I’m Not A Strong Writer Will I Have To Write An Essay For Every Scholarship I’m Applying For
While the majority of application processes entail some kind of essay to assess applicants’ writing skills, not all providers require one. Keep in mind that scholarships that do not require essays can be more competitive, or have additional guidelines to ensure the right students apply. If you’re having difficulty finding an essay-free scholarship, check out our “Scholarships by Type” section for easy scholarships or video scholarships, where applicants produce short multimedia pieces instead of writing traditional essays.
When Do Most Scholarship Deadlines Occur
Although scholarships are offered year-round, the vast majority of scholarship application deadlines occur from September through May. What does this mean for you? It means you have most of the summer to research college scholarships and get a head start on the application process.
While it may not be the most exciting way to spend your summer vacay, its well worth the effort. Many of the biggest scholarships also have the earliest deadlines. Plus, youll be swamped during the school year with homework and preparing for college entrance exams. Create a scholarship application schedule now and youll thank yourself a million times over in the future.
I Have A Question About The Scholarship Can I Contact The Scholarship Provider Directly
This should be detailed in the scholarship’s regulations and guidelines. The scholarship provider may have the answer to your question but if they have a strict “no call” or “no e-mail” policy, DO NOT call or e-mail. Instead, speak to your guidance counselor or financial aid officer they’ve probably encountered the same questions in past years and will be able to point you in the right direction.
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Types Of Scholarships For College Students
Athletic and academic scholarships are two of the most popular and widely-recognized — but they’re not the only ones.
Here are a few other types of scholarships to search and apply for:
- Religious
- Social justice
- Adult education
Depending on your unique needs and abilities, you can find a wide range of available college scholarships. You can also apply to multiple scholarships at once — and you should!
Just be sure to check each scholarships’ specific criteria to guarantee this doesn’t make you ineligible.
Downsides To Easy Scholarships
The biggest drawback of easy scholarships is that many students can apply for them. This means that your chances of winning are lower than scholarships with essays and other specific criteria. Many of these scholarships are more similar to a contests than a true scholarship competition based on merit or talent. You may also be opting into receiving marketing materials and offerings from the scholarship providers, so be aware of that if you are asked to opt-in!
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About Scholarships For High School Juniors
As a high school junior, this year is the most important year of your high school career. Itâs the year when you start to seriously think about college and how well you perform as a third-year is a good barometer of what your college prospects may look like.
Another very important factor in the college admissions process is how affordable it is. College tuition prices have grown steadily over the years, causing 80% of high school seniors to choose a college for its financial portfolio rather than the education they may receive.
With that in mind, itâs never too early to start looking for scholarships to help fund your college education. 25% of college costs are covered by scholarships and grants. These are resources you simply cannot pass up and must be aware of as high schoolers and future college students.
Going to college is a great investment, but it comes with a heavy financial burden that many high school students aren’t aware of until it’s too late. Help yourself lessen that burden by taking advantage of these scholarships.
To make things easier for you, weâve assembled this scholarship list exclusively for high school juniors to prepare for their senior year and beyond. These scholarships are unique to Bold.org, an independent scholarship program dedicated to making higher education more accessible. Click on any one of the featured scholarships to get started and begin submitting those applications today!
Question 3question 3 Of : When Should You Start Applying For Scholarships
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The Easiest Way To Apply For Scholarships
Once your search for college scholarships finally bears fruit, its time to apply for all the ones you found. Unfortunately, the time it takes to file multiple scholarship applications can deter students from doing so at all.
DoNotPay unveils what you need to apply for scholarships and how to speed up the application process!
What Is Patriotism To Me If Your Answer Wins You Could Receive $5000
Deadline: October 31, 2020
Available to: Students in grades 6-8, including homeschool students
Details: If you can submit a 300-400 word essay on a patriotic theme chosen by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Commander in Chief over all entries in the nation, you could win $5,000 and a trip to Washington D.C. Each first place state winner receives $500.
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Read The Directions Carefully
This is one of the easiest ways to ensure your application doesn’t get overlooked. Read all of the directions and guidelines of each scholarship carefully. Then, read them again!
Not following directions shows that you’re careless and may not be taking the process as seriously as you should. Making minor errors that could have been avoided will also make the rejection even more upsetting.
Put your best foot forward from the start by reading and following all of the directions to a T!
