Where does the average student find the time to write a good scholarship application essay? And how does he or she know what to write? Student life is busy. Apart from your studies you have your extra curricular activities, meets, friends, parties, family and often a part-time job to make end meet. Somehow there is always more month left than money. If you want to get into a good college or university, you have not only have to keep your grades up and be able to come up with money to cover all the necessities, you have to get accepted first and foremost. And with the price of tuition and cost of living most students (and their parents) have to rely on getting scholarships to help them out.
How do you stand out though from all the countless scholarship applications funds and charities receive every year?
Being a great student, participating in sports and clubs and doing your fair share of volunteering is not enough. What you need is a killer essay! Writing scholarship application essays can be tough, it can be daunting, frustrating and if everything depends on you getting that scholarship to be able to go the college of your dreams, it can be scary as well. The idea is to give the scholarship provider the best idea possible of who you are beyond your grades. But before you start you need to know about the different types of scholarships and to which you are eligible. Write about your passions, make them feel you are the student they are looking for and want to put their money behind. Rather than writing a summery of all the great stuff you have done, tell them about it in an anecdote that they will remember you by. Use your words to come alive away from that paper. Don’t write your essay in words you would never normally use. Be the real you and write how you speak, but make sure of course that your grammar and spelling in your scholarship application are flawless. Ask someone to edit for you before sending off your application and don’t send it the moment you have it checked. It can be a family member or a friend who is a total grammar nerd. It’s good to sleep on an application and go over it the next day with a fresh view. Chances are that the moment you hit that ‘send’ button you will come up with something you wished you would have said different or you realize you missed out something vital from your essay. Check out this article on how to apply for a scholarship.
Still confused? Read a few sample scholarship applications essays to get inspired before you start writing your own.
And always remember: Practice makes perfect, so never give up until you reach your goal!
