McDonald’s HACER National Scholarship

To prioritize your scholarship applications, think about which scholarships you have the best chance of getting (the most specific ones, with more than one winner), the ones due the soonest, and the ones that are awarding the most money.

Tip: We recommend you make a schedule for yourself to follow to stay organized and on track throughout the scholarship application season! You can always ask a Mos advisor for help.

If you haven't heard back within a few weeks, reach out to the scholarship organization! Some scholarship organizations email all the applicants to let them know if they were selected or not, while others only contact the winners—it usually depends on the number of applicants. It never hurts to follow up.

Financial need is determined by the information you enter into your FAFSA. It's the difference between how much it's going to cost you to go to college, your 'cost of attendance (COA)', minus how much of this cost can you / your family cover, your 'Expected Family Contribution (EFC)'. If your EFC is lower than your COA, you have financial need! If you're not sure about your EFC or COA, reach out to a Mos advisor for help!

A letter of recommendation (letter of rec) is a letter written by someone in your life who can speak to your achievements, positive traits, and potential. It's basically a summary of why you're great and deserve the scholarship or funding you're applying for! Typically, students ask teachers, mentors, coaches, or employers (never family or friends). FYI: You have to ask someone to write a letter of rec for you.

Yes! You can use the same letter for multiple scholarships. Make sure the letter meets each scholarship's requirements, and isn't too specific to one scholarship. Tip: You might have to ask your recommender to change the wording for different applications.