Fundraising Ideas

In today's economy, some students might want to get creative about raising money for a summer study abroad program. AIFS Summer Advantage has some fundraising ideas, many of which have been used by past students. If you have other suggestions to add to this page, please email them to summeradvantage@aifs.com.

Getting Started

Develop a Timeline
Write out your goals and create a time frame for completing them (be realistic!). Giving yourself a time frame will help you to stay focused and on track. Fundraising takes a lot of effort on your part and may seem difficult in the beginning, but it gets easier once you get going in the process.

Get the word out about your fundraising initiatives in your area:
A great way to publicize your fundraising efforts is to alert your local media. The easiest and most effective way to do this is through a press release. A release is very simple to write and can be done by anyone. You will want to cover all of the major details (who, what, where, when, why, etc.). In addition, you will want to include your contact information so that media members have a way of getting in touch with you for more details or to publish a story.

Tips for getting "picked up":

Hand-deliver the press release to the local paper whenever possible.
Be persistent, but not pushy. It is perfectly acceptable to call an editor a few days after the release has been delivered to ask if he/she plans to use it. It is possible that the editor might be interested in developing a different angle on the story.
If the piece is used, a short thank-you note to the editor is appropriate and might pay off in the future.
If the press release is publicizing an event, the best timing for submission is one week in advance. If the publication is weekly, the editorial “closing date” must be determined.

Fundraising Ideas

Talk to Your School Counselor
Contact Local Businesses
Car Wash
Get Involved in Your Community
Ask Family and Friends
Bottle and Can Drive
Hold a Marathon
Create a Recipe Book
Bake Sale/Candy Sale
Craft Sale

Talk to Your School Counselor
Your school counselor might be able to assist you in your scholarship or donation search in your local community by providing information about companies or organizations that have helped students in the past. Your counselor might also be able to offer some ideas of things you can do to raise money at your high school (for example, doing Birthday Grams or other activities).

Contact Local Businesses
Make a list of local companies that you would like to contact. Your local library should have a business directory, which will list the President or CEO of each business. Start sending letters (with your resume and a copy of your acceptance letter from AIFS Summer Advantage) or making calls directly to the person in charge of the company. Follow up approximately two weeks later to confirm that they received your letter and to ask if they have any donations or scholarships available. (Rather than contacting the headquarters of big chain stores, try going to the local branch and see if they have a scholarship for students in the local community.) Call your local Chamber of Commerce for additional ideas of businesses and people to contact.

Car Wash
Choose two or more weekends that you will have a car wash. Ask a store owner, church, or school to use their parking lot for your car wash. Check the weather report before you start making colorful signs with your price and placing them throughout the community. Choose a busy section of town, and get friends involved. Delegate who will wash, rinse, dry, and collect money. Borrow buckets, soap, sponges, and towels for your big day.

Get Involved in Your Community
Try reaching out to people who have the same interests or backgrounds. You could try your church, PTA, YMCA, Rotary Club, Lions Club, Elks Club, Kiwanis Club, Sons of Italy, Garden Club, etc. Make a presentation at one of their meetings. You would be surprised as to how much is out there if you work hard and try to contact as many people as you can.

Ask Family and Friends
Network! Let everyone know that you are planning to study abroad and need the funds to do so. No one will know that you need assistance until you get your message out there. Word of mouth is a very powerful tool. Your family and friends might be able to help, and they might have friends who can help, and so the chain begins. AIFS Summer Advantage will accept any size payment toward your final amount. No donation is too small!

Bottle and Can Drive
There are a few creative ways to have a bottle and can drive. You can send a flyer to neighbors and friends telling them your plans to study abroad and that you will be collecting their recyclable bottles and cans for deposit. Most people will have these in their bins or in bags in the garage. The best time to collect bottles and cans is after the weekend, and before your town recycling comes to pick up. You can also contact companies that might not recycle due to the fees associated with it. Ask them if you could do a weekly pick-up and provide a garbage can. Some students in the past have also contacted local universities and colleges and asked to put bottle and can bins in dormitories and fraternity and sorority houses. Schools and businesses will have different policies, but you won’t know until you try! You can return the bottles and cans you collect to your local grocery store. Most grocery stores have automated machines and will give you the deposit money instantly.

Hold a Marathon
You can have a marathon for almost any activity; walk around a track, play soccer or chess, sing, dance, jump rope – just about anything! Have your friends and family join you, or do it alone. Pledges are usually made by hours or miles.

Create a Recipe Book
You can create a recipe book by asking friends, family, and neighbors to each contribute a recipe to cover the basics of Dinners, Breakfasts, Desserts, Snacks, and Appetizers. Ask them to give you a photo of the meal to add to the book. Have one copy bound and make sure that the cover is colorful and attractive. To save on printing costs, only have orders bound when you receive them. Make sure you charge enough for the book to cover your costs and make a profit..

Bake Sale/Candy Sale
Cook delicious homemade foods and candy to sell: cookies, brownies, cheesecake, pies, breads, candy apples, chocolate, etc. Ask your local sports coach if you can set up shop at a game, or contact the town about selling goods outside at a craft fair or outside the grocery store. Don’t forget to make signs and let everyone know why you are having your sale. You can also ask to bring juice, coffee, tea, or hot chocolate to sports games if their facility does not already offer them.

Craft Sale
Sell items you make, such as jewelry, quilts, afghans, paintings, pottery, or clothing. Contact the neighboring towns as well as your own to find out when they are having craft fairs. Craft fairs are often held outside or inside schools or community centers.