Ask Fashion Girl

Dear Scholarship Hope,

Start designing! You should practice sketching out your design ideas, because most fashion scholarship competitions will require you to submit them. Challenge yourself by designing for different markets, like junior sportswear, children's swimwear, or wedding dresses. Many scholarships will ask for designs in specific categories. Your writing skills are important also. Often scholarships will ask you to write an essay stating your interests, background, and reasons for need. Keep a notebook to record ideas to refer to later when you write the essay. Of course it's also important that you focus on doing well in your current classes, and keep up your GPA. Use your elective credits on creative classes like design and drawing. Look for art contests to enter (and hopefully win!); awards look great on a scholarship application.

Make the most of your high school's college resources. Visit your college counseling center to keep up with new scholarships being offered. Tell your counselor to inform you of any fashion related contests or scholarships that aren't posted.To find out about scholarships offered by and for FIDM, call our main number at 800.624.1200 and ask to speak to the FIDM Scholarship Foundation. They will ask for some basic information to get a profile of your college financial needs.Spend some time online browsing the myriad of scholarship sites. It's amazing how much free college money is floating around out there, waiting to be awarded! Visit www.fastweb.com for a free personalized scholarship search. After filling out a questionnaire, FastWeb will create a list of scholarships you qualify for, along with directions on applying for them. It is great that you are setting your sights on the future and working towards your goal! Stay focused on fashion and hope to see you at FIDM!