How to Go to College Almost for Free

Rating:
Summary: You can do better than this book
Review: Talk about a self-absorbed author who calls himself the "scholarship coach." After many applications sent out based on his techniques, I haven't won any money for college. He had the great grades and activities to get into Harvard, so he thinks that he has learned the "secrets" that other less-stellar students can copy. To sum up how I feel about this book, I returned my copy and thankfully got my money back.

Rating:
Summary: Every chapter is great
Review: Two thumbs way up! The book is well thought out and well organized. Every chapter is great, especially chapter 3 ("Show Me the Money!"), chapter 5 ("Painting Your Own Portrait"), and Chapter 8 ("Essay Excellence"). Why don't they teach you this stuff in school? Until they do, this book is far and away your best source.

Rating:
Summary: meant to be
Review: by chance i saw this book on tv a few months ago at just the moment in my life when i needed to get money for college. i got the book even though i rarely get these kind of books and boy am i glad i did. i've won several community scholarships already and even one that was state-wide. if you are reading this review then maybe it is meant to be for you too.

Rating:
Summary: Completely useless and condescending
Review: As a senior with ok grades applying to college, I found this book completely useless. The author assumes that you have a background at least as good as his, and constantly peppers his book with annoying "you can do it" encouragement. The fact is that if you are applying to Harvard, which is his alma mater (which the author shamelessly advertises on the front cover), you don't need this book. If you are simply a hard working student with good but not great grades, don't waste twenty bucks (like I did) on what amounts to a self-congratulating biography.

Rating:
Summary: Really Useful Book
Review: I found this book to be extremely usefull... What I like about it is that it approaches the subject matter very comprehensively, while not causing you to fall asleep after a few pages. Believe it or not, a book about scholarships was actually fun to read. In my opinion, if you are want to pursue college scholarships, this is the book to start out with.

Rating:
Summary: highly recommended
Review: I saw the author on TV and he had a lot of good information and then I got the book and it was excellent. I can't believe no one in my school told me all of these pointers before, and i'm just glad I found about it now. I'm don't have great grades or anything, but what I liked about the book is it showed me how to make myself stand out in other ways and with other things I do. It is definitely a good reference for someone with an average record, but who needs help making their scholarship apps get noticed.

Rating:
Summary: FRIEND RECOMMENDED BOOK
Review: A friend of mine suggested I get this book (it helped him get scholarships), so I got a copy and it was totally worth it. What makes this book different is that it has easy-to-follow instructions for how to do everything involved, instead of just having pages of addresses. It gets you pretty excited to get your own college money and all of the examples are good motivation. I think it is an outstanding book.

Rating:
Summary: How to win a scholarship olny if you're a genius
Review: I found this book completely useless. I tried all of his strategies, and I won absolutely nothing. And it's not like I am a bad student-I have a 3.7, got a 29 on my ACT and an 1170 on my SAT, have tons of community service and extracurriculars, and take AP classes and I still won absolutely nothing using his methods. The only logical way he suggests avoiding costs is taking AP tests, but he failed to mention that those cost $100 each to take and do not guarantee credit. This book might be useful if you are just starting high school and have no self confidence. The constant "you can do it" made the book that much worse.

Rating:
Summary: An Amazing Book!
Review: I think this book is really, really, really great. Prior to getting it, I had spent hours of work on my scholarship search with nothing to show for it. Then I read the book and figured out why I hadn't won any scholarships. Going back through my applications after reading the book, I have discovered so many easy things that could have given me huge advantages. I rewrote some of my essays and recently, I won my first scholarship award! Now I am giving the book as a gift to some of my other friends/cousins too.

Rating:
Summary: Well done!
Review: I can attest to the fact that How to Go to College Almost For Free is a well-written book that really delivers. I began reading with tons of questions, and by the end all my questions were answered. The book is easy to use, with interesting graphics, attractive layout, and helpful features like chapter summaries and excerpts from the author's winning scholarship entries. I recommend it for any student serious about scholarships.