We have good news.
We have anticipatorily selected a winner for 2023 who will receive our scholarship. We have updated the dates for the 2024 scholarship and hope to receive many more of your essays this year.
Our current winner.
My name is Mike. I have expertise in current programming languages, program design, and programming mobile and web applications. I study at Seattle Central College, area of study - STEM, informational technology. I like to develop something new - it's great!2023 Winner Essay.
My story - How I help to develop a mobile app for my uncle.
Digital technologies are present in almost every industry today. They help us solve problems faster, get better results, and spend less time on it.
It would seem, what can digital technologies bring to good old house builders? The first and most common is maintaining documentation in electronic form. This makes it easy to create, store, and transfer the necessary data. The second is carrying out various calculations in structures and engineering systems, such as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.
But one element of the digital world is high-resolution satellite imagery. We see any houses and buildings from above, which means we can measure roof areas and determine roof elements. Next, all we have to do is use mathematical formulas to calculate the area of the roofs and obtain a detailed calculation of the parameters of the roof of any structure.
My uncle has been in the roofing business for over 30 years. Today he is a fairly large contractor from Dallas, Texas. He collaborates with the LocalProBook project, and he sent me a link to a page with the opportunity to receive a scholarship from the project to pay for my studies and asked me to tell him about the idea.
I described my uncle’s wishes to the guys from the project and as a result, today they have almost finished developing a mobile application for calculating roof parameters from satellite images. You can say that he was their inspiration. My uncle and his colleagues tested the application in real work and pointed out to the developers the pros and cons, and what needed to be added or changed. As a result, it turned out that the application saved a lot of time for the contractor while allowing him to create a price proposal that was fairly close to reality. The employee does not need to make an appointment with the homeowner, does not need to waste time traveling to the customer and back, does not need to catch good weather to do this, and does not need to climb on the roof and take measurements. Yes, there are limitations, and not all roofs can be measured while sitting in the office.
In addition to measurements, the guys added, at my uncle’s request, the ability to indicate materials and their cost, as well as the cost of delivery of materials, garbage collection, and labor. You can save the report as a PDF file and then send it in any way from your phone or tablet.
For a couple of months, I would be the liaison between my uncle and the developers. We had a great team. I already have a couple of new ideas, and when the guys are done with the roof measuring app, I'll share them with them.
Dear students and applicants,
Most of us have come across a variety of chores around the house such as cleaning the gutter or updating the siding. Today, many homeowners are looking for contractors to perform services over the Internet, using a variety of options and approaches. Describe your experience in this situation. If you do not have such experience, then imagine a situation that which, for example, you have a roof leaking in a house or water flowing from a pipe in the basement. What and how will you do as a homeowner?
We have made up a small outline for you. Here’s the list of questions that we would like to be covered in your essay:
- Have you been looking for contractors for services or helped parents, and relatives who are poorly versed in all these "Internet tricks" to find the contractors?
- What problem did you face around the house? Did you realize what was necessary to do to solve it and how? Have you faced such a problem before?
- What did you use to find someone who fixed the problem and how? Was it easy to use this service? How long did it take you to find a specific contractor to perform the services? Have you looked for a contractor review before choosing one? If so, where and how? Name the company that provided you with their services.
- Did the cost of the work performed correspond to that previously agreed upon? If not, how much was the discrepancy and why? What do you think would help to more accurately determine the cost of the work?
- Did you leave any feedback about the contractor? If so, on what web resource and why exactly is there? If not, then why (e.g. you were too lazy, you did not consider it necessary, you just forgot, etc.)? Is it important to write a detailed review of the work done, or is it enough to just "like"?
- What does the best web service that helps you, as the owner or prospective owner of a house, find a contractor look like?
If you suddenly find yourself on the other side of the situation, precisely on the part of the contractor (perhaps you worked part-time in a company in the summer, perhaps your parents have a family business), describe this situation in your essay.
A good addition would be a before/after photo or the final result.
We offer a semi-annual competition for a $ 500 college scholarship. Twice a year, we award a $ 500 college scholarship to one US student to help pay for his education.
If you are willing to put in a little effort and share your experience, skill, and imagination and want to win a $ 500 scholarship, we invite you to participate. The winning essays will be posted on our website, as well as the information about the winners if they agree.
Who can participate:
- Applicants must either be registered or plan to enroll in an accredited college or university.
- There is no requirement for a cumulative GPA.
- All students can apply (available for studying abroad).
How do I apply?
