Listen and subscribe to Decoding Retirement on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Many high school seniors and even some juniors are preparing to apply for college, but with thousands of colleges and universities to pick from in the US alone, narrowing it down can be difficult. Add to this the staggering costs most of these institutions charge for attendance, and these decisions can become overshadowed by the financial ramifications.

But is it possible to avoid college debt? When pursuing higher education, standing out during the application phase is incredibly important — especially for those looking to snag some scholarships or additional financial aid to avoid debt.

"The old paradigm of sports, volunteer, and good grades — if everybody's doing the same thing, the question is how do you stand out?" Jennifer Openshaw, the founder and CEO of Girls With Impact, said on Yahoo Finance's Decoding Retirement (watch video above or listen below).

Openshaw detailed how she has seen multiple girls who progressed through the nonprofit's coursework receive significant financial aid when applying to college, with one student even receiving three full-ride offers.

It's not the Girls With Impact course, specifically, that prospective college students need to take to better their chances. Doing something like starting a business venture, even if the student only plans to pursue it for a short term, can show a sense of initiative and leadership that makes them stand out against other applicants.

"Colleges are also looking for [students to] show us something you've done to demonstrate real leadership," Openshaw said, noting that the head of admissions at Harvard University told her how impactful that can be on an application.

Parents and grandparents can help students avoid debt

During the episode, podcast host Robert Powell said that as a father of triplet sons, he wanted them to be a part of the conversation around their higher education.

"One of the things we did was, instead of talking about school in terms of reach schools and safety schools, we talked about funded and unfunded schools or retail versus wholesale schools," Powell said. He noted that his sons only applied to colleges where their grades put them in the top quartile of incoming freshmen, bettering their chances of receiving merit aid.

Even then, it can be hard to stand out and get the financial aid needed. A local community college may not be a bad idea for the first two years of a student's higher education. Openshaw noted that starting there could save a student "tens of thousands of dollars."

Grandparents who have money set aside for their grandchildren to inherit may also consider using that money to contribute to their education.

"It doesn't matter how much; it can make such a big difference," Openshaw said. "What a big difference they can make by passing some of that on and seeing some of that joy of their grandchild benefiting from it."

Each Tuesday, retirement expert and financial educator Robert Powell gives you the tools to plan for your future on Decoding Retirement. You can find more episodes on our video hub or watch on your preferred streaming service.

Click here for the latest personal finance news to help you with investing, paying off debt, buying a home, retirement, and more

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance