How Scholarship College Mama Helps Families Pay (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Today, I'm asking my dumb questions to Laverne Mickens, who is known as the scholarship college mama. All right.

[00:00:06] Speaker 2: How'd you earn this title, Laverne? I dubbed myself and crowned myself the scholarship queen, scholarship college mama. I was kind of playing around with the name after I had won so many scholarships from my kids. They said, well, you're a mom to the, you know, community and you win all these scholarships. Why don't you put together a college and scholarship Bible and you be the mama to everybody? So that's the origin of the name.

[00:00:29] Speaker 1: You have how many kids? I've got five. You've got five kids? Yes, ma'am. And they've all gotten scholarships?

[00:00:35] Speaker 2: We've won, between the five of them, about $3 million.

[00:00:38] Speaker 1: $3 million? I mean, this is just for college undergraduate?

[00:00:43] Speaker 2: Yes. Yep. How much does college cost these days? It's about $100,000 now. $100,000 a year? It's creeping up to $95,000 to $100,000, and that's every college. Your business is that people pay you to find free money, basically.

[00:00:56] Speaker 1: That is your business, correct? Yes, ma'am. That is a wild business because you're finding free money, which obviously is not easy. And I'm just curious, is everyone in college on scholarship now?

[00:01:06] Speaker 2: Because I mean, that is crazy. No. No. And here's the thing. With the whole student debt crisis, the middle class is getting squeezed. They're not getting aid, but they're also not understanding how to find scholarships and win them. So they're taking out Parent PLUS loans, hundreds of thousands of dollars. Some kids are on scholarship, and it's not just for the neediest of them. There are scholarships for any and everybody and everything under the sun, but most kids don't know where to find them. That's where I come to fill in a gap. So you're like a matchmaker between all these scholarships that are out there, and how do you find them? How do you- Well, decades. My oldest child went to Hampshire College and graduated in 2012, 2013. That's when I started. So I had his spreadsheet, which I passed down to my twins when they graduated 2017, then I accumulated more. So I'm always reading, always searching, always looking. And I've just amassed this wealth of information and friends in this space that can help me.

[00:01:59] Speaker 1: I feel like these days, college costs a lot, but then a lot of people are getting help to go to college, merit-based scholarships, aid, et cetera. But it's almost like these days, if you go buy a t-shirt, you're always looking for 25% off.

[00:02:12] Speaker 2: Always.

[00:02:13] Speaker 1: And I feel like college is becoming as that. We no longer think the price of the thing should be the price of the thing, so we all want a bargain. Or not a bargain, because it's not a bargain.

[00:02:23] Speaker 2: A lot of parents are disillusioned, and I don't mean to judge, but how much did you think this was going to cost, and why haven't you planned before now? These kids nationwide are all 4.0 or better. They all have stacked resumes. They all have amazing stats in and out the classroom. What's your it factor? That's what I tell my clients. What makes you stand out? What makes you special? Colleges and scholarships are looking for that it factor, that something different, that something special to go beyond the classroom, beyond the 4.0. That's who gets the merit money, and that's who gets in to this prestigious colleges. Because I worked with a kid a couple years ago, 1600s on his SATs, 4.0, great stats, amazing resume, didn't get any money, and didn't get into any Ivys. He was just as boring and bland on his essay as a dry piece of copy paper. I told him, I said, you've got no spark, no it, no pizzazz. Why should anybody accept you into their college and give you any money? That's a real kick in the... The answers are like, I know it costs a gazillion dollars, but are you going to give me that gazillion? And the answer is no.

[00:03:26] Speaker 1: If I have a baby next year in 2027, what's it going to cost to send him to college in 2047, 2048? $200,000. Sorry, let me do that.

[00:03:35] Speaker 2: If it's $100,000 now, you're looking at $150,000, maybe $200,000.

[00:03:41] Speaker 1: With AI, you don't think that's going to come down?

[00:03:43] Speaker 2: Well, let's talk about AI, because a lot of these colleges now are cracking down on AI. Even though they're using AI to grade papers and to look at essays to decide who gets into these colleges. Yeah, unless the whole college model is revamped. I just read a story about Syracuse the other day. They didn't hit their enrollment numbers. So they're now thinking about what they're going to do for the fall because they don't have the kids in the seats to pay the tuition that they need to actually run next year.

[00:04:15] Speaker 1: You talked about that it factor. What do you think is your it factor as a solopreneur? What has allowed you to build a business?

[00:04:23] Speaker 2: I think, number one, because I'm relatable. I'm a mom. That's why I put mama in the name of my business. And I've been where most people are. I've had to borrow from my 401k and my 403b, my teacher retirement, to get my kids through school. I'm sitting at the dinner table with my husband trying to make ends meet. So I'm relatable. I tell the truth, bluntly sometimes.

[00:04:48] Speaker 1: You told that kid about his unfancy essay. Yeah, I said, you're not special.

[00:04:52] Speaker 2: You need to write that essay like your life depends on it. But I like to think that I'm you, just on the other side of the camera.

[00:05:00] Speaker 1: I tell the truth. I talk a lot. What has helped you be successful? Is it other people? Is it technology? What has helped you scale your business?

