7 ways to pay for graduate school

I never thought I could go to graduate school. 

For me, graduate school was for "other" people. "Rich" people. "Academic" people. Doctors. Laywers. Professors. Not someone like me...

But then I won the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship and all of that changed. I fell to my knees and cried my eyes out because for the first time in my life I had realized I was holding myself back. 

Sure, it was easy for me to realize it was possible because in a moment it was paid for - but I cried at the knowledge that I could have gone to graduate school no matter what. I could have made it happen if I wanted it too. If only I believed I could. 

If you're like me and are the first in your family to attend college, graduate school can seem even more daunting and impossible. And yes, it can seem like too much money, and in some cases, going to graduate school doesn't guarantee making more money. 

But I want you to know that if you want to go to grad school, or if it's a little dream in the back of your head that seems impossible or unaffordable, it's not. 

Below are seven ways you can go to graduate school for incredible cheap or even free!

1. Fellowships/Teaching Assistantships: Search the graduate section of the college website and click on any information they provide about fellowships or teaching assistantships and the application process (it is usually a separate process from your admissions application). If you can't find the information online, contact a graduate admissions counselor. These programs allow you to work for the college in the classroom (or doing research) and have it cover most or all of your tuition (similar to work-study, but more focused on your subject area). 

2. Programs where acceptance covers tuition: Some graduate programs allow you to attend for free if you get accepted, such as Harvard's E.D.L.D.

3. AmeriCorps: AmeriCorps is a volunteer program that provides a financial education award, as well as living expenses and a stipend during service. They place you with non-profits across the country. I'm not an expert on this but the people I've met who've done it are incredible! Check out AmeriCorps.gov to learn more. 

4. Teach for America: Teach for America is a program that pays new teachers to serve in low-income areas. You will get a salary while teaching and an educational award. 

5. McNair: The McNair Scholars Program is a branch of the TRiO program, which serves first generation students. Check this list to see if your undergraduate institution has a McNair Scholars Program. McNair prepares undergraduates to gain acceptance to graduate school. The McNair website also has a great comprehensive list of graduate funding opportunities at institutions across the country, categorized by discipline. 

6. Jack Kent Cooke Foundation: The Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship currently allows for scholars to "reapply" after they receive their undergraduate degree to win a $50,000 graduate award. You do not compete against others, but only your previous record. JKC also awards $50,000/year graduate scholarships in the arts, as well as a dissertation fellowship. 

7. Work for a college or company that covers tuition: Once you've received your Bachelor's degree, you can consider working full-time at a college or company that covers college tuition. Many companies will do this if you are pursuing a degree in their industry. You can also check out job openings at the college's where you'd like to attend graduate school, as most colleges and universities allow their employees to take classes tuition-free. 

There are endless options. If you decide it's something you want, then let nothing stop you, especially money. You can do it!

To keep up with future blog posts, join the coolest people ever at Facebook.com/CCSuccess

A letter to my 2007 self

If you're a frequent reader you know this isn't a journal-type blog. Because
a) this blog is all about you and
b) I'm not that exciting. 

However - since I've been blogging since 2010, I feel like we're real friends now. And as my friend, I needed to vent. My journal is sitting next to my laptop right now, but it just doesn't feel like enough. I needed to talk to you.

I just finished my 5th Jack Kent Cooke scholar conference. I won the $110,000 JKC scholarship in 2007, and every year since then I have attended the conference where we meet other scholars, learn, and have fun. This is my last one as I graduated with my M.Ed this summer. It's over. And there is something about the things we do over and over again every year (e.g. Christmas) that make us reflect on the passage of time and how it changes us.

So this year at the conference I've had this girl following me around. She has cropped brown hair and bangs, wears a lot of sundresses, and is really unsure where her life is going to go. Her name is Isa Adney, circa 2007.

This year I just keep thinking about who I was in 2007, about to transfer from community college to a four-year university. Excited for the future but deathly terrified of what it would look like, of who Isa circa 2012 would be. 

