Tips for Scholarships

The earlier you start looking for scholarships, the better your chances. There are thousands of scholarships available from a wide range of sources, and many go unclaimed every year simply because students did not know they existed or did not apply in time.

When you start your search, think of it like an inverted funnel. Start small and local before working your way outward. Local scholarships, from organizations like your neighborhood Rotary Club, Elks Lodge, community foundation, or local businesses, tend to have far fewer applicants than national awards. That means your odds of winning are significantly higher. From there, expand your search regionally, then statewide, and finally nationally. By the time you are applying for larger national scholarships, you will also have local wins building your confidence and your application skills.

Continue your search throughout the entire year. One of the biggest misconceptions students have is that scholarships are only available at certain points during the school year or that missing one deadline means missing out entirely. Private scholarships have deadlines throughout the entire year, and new opportunities open up constantly. If you missed the SWC scholarship deadline or are already mid-semester, there are still scholarships available with upcoming deadlines. Scholarships with deadlines in less common parts of the year often have fewer applicants, which again works in your favor.

The more scholarships you apply for, the more opportunities you create for yourself. Maximizing the number of applications you submit, especially at the local level where competition is lower, is one of the most effective strategies for securing scholarship funding.

Visit our External Scholarships & Search Engines page to find tools that can help you search at every level.

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Unfortunately, scholarship scams are real and they specifically target students who are working hard to pay for college. Knowing what to look for will help you protect yourself.

Here are warning signs of a scholarship scam:

• You are asked to pay any fee to apply, process, or claim your award. Legitimate scholarships are always free to apply for.
• You are told you have been selected for or won a scholarship you never applied for. You cannot win something you did not apply to.
• The organization guarantees you will receive the scholarship. No legitimate scholarship can guarantee an award.
• You are pressured to act immediately or risk losing the opportunity. Real scholarships have published deadlines and do not pressure students.
• The application asks for sensitive personal information such as your Social Security number, bank account number, or credit card information. Scholarship applications ask for transcripts, essays, and recommendation letters, not financial data.
• You cannot find any verifiable contact information, a professional website, or any mention of the organization outside of its own materials.
• The scholarship only appears on one website with no presence on reputable scholarship search platforms.

Before you apply, do your homework:

• Search the scholarship name followed by the word "scam" or "reviews" to see what others have experienced
• Look up the organization on the Better Business Bureau website
• Check that the website URL looks legitimate. Scammers often create URLs that closely mimic real organizations with small variations in spelling. Be especially cautious with unusual domain extensions you do not recognize. 
• If you received an unsolicited email or social media message about a scholarship, research the organization independently before clicking any links or providing any information
• Contact the Financial Aid Office if something feels off. We are here to help.

If you believe you have encountered a scholarship scam, report it to the Federal Trade Commission.

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Scholarship sponsors are not just looking for students with high grades (and in some cases your GPA is not a scholarship requirement). They want to see students who contribute to their communities, manage their time well, and make an impact beyond the classroom. Getting involved in activities outside of school, and keeping track of everything you do, will strengthen your applications significantly.

What counts as involvement is broader than most students realize. Here are some examples:

• Participating in a club, sport, or student organization, whether as a member or in a leadership role
• Volunteering in any capacity, including helping at your local church, mosque, temple, or community center on weekends
• Helping out at a daycare, food bank, neighborhood cleanup, or any community event
• Holding a part-time or full-time job. Your work experience matters even if you did not start your own business.
• Caring for a family member or younger siblings
• Completing community service hours through school or on your own
• Participating in academic programs, competitions, tutoring, or mentorship
• Earning awards, honors, or recognition of any kind
• Achieving academic milestones or completing notable coursework
• Travel or life experiences that have shaped your perspective
• Personal challenges you have overcome that demonstrate your character and resilience

None of this needs to be formal, paid, or affiliated with an official organization to count. What matters is that you showed up, contributed, and made a difference. Many students undersell themselves because they do not realize how much they have actually done.

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Before you start filling out applications, put together a personal Activity and Involvement Resume that captures everything from Tip 3 in one organized document. Include dates, hours where relevant, any leadership roles held, awards or recognition received, and academic achievements. Also note any travel or life experiences that shaped your perspective and any personal challenges you have overcome that demonstrate your character and resilience.

Having this document ready before you start applying means you will never be scrambling to remember important details while writing an essay. It will also help you identify your strongest stories to share.

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Every scholarship has a sponsor. This is an organization, company, foundation, or individual who created the award with a specific purpose in mind. Students who best meet the sponsor's requirements, both the stated ones and the underlying values behind them, are the most competitive candidates.

Read through all the scholarship materials carefully. Look for clues about what the sponsor values, not just the eligibility requirements, but the mission of the organization, the history of the award, and the language they use to describe their ideal recipient. Then make sure your application reflects those values.

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Before investing time in an application, confirm that you actually qualify. Does the scholarship require demonstrated financial need? Full-time enrollment? A minimum GPA? Membership in a specific organization or community? Residency in a particular area? Checking eligibility first saves you from spending hours on an application you are not eligible for.

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Missing a deadline means your application will not be considered, no matter how strong it is. This is the single most preventable reason students lose scholarship money.

