Richard T. Gates Engineering and Technology Endowed Challenge Scholarship

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.

To increase your chances of getting a scholarship, apply early, follow all application instructions, and write a great scholarship essay (if applicable)! For more help, ask a Mos advisor!

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.

Most high schools have a specific person they put in charge of transcript requests. If you Google the name of your high school and "transcript request," you may be able to find the contact information for that person and any instructions (like a form you need to fill out) Example below!

Your next best bet is to email the school office or your counselor. We prepared an email to make it easier for you! Make sure to replace everything in the brackets with the relevant information. If you don't know the name of the person who'll get your email, you can address it "To Whom It May Concern" or "Dear High School Officer."

DRAFT EMAIL TO YOUR HIGH SCHOOL Subject Line: [Your Name] – Requesting Transcripts

Dear [name],

My name is [your name], and I'm a current student at [high school name]. I'm working hard applying to financial aid so I can pursue my college dreams. [Name of program] requires an [official, sealed] transcript from my high school. Is that something that you can help me with? Thanks in advance for your time and consideration!

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

To have a copy of your official transcript submitted for a scholarship application, you'll need to contact the registrar's office and ask that they send your transcript to the address you provide. Tip: Make sure to do this far in advance!

For a college transcript, you can also contact the registrar's office, or, you can submit a request through your college portal. FYI: Colleges often charge a fee for this.