When Do You Apply For College Scholarships
Typically, high school students should start applying for scholarships throughout senior year. College students may also apply all year round. There is usually no right time to apply. Scholarship deadlines may typically be from September to October. Sometimes, they are in the spring months. The key is to apply prior to the deadline. Dont rush to be the first one, but take your time to do an impressive job instead!
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Tips For Applying For A Scholarship For College
With the cost of attending college increasing each year, the competition for scholarships and grants is on the rise. To increase your chances of receiving financial aid:
- Dont ignore small reward amounts they can add up!
- Read directions carefully before your start filling out your application
- Keep a backup file of your work in case something goes wrong
- To make sure you apply on time, mark your calendar with deadlines or use apps to help you keep track
- If youre stuck or need help, contact the organization offering the scholarship
scholarship or grant can significantly reduce student debt upon graduation.
Write Strategically Unique College Scholarship Essays
When it comes to writing an amazing scholarship essay, Ive developed a highly complex intricate process of algorithms and systems that you need to follow EXACTLY if you want your writing to soar. The steps are:
and thats it. Why does this work? Most scholarship essays bore judges to tears. Put yourself in the shoes of the person who will be reading your application theyre going to be reading hundreds, maybe even THOUSANDS of these a day. And the fact of the matter is 99.99999% of the applications they read will be almost exactly the same.
Oh, you got good grades? You were in a bunch of extracurriculars? That mission trip you took to Honduras junior year was life-changing?
Get in line.
Whats particularly unique about any of those things? Not a whole lot. And if you fall into the same formula as everyone else, I guarantee you your application wont get a second glance. However, if you subvert the expectations of the scholarship judge, youll grab and hold onto their attention allowing you to properly make your case. To do that, you need to follow the aforementioned two steps.
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Collect Letters Of Recommendation
Scholarship and college applications usually require a few letters of recommendation from teachers and community members who know you best. They could include your employer, teachers, coaches, high school counselors, or other adults who can testify to your strengths, qualifications, and ambition.
Since youre asking for a significant favor, its best to provide as much relevant information as possible to the letter-writer. You might even want to provide a Word template for them to use as they write your recommendation. Here are some other things you can provide:
- Overview of the scholarship
- Your key strengths as related to the requirements AND your relationship to the reviewer.
- A copy of your resume
- Any other plans for the future, like which colleges youre applying to and what major you will pursue
After you collect your letters of recommendation, make sure you thank your reviewers for taking the time to help you.
Use Scholarship Search Engines To Expand Your Search
Even if youve exhausted your local scholarship options, there are plenty more out there. Its just a matter of choosing which are worth your time. Here are some resources to start your search:
Make sure you filter strategically to find those for which youre most likely to have a strong application. FastWeb, for example, lists scholarships by year of study, scholarships for veterans, scholarships for bilingual students you name it. Make sure youre only searching for scholarships that fit your profile.
Look for scholarships offered by industry associations in your career path of choice. Are you an undergraduate looking to go into nursing? The Foundation of the National Student Nurses Association offers undergraduate and graduate scholarships for nurses. Are you a graduate student in electrical engineering? Then check out Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Bottom line, find scholarships that require some sort of additional qualification to apply for to increase your chances.
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When Should You Apply For Scholarships
Do Not Wait Until Senior Year
I often hear from parents saying, my son/daughter will start applying for scholarships in their senior year.
I have often wondered why.
Senior year is a tale of two drastically opposed semesters. First semester is a frantic flurry of SAT/ACTs and college applications, in addition to class work and extracurriculars.
Why wait until possibly the busiest time your child will face in high school to throw on another task?
On the flip side, you might think second-semester senior year is the perfect time to really go after scholarship money. Your child suddenly has an abundance of free time, the pressure is on to save some money, and it seems to be the sensible next step.
Let me ask you something: have you ever seen a second-semester senior?
Combine that with the fact that everyone else is going after scholarship money at the same time, so its most competitive at this point.
When Should We Start Searching?
As soon as you can.
There is a surprising amount of scholarship money available for students of young ages. Were talking as soon as kindergarten. Thats right, KINDERGARTEN.
Understandably, parents of young kids dont have apply for college scholarship money high on their to-do list, but it sure doesnt hurt to take a few minutes and see what kind of awards are out there.
