As you navigate the college application process, you may have heard the term “test-optional” in relation to SAT or ACT scores. Going Merry has compiled answers to common questions that students and parents have on how test-optional policies work, and how they impact you. Skip straight to a specific…
The new golden child of tech is ChatGPT, the AI-powered chatbot that can parse complicated instructions to write anything from short banter, through to full-blown essays. The tool is poised to change the way we work–and the way we study. As a result, school districts around the U.S. have…
Receiving your financial aid award letter can be an exciting time when you’re prepping for college. You can see how much financial aid you’re eligible to receive per college you’re accepted to. But it can also be confusing – what do the numbers mean? What is the financial aid award…
Increasingly, the “9-to-5” doesn’t represent the landscape of American jobs. Over 10% of the American working population is self-employed, and 16% report working on some sort of freelance or online gig job. But these “unusual” job setups can make it complicated to…
Filling out the FAFSA® is probably the single most important thing a college-bound student can do to pay for college. It opens up a whole slew of student financial aid, both governmental and institutional, worth $15,000 per year (on average). That’s $60,000 for a four-year degree! This is particularly…
Our team knows the FAFSA®–and the common mistakes made on it. Over the last 3 years, we’ve helped thousands of students fill out the form (using our FAFSA® Made Easier), and walked countless confused parents through how to correctly report their complicated home/financial situation. Here are the…
If you see any kind of federal student loan (Direct, Stafford, or PLUS) listed in your college’s financial aid award package/letter, then you might be wondering: What are they? How do they work? We break it all down for you here. Jump ahead to:What are federal student…
The average college graduate comes away with a degree–and $29,000 of student loan debt, requiring an average monthly loan payment of $393. That ends up being a really high percentage of new graduates’ salaries, so perhaps it’s no surprise that, in 2018,…
If you’ve been scrolling through scholarship listings for a while now, you’ve probably noticed most applications are due in the fall and winter — even though summer is when many students actually have the time they need to write all those application essays. If that’s you, you’re smart to be…
About one-third of college-bound high school seniors don’t fill out the FAFSA–and therefore miss out on an average of $14,000 per year in financial aid. Even more students don’t fill out their state financial aid forms–despite states granting students an average of $1000 in additional financial aid. Maybe it’s…
In 2019, NACAC (the National Association of College Admission Counseling) invited us to deliver an online demo of our scholarship platform. So Going Merry co-founder and CEO Charlie Maynard led high school counselors through how the scholarship platform works and how it benefits counselors: “It’s one place where students can…
Back when I was a student applying for scholarships using those dreaded scholarship search engines, I noticed that scholarship applications often asked for the same information (name, email, class year, SAT score, etc.)–and sometimes even had the same essay prompt! So I’d dutifully, and monotonously, type in my personal information…
More than 5,000 high school counselors across the U.S. use Going Merry. Recently, we reached out to some of the most successful counselors–ones who’ve helped many scholarship student winners. We asked them for their top tips in this counselor’s guide to Going Merry. Jump to:1. Early bird gets the…
More and more scholarships (like this Motorola Milestone one) allow you to submit short videos instead of personal essays. Check out the winning scholarship essay video entry from Violetta Spinazzola, about her best friend Jess:…
We know you’re probably relaxing by the beach, not wanting to think about financing college tuition. We get it! Applying for scholarships is no walk in the park, but we’re making this easy for you with our scholarship search and application tool. Jump to:South Carolina Scholarships1. Cindy Mellen…
Get an estimate of how many scholarships you’re eligible for, instead. Just answer 7 quick questions.
No sign-up required.
