Students who were interested in applying for the 2017 fall semester scholarships were able to start their applications during a scholarship workshop held on Aug. 29.

The Cerritos College Foundation will award a total of $80,100 that will be distributed within the 29 scholarships available this fall semester.

Those who attended the workshop learned how to apply and begin their applications, received tips on how to write a personal statement and got a list of all the available scholarships.

Suleyma Martinez, sociology major, is a mother of four, has two jobs and is a student.

She said, “Having my kids is a little bit harder. Having part time jobs, I felt like it was my responsibility to come back.”

Martinez decided to re-enter school after her kids got old enough to be in school full-time in order to provide better lives for her children.

“A scholarship helps out a lot financially, for either school supplies or my kids in particular.” said Martinez.

“School is expensive and it’s nice to have some resources available,” said Rachel Samarin, program assistant for Cerritos College Foundation.

Samarin was pleased that so many students were interested in learning about the scholarships and the full attendance the workshop had.

She coordinates the Scholarship Program which allows her to work with the donors to establish a scholarship and gets to work with students with their applications, screening process and selections.

Elizabeth Uria, psychology major student, found the information provided very helpful to complete her application.

“I got more information on how to write my personal statement, to have letters of recommendation ready to go and research the application to know who is the person giving the scholarship to use the right words and relate to what they are trying to do,” Uria said.

Samarin’s goal was to provide students with as much information as possible, “We have a lot of students here at Cerritos and a lot of students don’t know about the scholarship program. The more we can raise awareness the better”.

As of Aug. 29 there was a total of 363 students that have started their scholarship applications with 38 completions.

Kyle Regaliza, nursing major, attended the workshop in hopes to qualify for a scholarship and receive some money.

“I’m trying to save up money for a car,” said Regaliza.

There will be more workshops available:

· Wednesday, Sept. 6 – 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. in Business Education 121

· Thursday, Sept. 7 – 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. in Business Education 117

There will also be open lab workshops for students to finish and submit their applications and get help if needed:

· Tuesday, Sept. 12 – 11a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

· Wednesday, Sept. 13 – 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The application can be accessed through www.cerritos.edu/scholarships

Deadline for applications is Sept. 18 and those selected will be notified throughout November.