I was ecstatic! I then scrambled to start applying for scholarships with no plan. Most of the scholarships that I was interested in had either closed or had their deadlines fast approaching. After this experience, I promised myself that I would be more prepared for the Spring 2018 and Fall 2018 scholarships.

These are the following things that I did to prepare:

• I researched on scholarships through various scholarship websites
• I maintained a running list of scholarships I was interested in on an excel spreadsheet. I ensured that I included their deadlines
• I wrote sample essay ideas
• Approached 4-5 people regarding potential scholarship recommendations
• Updated my resume to ensure it contains my most current work history

November is coincidentally national scholarship month. Now is a great time to start your preparation! The holidays are fast approaching, and this may perhaps be the most sensible time to prepare with little pressure.

As a reminder, the USG scholarships are ongoing. Please review the USG poster below.

Happy scholarship hunting!