When applying for multiple scholarships at once, it is easy to confuse dates. Keep a dedicated digital calendar and add each scholarship deadline as soon as you find it. Set a reminder one week before each deadline so you have time to review and finalize your application without rushing. Aim to submit before that reminder date and treat the final deadline as an absolute cutoff with no exceptions.

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Scholarship applications require collecting documents, writing drafts, requesting references, and meeting multiple deadlines at once. When your space and schedule are disorganized, it is easy to lose important papers, miss steps, or submit incomplete applications. Keep all your scholarship materials in one place, physical or digital, and schedule dedicated time for applications so they do not get pushed aside.

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When scholarship committees have several strong candidates and only a limited number of awards to give, every detail matters. A misspelling, a grammar error, or an incorrect name can be an easy reason to move on to the next application when tough decisions need to be made. Do not let a careless mistake cost you an award you deserve.

Before submitting anything, check that your name, address, and contact information are correct. Make sure you addressed the application to the right scholarship and the right coordinator. Then read through your essay carefully for spelling errors, grammar issues, and formatting problems. Reading your essay out loud is one of the best ways to catch mistakes your eyes might skip over. Ask a friend, family member, or the Writing Center to review it as well before you submit.

Pay close attention to word and character limits. If the essay requirement says 250 words, submit 250 words, not 251. Scholarship committees set these limits intentionally and exceeding them, even by one word, can result in disqualification. Staying within the limit while still making a strong, complete case for yourself is itself a demonstration of your ability to follow instructions and communicate concisely. Both matter to a scholarship committee.

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Before you submit, go back through the entire application one final time. Did you answer every question? Did you include all required documents? Did you follow the formatting and length requirements? Is your essay within the word or character limit? Taking a few extra minutes at this stage can make the difference between a complete application and one that gets disqualified on a technicality.

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Before you write a single word, take time to collect your thoughts. Go back to your Activity and Involvement Resume and think about which experiences have shaped who you are. These prompts can help you get started:

• Is there a saying or piece of advice you heard growing up that has stayed with you? How has it shaped how you live?
• Describe an accomplishment you had to work hard to achieve. What was it, how did you approach it, and how did it change you
• What travel, cultural, or life experiences have given you a perspective that others might not have?
• Are there gaps or challenges in your academic record? What caused them, and what have you learned from them?

Write your thoughts down without worrying about how they sound at first. You are collecting raw material that you will shape into your essay.

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The essay is your opportunity to give the scholarship committee a complete picture of who you are, including your background, your values, your experiences, and where you are headed. It can be serious, personal, or reflective. What it must be is honest, specific, and genuinely yours.

Your essay should be original, personal, and entirely your own. It is not an autobiography, a list of accomplishments, or a recycled paper from class. The words and ideas must be yours.

A Note on Artificial Intelligence: Using AI tools to write your scholarship essay is strongly discouraged and in many cases explicitly prohibited by scholarship providers. Scholarship committees are increasingly able to identify AI-generated writing, and submitting it could result in immediate disqualification. Your essay is your opportunity to share your story in your own voice. No tool can do that for you.

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There is no single right way to structure a scholarship essay, but a strong approach often follows this flow:

• Opening paragraph: Introduce yourself and give a sense of your background. What experiences or people have shaped your goals? Be specific. One vivid, personal detail is more compelling than a broad general statement. You may also want to briefly touch on why financial support matters to your ability to pursue those goals, setting the stage for the case you will make more fully at the end of your essay.
• Middle paragraph(s): Talk about your activities, involvement, and any awards or recognition you have received. Do not simply list them. The committee wants to understand what these experiences meant to you and how they have shaped who you are. Think about how the skills or qualities you developed through these experiences allowed you to make a difference, whether that was contributing to your community, taking on a new challenge, or making an impact in a way you did not expect. The most compelling essays connect what you have done to who you are becoming.
• Goals paragraph: Talk about your academic and career goals. Why do you want to go to college? What do you want to do with your education? How did you arrive at these goals?
• Closing paragraph:  Bring your essay full circle. Summarize your goals and remind the committee why you are a strong candidate. Be specific about how receiving this scholarship will help you achieve those goals. This could mean staying enrolled full time, affording a required course, covering living expenses so you can focus on school, or something else entirely. If there are circumstances in your life the committee should understand in order to make a fair decision, this is the place to share them. End on a forward-looking note that leaves the reader with a clear picture of where you are headed and why investing in you matters.
   

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• Write about your actual experiences, not abstract ideas. Saying you volunteered at a food bank every Saturday for a year is more powerful than saying you believe in giving back to the community.
• Keep your sentences clear and direct. Simple, well-constructed sentences are always stronger than long-winded ones that try too hard to impress.
• Do not simply list your accomplishments. Tell the committee who you are, not just what you have done.
• Avoid statements that could apply to anyone. The more specific and personal you are, the more memorable your essay will be.
• Follow all formatting, length, and content instructions exactly.
• Ask someone you trust to read your essay before you submit it. Ask them if it gives a clear picture of who you are as a person.
• If you need help with your essay, the Writing Center is a great resource. You can also make an appointment with an academic counselor, who can help you think through your goals and how to present yourself effectively.

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