Perhaps your child likes to draw. Take a look at . The national winner gets a $30,000 scholarship and the four runners-up win $5,000 scholarships.
Focus On Scholarship Seasons
Though scholarships are offered all year, you can definitely keep track of scholarships during the busiest seasons. Fall scholarships are available from August through December, spring scholarships are available January through May, and summer scholarships are available in June and July.
Students might wait until winter break to complete applications for scholarships, but be careful not to miss any deadlines in this case, as some scholarships do have summer or fall deadlines.
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Confess Your Undying Love To The Number Five And Win $1500
Deadline: May 31, 2021
Available to: Students 14 and up
Details: If youre interested in a quirky opportunity, try for the Fifth Month Scholarship to win $1,500 dollars. Write a letter to the number five, explaining just why its so important in 250 words or less. Both serious and humorous entries are encouraged.
Question 2 Of : How Do You Qualify For Scholarships
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Is It Really Worth It To Pursue Scholarships
When you look at all the options and work itll take to actually earn a college scholarship, it can be easy to ask:
Is this even worth it?
Especially when youre busy with your senior year of high school. Friends, clubs, teams, hobbies, AP classes, and lots more can fill up your schedule and make you think learning how to get scholarships just cant make its way onto your schedule.
But consider this:
If you DONT get a scholarship, youll be forced to pay for college on your own. That means working tons of hours during college.
Less time to study. Less time to date. Less time to enjoy the college scene. Because youll be working.
Life in college doesnt slow down it speeds up. And youre setting yourself up to miss all of it if you dont learn how to get a scholarship and apply for as many as possible.
Dont forget: I secured over $100,000 in college scholarships. The average U.S. salary is around $30,000.
So just ask yourself this: Are a few late nights filling out scholarship applications or missing a football game here or there worth THREE YEARS of work?As I see it, the answer is an obvious YES.
With that in mind, lets dive into how you can pull this off without burning out.
Start Your Scholarship Applications Early
Just as your college or graduate program application starts long before you send in your personal statement and transcripts , your chances of getting scholarships will be greater if you start thinking about what would make you a desirable applicant as early as possiblewhether thats while youre still in your senior year of high school or undergraduate studies.
Different scholarships will take into account a variety of factors, but youll generally set yourself up for success by getting good grades, participating in extracurricular activities, and building relationships with teachers, professors, and other people who can speak favorably on your behalf.
In addition, many scholarships will require a written submissionso dont shirk your writing classes. Your skills in writing quickly and efficiently will be useful when completing multiple essays both for your school applications as well as the scholarships.
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How Do You Receive The Scholarship Money
Scholarship money is typically sent to the college or university. This may be done by a check or ACH payment. In some cases, it may come directly to you. The details for your scholarships are listed on the application or terms and conditions. Be sure to read through this. It changes from one program to the next.
You may be able to use scholarship funds for any school related cost. This, too, depends on the stipulations for the scholarship. Some may only apply to tuition and books. Others offer more flexibility. That may include covering fees, living expenses, or other costs. The provider of the scholarship ultimately determines this.
Scholarship amounts typically do not exceed the schools tuition and fees. Thats important to remember. Read the documentation for the scholarship to learn what happens if you have any overages you may have.
How Will A Scholarship Or Grant Affect My Financial Aid
When applying for scholarships and grants, you may also want to look into whether an outside scholarship can impact your schools financial aid package. Heres why:
In determining how much need-based aid you qualify for, your college will first calculate your Expected Family Contribution an index number based on your FAFSA information regarding your familys financial status. The college will then subtract the EFC from the estimated costs of tuition and other expenses to ultimately determine your financial aid package.
You must inform your school if you win an outside grant or scholarship. This is because the additional funding can be viewed as an asset and can increase your EFC.
For example, if the school calculated your EFC as $10,000 and you received another $5,000 in outside grants or scholarships, your school will now consider you having $5,000 extra, that is, having a net EFC of $15,000. Your school might choose to award less financial aid in that case, which makes sense since schools have limited funds.
The good news is, when financial aid offices adjust your financial aid award to account for an outside scholarship, they will usually first decrease the less desirable forms of aid. This means they will cut back on student loans or expected work-study, leaving the financial aid package from your college intact. If youre not sure about your colleges award policy, contact the financial aid office.
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