You can find tons of no essay scholarships online nowadays, but the chances of winning them are slim to none. Most of these scholarships have thousands of applicants every year, so you will inevitably need to look for other awards to help you pay for college. When it comes time to apply for those other scholarships, you will probably need to write an essay explaining why you deserve the assistance or what you could do with this kind of opportunity. If you manage to write a memorable essay that addresses the prompt, you may have a good chance at winning money for college. Here are some tips to help you write the best scholarship essay possible.
Make It Personal
No matter how boring your essay prompt may be, you need to find a way to relate it to your life. Scholarship committees love essays that connect to personal experiences because they show that the applicants are really paying attention to what they write. If you can’t think of an actual story that relates to your essay prompt, make it up. This sounds like terrible advice, but no one is going to care if you actually went through the events described in your essay. As long as the piece is well-written and somehow related to the scholarship, you should be good to go.
Check the Grammar
You cannot get scholarships if you have terrible grammar. The judges are going to look at your sloppy writing style and automatically assume that you are an idiot. That’s the harsh reality of the real world. If English isn’t your strong suit, get one of your instructors to look over the application before you turn it in. That person should be able to tell you where the problems are and what you can do to fix them.
Follow All Instructions
Your essay prompt will most likely come with a set of instructions, outlining how to format and submit your completed application. Make sure you read over those instructions before you turn in your essay, just in case there is something you’re missing in the app. If you fail to follow instructions, your essay may be rejected automatically. If it is not sent to the trash, it will be frowned upon because you ignored the award committee’s requests.
Submit Early on
Try to turn in your application as soon as you can so it gets put in the front of the line. Ideally, you need to make your essay the one that they compare all the others to. If you can make something memorable enough to stand out from the crowd, you will have a better chance at winning the scholarship of your choice. Look at the due dates for your scholarship application, and make a strong effort to turn your work in as soon as possible.
As long as you focus on putting yourself into every word that you write, you should be able to write a good scholarship essay that will help you get money for school. Think about the tips above, and you’ll be on your way to a debt-free education in no time.
