Nadia Garcia is the Debt.com's 10th scholarship recipient, and the first twin to win.
Talk about a college cash crisis: 17-year-old Nadia Garcia has a twin brother and a single mother.
“My twin brother and I are entering college at the same time, doubling all those costs,” Nadia wrote in her cover letter for the bimonthly Debt.com Scholarship for Aggressive Scholarship Applicants. “My family can hardly afford to pay for any of those for just one student.”
So Nadia has been applying for all kinds of scholarships, from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo scholarship to the Comcast Leaders and Achievers scholarship. (I could make a joke here about Comcast scholarship winners needing to be home all day to receive the money; and then no one shows up despite confirming the appointment, but I won’t.)
“I’ve applied for many scholarships. So far, I’ve earned one,” Nadia says. “Some have been fun to apply for. Others have given me some of the most tedious experiences in my life.”
Even though she won only a single scholarship before Debt.com’s, Nadia says the experience has taught her much…
All the scholarships that I have applied for have taught me there are some awesome people/organizations who are willing to give me money to go to college for a few essays in return. I think it’s pretty cool that people like that exist. I want to be like that when I’m an adult.
That’s one reason Nadia plans to pursue a degree in business administration at Texas A&M starting this fall.
“I feel that having a career in business could be a fun way to earn large amounts of money,” she says. “Even though it is true that I love money and that I want to live an expensive lifestyle; I also want to become a philanthropist and donate my money to charities and start my own scholarship program. I feel like it’ll be a good way to give back to everyone who will help me become successful.”
Before then, she and her twin brother — who wants to become a chemical engineer; need to figure out ways to pay for college, which she calls “ridiculously expensive.”
Her plan: “Don’t impulse buy or spend money just for instant gratification. Saving money may seem really difficult, but it is worth it in the long run when you may need it for emergencies or a big purchase.”
Now that’s worth a double take.