**FIRST EMAIL**/2009 FIRST Scholarship News - March Update

[Mark McLeod]

*** Team Contacts: Please pass this info on to students, parents, and high school guidance counselors! ***

2009 FIRST Scholarship News – March Update

Greetings Teams:

Good Luck to all of you in your Regional Events! Be sure to take the opportunity during your regional event to visit the FIRST Scholarship Program table. Here you can get information about the $9.7 million in college scholarships available to FIRST high school students. Your Regional may also be hosting a Scholarship Row or College Fair where representatives from colleges are available to talk to you about their campus, programs, and scholarships. Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity. And please take the time to thank these schools for offering FIRST Scholarships!
Be sure to check out the FIRST Scholarship web page (visit www.usfirst.org/scholarships and follow the link to the 2009 FIRST Scholarship Opportunities) and check for last minute changes to this year’s scholarship offerings. Hint: you can sort the scholarship list by Date Posted by clicking on the Date Posted column header.

Recent changes to FIRST Scholarships:

• University of Massachusetts Lowell – Engineering has generously increased their scholarship from $4,000/year to $5,000/year.
• University of Massachusetts Lowell – Sciences has generously increased their scholarship from $4,000/year to $5,000/year. The application deadline is April 15th.
• Oregon State University is now offering their scholarship to students in the FTC program as well as those in FRC.
• Teradata Corporation – the scholarship application is now available. The application deadline is April 15th.
• Southern California Regional Robotics Forum (SCRRF) has confirmed their scholarship for 2009. They are offering two $500 non-renewable scholarships to students on Southern California FRC or FTC teams who will be studying math, science, or technology. The application deadline is March 30th.

Scholarship Advice

• Seniors: if you will be attending a college that does not offer a FIRST Scholarship, be sure to check out the following national FIRST Scholarships that can be used at any college and whose deadline dates are still in the future:
  • Raytheon Company (deadline 4/30)
  • ASME-ASME Auxilliary (deadline 3/15)
  • Fabricators & Manufacturers Association Foundation (deadline 4/3)
  • International Fluid Power Society (deadline 5/31)
  • Fluid Power Educational Foundation (deadline 5/31) – can be used at 16 different colleges and universities (see list in scholarship description)
• There are also some regional/state FIRST Scholarships that can be used at any college or university. When searching the 2009 FIRST Scholarship Opportunities on-line, be sure to search by both the state in which you live and the state in which you will be attending college (use the Select Area drop down menu, then click GO).
• Juniors: Did you know there are still four scholarships that you can apply for this year? Check out the following scholarships:
  • College of Southern Maryland
  • ITT Technical Institute
  • Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute/BAE Systems (only available to juniors!)
  • Virginia Tech/BAE Systems (only available to junior women!)
• Remember that some scholarships go unawarded because no one applies for them. If you fit the eligibility requirements for a scholarship, go for it!
• Pay attention to those application deadline dates. There are over 32 scholarships whose applications are due within the next month.
• What if you have just missed the application deadline date? Call the school or organization and ask if they will accept a late application. Some schools will accept applications even after the deadline date. It certainly can’t hurt to ask!

Go Teams!