Me @ my first JKC conference in 2007 (with friends I miss dearly)

And now I know. And to be perfectly honest, it does feel really good to know. But it wasn't always an easy journey to the knowing, and I still know the learning will go on forever - that's the best part. 

But I can't get this 2007 girl out of my head. I so desperately wish I could go back in time and tell her some things. So since I can't do that (unless using my awesome networking skills I can track down Doc. Brown), I'm going to share the things I want to tell her before she transfers to her four-year university, to you.

• Don't doubt yourself. You are enough.
• Don't ever cut your hair above your shoulders again. It is not a good look on you.
• Also forget about bangs.
• Even though you feel like you're really busy, you will have the most free time you'll ever have in college. Embrace every unscheduled moment and bask in the things you love.
• You're going to meet a lot of people your age who are wealthy for the first time. Here is a heads up: Citizens of Humanity are jeans, not a class. 
• Don't worry if you don't fit in - embrace the character built from being from the lower middle class. 
• When you leave college, friendships evolve. Facebook will never feel like enough. Soak in their presence and words and laughter. Let it make you better. And never stop trying to meet up again.
• I know you feel lost now, but remember that this daily struggle, this daily hard work, will pay off. You won't see it for years. But if you keep going you will one day know who you are and what you're doing and have a direction so clear that your pursuits no longer feel like work. 
• I don't want to give you any hints, because I know you need to figure this out for yourself. But just know, the people you meet and work with every day will set your heart on fire. You will fall in love with something. And you will know who you are. 
• I know you feel so inadequate, with no clear direction, no clear sense of what the heck you are going to do with your life. Just remember that who you are right now is enough, and that one day you'll look back and be so thankful for that young naive girl who kept believing in her dreams and thought the world was a happy and welcoming and fair place. You'll find the injustices you discover just add logs to your fire. And you'll find that you'll miss this. 

Thank you so much for reading this blog and being on this journey with me (I'm talking to you now, not my 2007 self, I'm not crazy I promise). I hope in a few years you will be able to look on your 2012 self with fondness and gratitude. I hope that too. 

Special Update: Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship Application is NOW open!

Learn more about applying for the $30,000/year Jack Kent Cooke undergraduate transfer scholarship. 

It can change your life. It changed mine. 

Weekend 4Cast: Videos!

So apparently all that travel has given my system a huge kick in the butt and I am down for the count sick. Ugh! But I can't leave you with nothing - so today's Weekend 4Cast features 4 videos that I love for a variety of reasons. Choose your favorite or watch all 4 =)

* Weekend 4Cast *

The 4 things I'm dying to share with you that can't wait until Monday

1- Newest Taylor Swift Video-

Taylor Swift just released her new video Sparks Fly, which features live scenes from her recent tour (i.e. the concert I wrote about in What a 9th Grade Couple Taught me at a Taylor Swift Concert). I find I rarely watch music videos now but when I do they always make me feel happy. 

2- The StudentMentor.org Story-

StudentMentor.org is an incredible website created by two young and dedicated social entrepreneurs who left high paying jobs to create this service just for you. What are you waiting for? I've recently mentored two college students on the site and it has been amazing. Check out the video that shares their story and sign up to be a mentor or mentee.

3- Cinderella Stories - 
You know those cinderella stories I was talking about in Monday's post? They are even better coming from the source themselves. Hear some of their incredible stories. 

4- Inspring Person-Chandeerah Davis
For this video of the talented slam poet Chandeerah courageously sharing her story from gunshots to "this stage"  at the recent JKC talent show head straight to the Community College Success Facebook page. 


Enjoy and I'll see you on Monday. 

A Cinderella Story

I just returned from the annual Jack Kent Cooke Foundation conference (the Foundation that awarded me $110,000 to complete my B.A and M.Ed) and am feeling – as I often do – renewed.

Have you ever had a conversation where you felt so good, so connected, so invigorated that you stayed up all night talking, and in the morning you felt ready to conquer the world?

