For college bound students, the only thing harder than being accepted to a college of their choice is finding a scholarship that helps fund their education. While the internet has made searching for scholarships easier, it has also made it easier for scam artists to prey on students.

Unfortunately, these scammers are so sophisticated, it is often difficult to differentiate between them and legitimate scholarship agencies. Here are a few things to look for to help keep you from being a victim of scholarship scams.

Unsolicited contact
In October 2011, the U.S. Department of Education released advisory warning individuals about companies that were calling students to tell them that they had just been awarded scholarships. These companies then asked the students for personal credit card or bank information for what they claimed was a small processing fee. Many of those who gave out this information had money stolen from their accounts and even worse, never received the promised scholarship. This scam is also conducted by mail and email.

Fees
Most legitimate scholarship organizations do not charge students to apply for their scholarships. There are plenty of free, legitimate scholarships to be awarded; apply for those instead.

Seminars
In many cases, individuals or organizations will hold an informational seminar at a school, church or library. While there, they will offer information about scholarships and then apply high pressure sales techniques to try to get you to sign up for their scholarship search services. Again, most legitimate organizations will not charge you to apply for their services. If you must attend a scholarship seminar, leave your credit card at home so you won’t be able to be pressured into giving your financial information at the event. If the service proves to be legitimate, you can always contact ...