By Ashley Reyes
SEMA is offering financial assistance of up to $5,000 to qualified college students who are pursuing careers in the automotive industry, and to employees of SEMA-member companies who still have outstanding student loans at www.sema.org/scholarships.
Awards are available to those who have earned or are pursuing academic degrees and skilled trades certifications in a wide range of disciplines, including but not limited to accounting, automotive technology, business management, collision repair, engineering, graphic design, information technology, journalism, marketing and welding. Below are tips to keep in mind when submitting an application:
Recommendations make a difference. Be sure to request letters of recommendations well in advance. You don’t want to rush someone into writing a recommendation for you, and you want the final product to be complete and well thought out. You can also submit all the other portions of the scholarship application while you are waiting for the letters of recommendations.
Submit the completed application before the deadline. One of the biggest mistakes applicants make is missing the deadline. Be sure to upload all supporting documents to your online application on or before March 1. Your application may remain incomplete if there are missing documents.
Remove passwords from protected documents. Be sure to remove passwords from all uploaded documents. Password-protected documents will be rejected.
Send only approved file types (.pdf, .tif, .png, .jpeg, .jpg, .bmp and .xps.) and only upload the requested and required documents. Sending unnecessary documents may distract from the required documents.
Confirm and check your email. Notifications are sent primarily via email to the email used to create your account.
Return Home. Upon completion, verify that your application and required documents have all been successfully accepted by checking your Home page. Make this the last step you take in order to complete the process.
For more information or help with your application, review the additional FAQs or contact Byron Bergmann at 909-378-4859 or byronb@sema.org.
Applications will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. (CST), Thursday, March 1, at www.sema.org/scholarships.