 That is what the Jack Kent Cooke conference is like.

Me, Tatiana, and Daniel (3 of 6 JKC Scholars from the same community college) :)

On the bus ride back from this incredible weekend to the airport I found myself thinking about Cinderella.

There is something truly engaging and inspiring about the “Cinderella story” – I’ll never forget the first time I heard the phrase that I thought was reserved for glass slippers on ESPN. There is something thrilling about seeing an underdog overcome the odds. Become more than societal expectation.

That is what the Jack Kent Cooke Scholars are like.

What is inspiring about being in the presence of these people is that there is something inherently interesting about Cinderellas who believed their lives would be spent cleaning floors only to learn there was much more in store. And these kinds of Cinderellas don’t live high on a tower enjoying their good fortune and success.

They return to their former lives, their former communities, and help others trade aprons for glass slippers.

Community colleges are filled with Cinderella stories; those who see community college for the infinite open door that it is – and not a sign of failure -  and rise above unbelievable hardships and circumstances to make more of their dreams.

There are common themes among these stories – lessons and insights that shape me every time I meet again with this group of Jack Kent Cookerellas.  And I want to share them with you. Because the biggest secret of all is:  you don’t need a huge scholarship or a fairy godmother to rise above.

Ask any Jack Kent Cooke scholar and they’ll tell you while (of course) the amount of money was truly life changing, the biggest impact the Foundation has had on their lives is the empowerment we all felt the moment someone told us we were a Jack Kent Cooke scholar.

It was the moment someone told us that they believed our lives and our dreams were worthwhile.

The moment we felt we could go farther than we (or anyone else) ever thought possible.

The moment a large weight of self-doubt most of us didn’t even know we carried was lifted from our shoulders and suddenly we were standing up straighter. 

The moment we felt like we mattered.

So I’m here to tell you today that you matter. I wish I could give you the $110,000 to prove it. But it’s not all about the money. Money alone will never get us there. It is the passion. The investment of money into someone who knows who they are and what they want to achieve. If you become that person, the resources you need will come. I promise.

To get started, below are the 3 key elements you need to move towards your goals that I have learned over the years from staying up way too late talking to Jack Kent Cooke Scholars:

1.Believe in your whole story

In order to truly believe in yourself I think you have to believe and value your entire story. Something powerful happens when you dig deep into your past, present, and honestly decide how that impacts your future. 

Own the pain, the heartache, the trials, and remind yourself that is what makes a Cinderella story so interesting. You have a story to tell, and what you’ve overcome should be worn as a badge of honor that drives you forward. And once you proudly own your story – tell it often. Because in our world people are too quiet about their pain, which often causes so many to feel like they are completely alone.

Question 2 ask: What are the defining moments in your life that make you who you are today?

2.Discover your passion(s)

Often when you truly think about your story passions will emerge from your experiences. Hold tight to all of your passions and interests and don’t let the world taint them or let that voice in your head tell you that your interests are not worthwhile. You will achieve so much more if you go in a direction that invigorates you than if you force yourself down any other path that is not your own. 

Action 2 take: write down everything you’re interested in/passionate about  without thinking. Just write without judgment, and see what you come up with.  (and if you’re just not sure what you’re passionate about yet, start discovering by reading, trying out new classes, volunteering, joining clubs, and keep your mind open to what heightens your senses, your creativity, and your energy).

3.Match your story & your passion with your top skills

What do people compliment you on? What classes have you always naturally excelled at? What kinds of tasks do you love to do? If you don’t know, go to your career center ASAP and take all of their career and skills tests. Analyze yourself in clubs and jobs and try to figure out what you’re really good at.

Really think about what people compliment you on. Where do you receive the best feedback?

Once you figure that out, the key is matching those skills with your passions and your story/confidence. Once you do that, your life will make a difference in the world beyond your wildest imagination.

Think Big. Dream Big. Jack Kent Cooke.