Did not get a single scholarship/ summer program I applied to this year

intparent
Sat, 09 Jun 2012 19:33:39 +0000

Very doubtful that the scholarship programs will give an honest answer… It is possible that part of the answer is geographic. National scholarships like to spread the winnings around. So if you live someplace like NY, NJ, or CA, your odds of winning are much lower than if you live someplace with a lot fewer applicants.

But there probably is not only one answer (unless one of your recs is not as solid as you think, or one of your essays is controversial/not as good as you think). Each program or scholarship may have had a different reason for rejecting you. Scholarships are always a crap shoot, everyone wants “free money”. And summer programs are like colleges, safeties or backup plans are a good idea. Given that you struck out on scholarships and programs, maybe a summer job is what you ought to be looking for now…