Short(ish) version
The Scholaroo story
Back when Ben Kaplan was a high school student, he didn’t have a clue how to pay for college. Growing up as a competitive tennis player, he always thought he’d go to school on a tennis scholarship. But after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his lower back, he suddenly needed a different way to pay for school.
Enter the wonderful world of college scholarships. Kaplan discovered that there were scholarships out there for virtually every type of student, interest, or skill. After applying for three-dozen scholarships, Kaplan won two dozen of them and amassed $90,000 for college — enough to graduate from Harvard University virtually for free.
Determined to help others reach similar success, Kaplan wrote his first book, How to Go to College Almost for Free, during his senior year of college. Kaplan then booked himself on Oprah, Good Morning America, and 5,000 more TV and radio shows. His book became the best-selling book in the genre with more than two million copies in print.
For the next ten years, Ben spoke at more than 1,000 high school and college campuses on topics related to education and personal finance. Kaplan also launched his nationally syndicated Scholars & Dollars newspaper column at The Oregonian and wrote columns on student personal finance for major publications such as The New York Times, U.S. News & World Report, and Time. A regular guest expert for leading media outlets, he served as a weekly education correspondent for KMOX radio.
In 2019, Ben launched the first beta version of Scholaroo with a focus on making college scholarships searches less time-consuming and burdensome. In 2023, the Scholaroo team expanded the platform to cover multiple topics within student-related personal finance including financial aid, student loans, and credit cards.
And just like that, the latest version of Scholaroo was born.
Timeline
2023
Scholaroo expands to cover multiple topics within student-related personal finance including financial aid, student loans, and credit cards.
2019
The first beta version of Scholaroo launches with a focus on making college scholarship searches less time-consuming and burdensome.
2018
Assistance is provided to the Brainly platform in advising students and families on homework help.
2017
The NationalToday.com platform is launched to help students, parents, and families celebrate special milestones and moments.
2015
A major milestone is crossed as live speeches to more than 300,000 students and families nationwide are achieved.
2014
New educational materials are released to train personal financial advisors how to advise on college affordability in partnership with Ameriprise Financial.
2013
Educational materials are created to be distributed to millions of students and families in partnership with Citibank.
2012
A new “College is awesome!” initiative is launched in partnership with New York City public schools to encourage elementary school students to think about college in their future.
2012
The popular Scholarships That Rock series is released
2011
A variety of new books and courses including Essays That Stink are released.
2010
The third edition of the book is launched as a digital course titled How to Go to College Almost for Free: 10 Days to Scholarship Success.
2008
Becoming an education correspondent for KMOX radio in St. Louis, one of the top talk radio stations in the U.S., takes place.
2006
A nationally syndicated Scholars & Dollars newspaper column is launched at The Oregonian, Portland’s daily newspaper.
2003
A nationally syndicated Scholars & Dollars newspaper column is launched at The Oregonian, Portland’s daily newspaper.
2001
The second edition of How to College Almost for Free is published with HarperCollins Publishers.
2001
The Scholarship Coach website is launched to make it easier for millions of students to find college scholarships.
2000
The book becomes a national bestseller.
2000
Feature in The New York Times business section in an article titled “Big advance? No thanks, he’ll publish it himself” takes place.
2000
An appearance on the Oprah Winfrey Show occurs to discuss the book.
2000
A 25-city national paying-for-college speaking tour is launched on a 40-foot tour bus sponsored by Sallie Mae.
1999
The first self-published edition of the book, How to Go to College Almost for Free, is published as a 21-year-old recent college graduate.
1999
Graduation from Harvard debt-free magna cum laude in economics occurs, with virtually the entire cost of education covered by scholarship winnings.
1999
Articles on paying for college are written for TIME and U.S. News & World Report
1998
An article titled How to Go to Harvard Free is written for The New York Times based on experiences.
1996
Sophomore standing is awarded upon enrollment at Harvard due to a high number of Advanced Placement testing credits.
1995
Recognition as the “Top Student Leader in America” is received from the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
1995
Admission to Harvard University is achieved.
1995
Three dozen scholarships are applied for, with two dozen won, amassing $90,000 for use at any college.
1994
A first college scholarship is accidentally discovered, winning $17,500 for college from Discover Card.
