Scholarship Application Tips: How to Get a Scholarship Easily 2023
Estimated reading time: 16 minutes
If you are a student, you might be wondering how to obtain and apply for scholarships to support your education. This can be especially challenging if you are about to begin as an undergraduate, attend graduate school, or are in the middle of your studies. However, this article will provide you with scholarship application tips that can help ease the financial strain of attending school..
When considering how to pay for college, many students assume that their only options are financial aid and student loans. However, prioritizing merit-based scholarship applications can help make college more affordable. It’s important to note that submitting your FAFSA forms is necessary to be considered for need-based financial aid, such as grants and work-study programs. Our advice on how to obtain scholarships can help you obtain aid that doesn’t require repayment before accepting federal loan offers..
Over 1.5 million students receive scholarships worth more than $6 billion yearly. Below are some tips on how to be selected for one or more of these scholarships. Generally, the probability of parents’ children qualifying for need-based financial aid is lower than that of them qualifying for scholarships. Only 1 in 8 college students is awarded a scholarship, and the average amount used to pay for college is approximately $4,200 per year. Only a small percentage of students (about 0.1%) win $25,000 or more in scholarships yearly. Among the students who do win scholarships, only 3% win more than $2,500..
Scholarship Application Tips 1: Start Your Scholarship Applications Early
Your chances of receiving scholarships will be higher if you start considering what would make you a desirable applicant as early as possible—whether that be while you are still in your senior year of high school or undergraduate studies (you can’t retroactively get better grades, after all). This is similar to how your college or graduate program application starts long before you send in your personal statement and transcripts.
You position yourself for success by earning good grades, participating in extracurricular activities, and building relationships with teachers and others who can speak highly of you. Scholarships consider various factors. Don’t skip your writing classes. Many scholarships require written submissions. Your ability to write quickly and effectively will come in handy when you need to complete multiple essays for scholarship and school applications.
Use Scholarship Search Engines to Expand Your Search Even if you’ve looked into all the local scholarships available to you, there are still many more. You simply need to decide which is worthwhile. Here are some starting points for your research:
Make sure to use careful filtering to locate those for whom you are most likely to have a compelling application. For instance, FastWeb provides a list of scholarships by academic year, scholarships for veterans, scholarships for bilingual students, and more. Ascertain that you are only looking for scholarships that match your profile.
In your desired career path, look for scholarships offered by professional associations. Are you a college student considering a career in nursing? Nursing undergraduate and graduate scholarships are available from the National Student Nurses Association Foundation. Do you study electrical engineering at the graduate level? The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is a good resource. To increase your chances, look for scholarships that require you to meet additional requirements.
Scholarship Application Tips 2: Prioritize the Scholarships You’re Seeking
Once you’ve determined which scholarships you qualify for, prioritize them based on the amount of the award and how much work the application will entail. The written portion of your application can often be repurposed, so put those higher on the list because they will require less time and effort. The COO of Scholarships.com, Kevin Ladd, advises scholarship seekers to “work hard and smart… Reuse essays if you can while still adhering to all guidelines and requirements for the scholarship.
Compare potential scholarships based on the award amount in addition to the time needed to apply. While writing a five-page essay for a $500 scholarship might not be worthwhile, one worth $5,000 might.
Scholarship Application Tips 3: Continue Applying to Scholarships Throughout College
After your first year, looking for additional income to support your education doesn’t have to end. It is important to schedule time each year to look for and apply for new scholarships because they are frequently offered to college students of all ages. Ladd notes that new scholarships are continually being created, even if you conducted a thorough search last year. Viewing what has changed since your last look is worthwhile.
Scholarship Application Tips 4: Seize Scholarship Opportunities
Start early by not only seeking scholarships but also developing the experiences and resume that will make you an appealing candidate. Prioritize your search and do a smart search to avoid becoming overwhelmed by the volume of applications. Finally, keep looking every year to increase the total number of prizes you get. You might significantly lower the cost of your undergraduate or graduate school with a few days of the work year, leaving you with fewer student loans to manage once you graduate.
What is the Difference between Scholarships and Grants?
Scholarships and grants are both types of gift aid, which is money that does not need to be earned through employment or repaid. Although the two terms are used as synonyms, there are important differences.
-Eligibility for a grant, such as the Federal Pell Grant, is based on financial need.
-Eligibility for a scholarship is based on merit, such as academic, athletic, or artistic talent. For example, there is a $10,000 scholarship for creating a prom costume out of duct tape. The winners demonstrate an incredible amount of creativity and an elegant design sense.
To submit an application for need-based financial aid, such as grants, use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
Each scholarship provider receives scholarship applications. Finding the scholarships for which you qualify should be your first step.
