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Every year, several hundred thousand students and parents are defrauded
by scholarship scams. Victims of these scams lose more than $100 million
annually.
Scam operations often imitate legitimate government agencies, grant-giving
foundations, education lenders and scholarship matching services, using
official-sounding names containing words like "National," "Federal,"
"Foundation," or "Administration."
If You Have to Pay Money to Get Money, It's Probably a Scam.
In general, be wary of scholarships with an application fee, scholarship
matching services who guarantee success, advance-fee loan scams and
sales pitches disguised as financial aid "seminars."
The FTC cautions students to look for tell tale lines:
- "The scholarship is guaranteed or your money back."
- "You can't get this information anywhere else."
- "I just need your credit card or bank account number to hold this
scholarship." - "We'll do all the work."
- "The scholarship will cost some money."
- "You've been selected by a 'national foundation' to receive a
scholarship" or "You're a finalist" in a contest you never entered.
People don't just give money away, which includes scholarship money. If
something seems to good to be true it probably is. And always to your
research first.