You must email your essay in the format of a Microsoft Word (doc or docx) to scholarship@localprobook.com.
Submit your full name, college/university name, address, email to contact you, and enrollment message you have. Be careful with your contact information, because, in case of your victory and inability to contact you, the winner will be re-elected.
How LocalProBook scholarship recipients are selected
Essays will be judged on both style and content by the LocalProBook team. LocalProBook team will notify you of the decision by email.
Timing information of the scholarships:
| # | Completion date | Announcement of the winner | Distribution of the award |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 15 annually beginning from 2024 | August 30 annually beginning from 2024 | September 15 annually beginning from 2024 |
| 2 | December 15, annually beginning from 2024 | December 30 annually beginning from 2024 | January 15 annually beginning from 2025 |
The scholarship will be sent by bank transfer or via PayPal directly to the college/university.
Our past winners
My name is Marina Kinski, I am 21 years old. I am currently studying at Emerson College in the Master of Arts in Marketing (MAM) program. In my free time, I continue to help my dad and brother run the family company.
My hobby is photography. I love nature very much and even on business trips I always have my professional camera with me. This allows me not to miss a single good shot.
Marina's Essay - 2022 year winner
When we moved to the US, we could afford to rent a small old house. Over time, something in the house broke down and the father and brother had to carry out repairs themselves to save money. My father taught my grandfather and my father taught my brother.
Gradually, more and more new tools began to appear in our garage. And our neighbors often asked for help with their housework. Repairs they did as for themselves, everything was done efficiently and on time. Gradually they began to invite more and more people.
But both dad and brother had regular jobs and did repairs on the weekends. On the one hand, this brought additional income, on the other hand, they were very tired. I tried to help them the best I could. I made a page on Facebook and Instagram with examples of their work and helped to take photos of works in the "before and after" style.
And at one of the family dinners, they decided to open their own home renovation company. We came up with a name, completed the paperwork, and ordered a sticker for the car with the logo of our young company.
It was hard at first. It seemed that we had a lot of orders. But this was only because the work was carried out only on weekends. When there were 5 working days instead of 2, it became obvious. And now our main task was to find customers. Of course, maintaining a page on social networks helped, but it was not enough. And something had to be done about it.
This made me study a lot of Internet marketing, website creation, and promotion. Today it is the main source of customers and I understand this very well.
I have watched a lot of YouTube videos on this topic. I plucked up the courage and installed WordPress for the future site for the maintenance and repair of houses. I added a website builder and made the first version of the site. I used standard tools and photos from social networks. It turned out exactly what it should have been - the site of a small family company.
A good website needs good content. My dad and brother have accumulated so much information all the time that one could write a small book. I developed a structure - these are articles on the cost of work and articles on the comparison of materials that are used.
I wrote articles, and then my dad and brother made edits like experts. It was funny when I had to rewrite almost the entire article. After such a case, we jointly developed a plan for the article, pronounced each section, and only then I began to write.
We posted announcements of all articles on the social profiles of the company and actively answered all questions in the comments. This allowed us to create a fairly large volume of followers.
All this allowed for an increase in the number of orders. On the one hand, this is good, but after that, my father and brother did not have time to review my articles. However, the experience I gained allowed me to write interesting and useful articles without errors.
Many articles on the Internet on large sites are not written for people, because in fact, the cost of certain works varies greatly from state to state, from city to city. We wrote about our city, which allowed us to describe the cost of the work as accurately as possible. And most importantly, usually, the indicated amounts later coincided with the real cost of the project.
It is worth considering that 2021 and 2022 were quite unusual in the formation of the cost of materials. However, I constantly kept an eye on local suppliers of materials, which allowed me to correct articles in time.
Having entered Emerson College with a Master of Arts in Marketing (MAM), I still have a little time to help grow the company because the classes are online. But we have already found an assistant for us and I am gradually teaching her everything that I know myself. Studying in college also helps to professionally approach the development of our business on the Internet. I have an amazing opportunity to apply all the knowledge immediately in practice.
We plan to expand the company and hire employees. After graduating from Emerson College, I plan to continue to manage the development of our family company.
Privacy Policy
LocalProBook will never sell/share any information provided by an applicant to 3rd party during the whole process, At the time of the submission deadline, we will evaluate all submissions and intimate the winning contestant through the contact provided, winner's award payment will be deposited to financial aid dept. directly. By submitting the content, the applicant permits us to publish the winner’s content on our site and our social media channels. The applicant will maintain the rights and ownership of the original content.