Scholarships are a great way to make college more affordable. Most scholarships will require writing essays and submitting letters of recommendation from teachers or coaches, so be sure to start your applications early. Don't be afraid to apply for a wide variety of scholarships. A helpful tip is to organize all the scholarships you're eligible for into a spreadsheet or calendar so that you can keep track of upcoming deadlines, links, etc. As a figure skater, there are several scholarships offered by U.S. Figure Skating for current college students and high school seniors entering college.

U.S. Figure Skating Scholarships

1.    Buch Family Academic Scholarship

• Who's eligible: Graduating high school seniors
• Requirements: Competed at a U.S. Figure Skating qualifying competition at novice or higher and a 3.4 GPA in the last two years of high school

2.    DREAM Scholarship for Synchronized Skaters

• Who's eligible: Synchronized skaters who competed in the most recent season

3.    World Team College College Scholarship Program

• Who's eligible: Current and former Olympic or senior World Figure Skating Championship team members
• Requirements: Full- or part-time undergraduate student

4.    Scott Hamilton Skaters Education Fund

• Who's eligible: Current college students or graduating high school seniors

In addition to scholarships for skating, there are numerous scholarships awarded for academics, public service, research, underrepresented identities and financial need. Here are a few well-known ones: 

1.    Coca Cola Scholarship

• Who's eligible: Graduating high school seniors
• Requirements: Demonstrated commitment to leadership and public service
• Amount: $20,000

2.    The Gates Scholarship

• Who's eligible: High school seniors of a minority identity from low income households
• Requirements: GPA above 3.3, strong academic record, demonstrated leadership
• Amount: Full ride

3.    Regeneron Science Talent Search

• Who's eligible: Graduating high school seniors who have done science/engineering research
• Requirements: Report describing original, independent research
• Amount: $25,000-$250,000

4.    Bryan Cameron Scholarship

• Who's eligible: High school seniors
• Requirements: GPA over 3.7, demonstrated leadership and community service
• Amount: Full ride

5.    Davidson Fellows Scholarship

• Who's eligible: Any high school student 18 or younger 
• Requirements: Completed a significant piece of work in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), humanities (music, literature, philosophy) and outside the box (any project that is project that is university graduate-level work or comparable and completed with the supervision of an expert or experts)
• Amount: $10,000-$50,000

These scholarships are just a few examples of the many that are out there. The website FinAid has helpful guides to navigating scholarships, grants, loans and financial aid. There are also scholarship search engines like Scholly, Peerlift, Fastweb, and Going Merry that help with finding scholarships you're eligible for and streamlining the application process. Lastly, there may be local scholarships that are less competitive than the national ones, so reach out to your school's counselor or career adviser to get a list of scholarships you'd be eligible for.

Marissa Sumathipala is a 2020-21 Collegiate Ambassador and a member of the Harvard University intercollegiate figure skating team.