How to Find Scholarships
It’s critical to launch your scholarship search right away. Many scholarships have deadlines not just in the spring but also in the fall of the senior year of high school. Even in elementary school, there are scholarships available for students in lower grades. After you enroll in college, you can still submit scholarship applications. Use a free scholarship matching website like Fastweb.com and Big Future from the College Board to look for scholarships. Finding scholarships only takes a half-hour or so. Making the scholarship applications is the real work. Scholarship listing books can be good for random exploration of possible scholarships. You can find them in local libraries, bookstores, and on Amazon.com. Before buying any book, check its copyright date. If it was published more than a year or two ago, it is too old to be useful, as scholarship information changes frequently. On bulletin boards outside your school counselor’s office or close to the jobs and careers section of the library, you might be able to find information about small local scholarships, like a PTA scholarship.
On bulletin boards outside your school counselor’s office or close to the jobs and careers section of the library, you might be able to find information about small local scholarships, like a PTA scholarship.
Scholarship Application Tips: How to Increase the Number of Scholarship Chances
Your chances of applying for scholarships increase as you receive more scholarship matches.
In addition to the required questions, most scholarship search websites also include optional questions.
Students who respond to the optional questions typically match twice as many scholarships as those who only respond to the mandatory ones.
The reason for asking the optional questions is that they cause matches with particular scholarships. If you don’t respond to the questions, the scholarship search site won’t match you with those scholarships.
How Many Scholarship Applications Should You Submit?
You should submit an application for each scholarship you are qualified for. Don’t restrict yourself to applying for only one kind of scholarship, such as a non-essay, less competitive, or generous scholarship.
Because there are so many gifted students, winning a scholarship depends on luck as well as talent. By submitting applications for more scholarships, you can raise your chances of being selected for one.
But if you do not meet the requirements for the scholarship or if the deadline has passed, don’t submit an application. Your scholarship application will not be taken into account. Do not give up if you receive a rejection. Even students who win scholarships worth a billion dollars face numerous rejections for each one.
Is that difficult to apply for the scholarship?
It takes less time than it might seem to apply for numerous scholarships. After submitting your first dozen or so scholarship applications, you’ll discover that you can begin recycling your previous scholarship essays by customizing them to the objectives of each scholarship provider. If you mention a scholarship program in your essay, just keep in mind to change the name.
Even for the less generous scholarships, applying is still a worthwhile use of your time. Let’s say you submit ten applications for $500 scholarships and receive only one. If each scholarship application takes an hour to complete, that’s $500 for 10 hours of work or $50 per hour. Compared to babysitting or snow shoveling, that pays more.
Scholarship Application Tips: What to Do Before Applying for a Scholarship
Start by getting organized.
- After you assemble a list of scholarships, organize them by the application deadline.
- Make a checklist of the application requirements, such as essays and letters of recommendation. Some scholarships may require work on a project, such as a science fair project.
Make a resume for a scholarship listing all of your accomplishments, including honors, awards, extracurricular activities, sports, volunteer work, and other achievements. Be specific when mentioning dates and other crucial information. Give the professors and others who will write letters of recommendation for your scholarship resume.
To check for unfavorable information, search your name and your social media profiles. Delete any negative content, including posts with negative attitudes and images of underage drinking or drug use. Providers of scholarships are investing in your future, so they do not want to take the chance of giving one to someone who will negatively represent them. More than a quarter of scholarship sponsors request that finalists friend them on Facebook to learn more about the applicants.
Before mailing or submitting your scholarship application, print or save a copy of it, if your application is lost, it will be simpler to send it again. Ask the person who nominated you to nominate you if the scholarship demands it. Send a copy of your scholarship application to them. Because you are the only student to request a nomination, you may be chosen. You will not likely be considered if you do not request a nomination.
How to Write Better Scholarship Essays
- Using a straightforward technique, you can improve your essay writing and fend off writer’s block.
- Answer the essay question aloud while recording your answer rather than struggling to write an essay. You’ll write down the recording later.
- While speaking at about 200 words per minute, the average person writes or types between 30 and 60 words per minute. Writing causes disruptions in the flow of thought.
- Speaking your response out loud will also result in a passionate and impactful essay. It will be more engaging to hear a story from you than to hear a list of impersonal facts.
- Naturally, you will need to edit the transcription and give it some structure by organizing the content into an outline. When you do this, it will be simple for you to add more information and examples to develop your ideas further.
- Proofread your essay once you have finished writing it. Spelling and grammar mistakes can leave a negative impression.
- You can improve your proofreading skills by reading your essay aloud. Print out a copy to make the essay look different from how it does on a computer screen. Mark any places where you make mistakes as you read it. Disfluencies can indicate an essay problem, such as poor flow, poor lexical choices, or logical mistakes, in addition to spelling and grammar mistakes. After that, fix the issues and read it aloud once more.
How to Ace the Scholarship Interview
Develop your skills by practicing. To get practice interviewing, ask a friend or a parent to run a mock interview. Watch the interview on video after it has been recorded.
Prepare responses to interview questions in advance. You may get the chance, for instance, to explain why you deserve the scholarship. Make an elevator speech outlining three pertinent aspects of your background. Do not memorize this speech; instead, keep in mind the main points so you can respond naturally to the interviewer’s questions.
