Being a college student is expensive––housing, meal plans, and books (not to mention all those late-night pizza orders to the library during finals) all add up. We get it. Since ScholarCon is such an amazing and valuable opportunity, we want to help you get there.
Here are a few tips for fundraising and planning ahead to make ScholarCon more affordable:
1. Break Out the Bake Sale
Who says bake sales are dead? People love baked goods––especially exhausted, hungry students wandering through your campus center (or wherever you hang out). Recruit your finest student chef, whip up some clever recipes as a chapter (ScholarCon Snickerdoodles or Bowtie Brownies, anyone?) and set up an old-fashioned bake sale in a main area on your campus. If you’re not into bake sales, sell pizza or other late-night snacks in front of the library during finals!
2. Road Trip!
If you’re within driving distance, take road trip over to Orlando! Round up some of the members in your chapter (and your non-NSCS friends, too) and plan out your drive together. You’ll have more fun on the journey and save tons of money on gas. We won’t judge you for using all that extra money on snacks for the ride––we promise.
3. Ask Your University
Many colleges and universities have money set aside for student activities, clubs, and events. Talk with other students or administrators at your school to see if there are any scholarships or funds that can help you and your chapter pay for ScholarCon registration!
4. Spread Out the Cost
Feeling overwhelmed by paying for both registration AND a hotel room? Spread out your costs! Pay for registration now and pay for your hotel closer to June. Breaking up the costs makes paying for ScholarCon much more manageable.
5. Crowdfund It
Crowdfunding isn’t just for the latest crazy-cool tech products––you can use it to get to ScholarCon! Head over to GoFundMe.org and set up an account either for yourself or for your chapter. Make sure to include an explanation about why it’s so important for you to attend––networking opportunities, professional development, interactive sessions with some of today’s most successful leaders, and all the tools you need to succeed both in college and your career.
After you’ve created your page, send it out to family members, professors, alumni, and more. Tweet it, Instagram it, Facebook it, Snapchat it––the works. You can also update your page with thank you notes and progress updates! For more tips, check out our previous blog post about GoFundMe.
6. Check Our Discounts
If you’re flying to Orlando, we have some special travel discounts for you! You can get some discounts on your flight (if you’re flying United Airlines) and a shuttle to and from the airport. Check ‘em out:
SuperShuttle
You’ll get 10% off of Super Shuttle when you book and pay online. Use the code: NSCS1. To use the code simply enter it in the “GROUP/DISCOUNT CODE” box on the first page of the website when making the reservations at either http://www.supershuttle.com or http://www.execucar.com.
MEARS
Attendees will receive $4.00 off of the MEARS Motor Shuttle Regular Round Trip price. Follow the instructions on your ticket to book your shuttle and receive the discount.
United Airlines
United Airlines is pleased to offer discounts of 2% to 10% off published fares. Save an additional 3% off by booking your own reservations at www.united.com. Choose your flight times and access your discounts by inserting ZTE6401933 in the Offer Code box. You can also call your travel professional or United Meetings at 800-426-1122 for reservations. Refer to Z Code ZTE6 and Agreement Code: 401933 Please note, this discount is only available for travel dates between 6/22/2015 to 7/1/2015 flying into MCO.
We hope this helps, scholars! Good luck in all your fundraising efforts, and we can’t wait to see you at ScholarCon this summer!