What is a good way to study abroad?

What is the best way to raise money for funding my Study Abroad program?

• I am going to England in January to study abroad and need help funding my trip/plane ticket. I plan on writing letters to family/friends/companies telling them about the program I am going to be participating in and what types of things I will be doing at school overseas. The concept here is to write personalized letters to family and friends informing them of my trip and then asking if they would like to donate a certain amount of money towards funding it (such as $25, $50, etc. or however much they are willing to donate.) BUT, I come from a small family with not many distant relatives or people who are likely to send money to help me. My question is: What types of organizations are most likely to respond/help fund my study abroad trip? In the letters I plan to offer a well-thought presentation with powerpoint slides to inform people about the study abroad experience, traveling, and pursuing a high education overseas upon my return. Would churches, public/private highschools, travel agencies, local community colleges, or any other businesses be likely to donate any amount of money with the promise of a presentation or some sort of educational compensation upon my return or is this idea shitty? ***ANY OTHER FUNDRAISING IDEAS ARE WELCOME! THANKS***

• Answer:

  I think you've got some good ideas and you should raise some funds with it. I like your idea for a powerpoint presentation and if done properly that should be a good motivator to help fund you. As for your last idea I can't say whether it would work or not. But if you don't try, you'll never know hey... But, do see how it goes and test what people's reactions are to it and if it's not really working out and it would be more profitable to be spending your time running a different fundraiser, then call it quits and use your time for a more profitable purpose! But do test it out first! Before you write your letters I'd suggest you go the the Fundraising Letters section of Rewarding Fundraising Ideas and read the tips and advice there about writing fundraising letters! Some of the tips won't be for you as it is written for charities, but you will find important advice there that will help improve the quality of your sponsorship letter! You should also have a look at the fundraising ideas there as some of them will work really well for you! Here are some suggestions to look at... The Online Magazine Subscription Fundraiser - This is always my first recommendation. It is just such a rewarding and hassle-free fundraising idea! Definitely consider this as an option! The Credit Card Fundraiser - This will work really well alongside the magazine fundraiser. -These two fundraisers work really well together because if someone isn't interested in subscribing to a magazine, they may be interested in applying for a credit card... Or the other way around... Or they may be interested in both. By running both you will broadening your bottom line of income and will be increasing your sales! Cookie Dough Fundraising - For some reason Cookie Dough is just always popular. Parents, Grandparents and even the kids love to buy and bake Cookie Dough. Raffle - A raffle is always a great fundraiser, especially when you have some really cool prizes that people actually want to win. The better the prize/s, the more tickets people will want to buy to have a better chance of winning! A raffle also fits really well into any fundraising event. Lollipops - Yes, Lollipops... They're cheap, simple and can be very profitable! Events - Generally any sports event will work well but you'll have to find a venue to do it. You could also consider doing a sponsored challenge like a cross country walk or a sponsored cycle. If you do do something like that I would suggest you start a facebook page about your cause and event. In fact, start a facebook page about your cause any way! It'll help you gain more sponsors! Build your page as well as you can, informing people clearly about what you are trying to do... maybe link to that powerpoint presentation! Then set up a method for people to donate online (Paypal offers a really good online donation/payment solution) and then link to it via your facebook page. Invite all your friends, family and contacts to join the page and take part by sponsoring you a small amount ($2 - $5; Compare it to something like a couple of cokes or a few beers)! Write a emotive invitational letter that makes people feel like they are already involved. Also encourage them to forward the invitation on to all their contacts and so on, spreading the word further! You should also advertise your other fundraisers, like your magazine fundraiser, on your Facebook pg! Go to the List of Fundraisers at RFI to look at these fundraisers and at other potential fundraisers that you could do. I wish you all the best of luck and success for your fundraising! Rob