[00:05:09] Speaker 2: I like to think that I'm a trusted voice in this space. I remember someone telling me, I went to a seminar, a business seminar, and they said, you've got to be the authority in whatever you're doing. You've got to be the trusted voice. You've got to be the go-to. Why should people trust you? So why am I special? What's my it factor? Exactly. And I don't do it for the money. I do it because I really know that people, you don't know what you don't know until you do. And a lot of parents have no idea what they're getting into. And a lot of kids have no idea. And I just want to help people. I don't want to judge them. I don't want to criticize them. I really want to help them. Information is free, but I know that the implementation of it has made me money. So I just want people to know I'm just like you. I've been where you've been. I want to help you. And that's what motivates me. Seeing these kids get this money, seeing these kids get this funding, families reaching out, telling me, thank you so much. I follow you. I followed your tips. Our whole fall semester is paid off because of you. That's my actual reward. That's why I do what I do.

[00:06:13] Speaker 1: Families find you from all over the country, presumably. Yes. You're working with people all over the country. How are you working with them?

[00:06:18] Speaker 2: I have a TikTok account with about 225,000 followers. Instagram is close to 300,000. I'm on Substack. I'm on YouTube. So social media has really gotten my name out there, my presence.

[00:06:34] Speaker 1: And how do you meet with people when you consult with like a family in Malaysia or whatever you might be doing?

[00:06:40] Speaker 2: We set up the link. I get the link out there, hopefully. Wi-Fi is working and we meet and we talk and we strategize. We set up a plan. And then we go from there.

[00:06:50] Speaker 1: Go from there. Okay. So you're taking all these meetings with people. You're meeting with people on Zoom from all over corners of the country, world, wherever you are. Do you find it harder to give your scholarship college mom a tough love through Zoom or you find it easier when people aren't in the same room?

[00:07:05] Speaker 2: Honestly, I think it's harder in person because they're right there in your face. You know, you're face to face with people, which I've done a couple of seminars. I've done some meetings with parents and families and I'm right there telling them, this isn't working. You're not winning. Here's why. Over the camera, it's easy because I'm over here, but I'm pointing my finger at you and telling you, I read your essay, it's horrible. You didn't put that on the tracker like I told you to, or you missed the deadline because in this world, the deadline is never the deadline. So I think it's easier on camera.

[00:07:39] Speaker 1: I have two small questions I want to ask you, like 30 second questions, then we'll let you go. What is the wildest scholarship that exists out there?

[00:07:49] Speaker 2: There's a couple. There's a stuck at prom scholarship where you have to make your prom dress out of duct tape. And then there's a Minecraft scholarship. A lot of my students, a lot of older kids love Minecraft, love video games, $3,000. If you can come up with either number one, how Minecraft education can change the world, or number two, if you were a Minecraft character, who would you be and why?

[00:08:15] Speaker 1: Okay. So the second one is actually sponsored by Minecraft? Yes. And the first one is sponsored by duct tape? Who owns duct tape?

[00:08:22] Speaker 2: It's one of those creators or makers of the duct tape. They have a stuck at prom every year.

[00:08:27] Speaker 1: Those are wild. Okay. So there really are scholarships of all kinds. And that's a lot of money. How much money are they paying? $3,000 for the duct tape?

[00:08:34] Speaker 2: Let me see. The stuck at prom is $5,000. It might be $10,000 because it takes so much creativity and ingenuity to make clothing or an outfit out of duct tape. And then Minecraft education, I think is $3,000.

[00:08:46] Speaker 1: Yeah.

[00:08:47] Speaker 2: Okay.

[00:08:48] Speaker 1: Wow. What's your number one tip for kids applying to college right now?

[00:08:52] Speaker 2: Be authentic and tell your story because telling your story and painting a picture, if I close my eyes and you read me your essay, I should be able to visualize what it is you're telling me. If you're authentic and you're able to tell a story, you're going to win all the money and get into every college because they're looking for authenticity. They're not looking for a checklist, laundry list, or grocery list of everything you did from ninth grade to now. They don't care. Every kid does that. Tell me something else. Get yourself in the yes pile instead of the no pile. Be authentic and be yourself and find out what you're passionate about. Yeah.

[00:09:23] Speaker 1: What do you think? You're saying they're using AI to kind of look through everybody.

[00:09:27] Speaker 2: I have some admissions friends that are saying while they frown on AI, some admissions officers are using it. But I have met and talked with many college officers that say they're still old school. They break it up by region. So there are actually real people. And I also refer my kids and my families back to this movie called Admitted with Tina Fey. Oh yeah. I love that movie. I love that movie. It's like a real behind the scenes of how this all works because people have no idea. Like what's the formula? I don't know. I couldn't tell you. It's kind of haphazard if you ask me. That movie is like a window into the soul of an admissions officer.

[00:10:06] Speaker 1: So number one tip, watch the movie with Tina Fey. Here you go. Another number one tip, write a great essay. Write a great essay. Absolutely. By the way, whenever I meet people on Zoom, I like to know how tall they are because I think that you're very tall. You present like you are like 5'11". You're shaking your head no. I am 5'3". What?

[00:10:24] Speaker 2: And have been for a long time.

[00:10:25] Speaker 1: Yeah. You speak tall, my friend. You speak tall.

[00:10:28] Speaker 2: I speak tall. Yes. I'm going to write that down. I speak tall. I like that. That's motivating.

[00:10:34] Speaker 1: Thank you, ma'am. Thank you so much, Ms. Scholarship Mama.