Take a picture with your webcam and review it before you begin your interview using Zoom or another videoconferencing program. If your webcam is dirty, clean it. Remove any offensive posters from the background if there are any. Make an effort to appear tidy and uncluttered, without too much clutter.
The morning of the interview, take a shower or a bath, apply deodorant, and brush your teeth in preparation for an in-person interview. Dress appropriately. Do not smoke or chew gum. If you get lost at the interview location, arrive a few minutes early. You want to make a good first impression.
Scholarship Application Tips: What to Do After You Win a Scholarship
There are numerous renewable scholarships. You can continue to receive the scholarship each year of your college career after you’ve won it once. To keep it, though, you need to take some action.
Keeping up academic excellence is a requirement for many renewable scholarships. Some stipulate attending a meeting set up by the scholarship provider or performing community service. Grade reports and updates about your academic and extracurricular activities must be sent to the scholarship program for many awards.
Additionally, the donors of scholarships are interested in learning how the award has impacted the recipient’s life. Due to the sincere thank you letters received from some scholarship recipients, the scholarship provider changed some non-renewable awards into renewable ones. The tricky part is getting a scholarship. Study the requirements for keeping the scholarship after you’ve won it.
Remember to include the scholarship in your resume when applying for scholarships. You can increase your chances of receiving larger awards by winning more scholarships.
Frequently Asked Questions: Scholarship Application Tips
A scholarship is a financial award for a student to further their education and is not required to be repaid. You’ll find scholarships on Scholarship America are privately funded, meaning they don’t come from the government, colleges, or universities. These scholarships are intended to be added to other financial support you receive.
Any number that you are qualified for. No restrictions apply. Since scholarships are given out separately, applying for more than one does not reduce your chances of receiving a particular scholarship. A scholarship can be given to you more than once.
You do not need to worry about organizing or transferring any money because a scholarship award is paid directly to the college you specify.
Yes. While some scholarships are only available to high school seniors or incoming first-year college students, many scholarships are open to anyone attending college, regardless of age or time off.
Absolutely. Several private and public programs offer awards to two-year and four-year students, while others are specifically created for students attending two-year colleges.
Yes, but it also depends on your particular situation. Federal and state grants are not available to undocumented or DACA students, but some colleges and private scholarship providers may be able to assist.
The Dream Award is a unique scholarship program that gives renewable awards to students who have completed at least one year of college but who face financial obstacles as they work to graduate. Applicants for the 2020-21 Dream Award must:
1-Be at least 17 years of age.
2-Be U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents (holders of a Permanent Resident card), or individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA).
3-Have received a U.S. school’s high school diploma or equivalent by September 2019.
4-Have completed or expected to successfully complete a minimum of one full year of postsecondary education by June 2020.
5-Plan to enroll in full-time undergraduate study at the sophomore year level or higher at an accredited two- or four-year college, university or vocational-technical school in the United States for the entire 2020–21 academic year.
6-Be studying to obtain an associate’s or first bachelor’s degree.
7-Have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (or its equivalent).
8-Demonstrate financial need.
Scholarship scams are a fact of life when you’re searching for ways to pay for college, and it can be hard to tell the difference sometimes! We recommend you follow two main rules to avoid nearly all scholarship scams: never pay to apply for a scholarship, and if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Beware of “guaranteed” scholarships or any unsolicited offer — scholarship programs will never just offer you money out of the blue!
Legitimate scholarship programs will also always have an email address and/or phone number to contact them — if you are in doubt, talk to a real person.
No. All legitimate scholarship search providers (like Fastweb, Cappex, and Scholarship America) provide their services free. Never sign up or pay for a service that claims it can find you “secret” or “hidden” scholarships — these are another form of a scholarship scam.
A merit scholarship is one specific type of scholarship you can apply for. When we’re talking about scholarships, the term ‘merit’ just means that the scholarship considers your academic profile, achievements, and abilities, as opposed to your level of financial need.
One and only one reason sets student loans (another method of paying for college) apart from scholarships: the money you receive through student loans is money you borrow and must repay with interest. On the other hand, scholarships require no repayment at all, which is completely different from this!
According to the IRS, scholarships are not taxable if you meet both of the following conditions:
1-“You’re a candidate for a degree at an educational institution that maintains a regular faculty and curriculum and normally has a regularly enrolled body of students in attendance at the place where it carries on its educational activities; and,
2-The amounts you receive are used to pay for tuition and fees required for enrollment or attendance at the educational institution, or for fees, books, supplies, and equipment required for courses at the educational institution.”
On the other hand, scholarships are technically taxable (aka, must be included in your gross income) if the money is used or put towards education-related expenses such as room and board, travel, or optional equipment.
There is no charge to apply.
You can apply to any and all funds for which you are qualified, and you might be chosen to receive more than one scholarship.
These are charitable grants rather than student loans, which do not require repayment.
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