We’ve told you to take your scholarship essays seriously. So where and how do you begin? Here are some helpful questions to get you started:

What attributes do you wish to convey?

- In order to answer this question, you should at the very least read a description of the award. Is the award intended to honor a certain person, and how is he or she described? This will give you an idea of the criteria on which your character will be judged.

- What are the main interests or goals of the organization offering the scholarship? How might you be expected to help achieve these goals? Present yourself as someone compatible with the organization’s mission.

• Create a list of attributes you wish to emphasize in your scholarship essay. Remember: in addition to self-confidence, humility is a very attractive trait!

- If you have questions regarding the scholarship, you can always call the organization. Committees want to help students create strong applications.

Do you need to do some research, or is the question more personal?

- Outside research can enrich your writing and strengthen its impact. You may be required to do research in order to answer the question – if, for example, you need to evaluate a policy and take a stance for or against it. If the question is personal, outside research may still be helpful for placing your circumstances in context. Maybe you want to explain just how crucial the lab research you’re conducting is to our understanding of the habits of howler monkeys.

Do you come across as human?

- If so, good! It’s alright – even beneficial – to reveal shortcomings, as long as you have some insight into them and can demonstrate that you’ll give a challenge everything you’ve got. Have a friend read your essay, and see what kind of picture of you it paints.

- Use specific details and examples to convey desired attributes. Don’t just say you work hard. Describe the steps you take to succeed, and how you manage to balance work with other demands.

• Examine your examples. How can you make them even more specific, and therefore more compelling? Remember that your readers have never met you or anyone in your life (probably). In order for your character to stand out, people need specifics, just as they do when reading a novel or a biography.

Lastly, get feedback.

Top Test Prep offers admissions counseling that can help you hone your scholarship essays and grab an organization’s attention.

This article is on how to write scholarship essays. For more information on scholarship essays for applications, go to TopTestPrep.com.

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1. Start researching now.

Don’t assume you’re ineligible for a scholarship without thoroughly researching what’s out there. Use the internet, see where your friends are applying, buy a scholarship guide at a bookstore, and ask your college counselor for suggestions. There are scholarships for everything, from tall brunette women to musical prodigies. Through diligent searching, you’ll discover you’re a candidate for more than a few.

2. Increase your chances.

If you start researching scholarships early, you may still have time in your educational career to become a good candidate. A scholarship might require that you’ve completed a certain project or spent time on an extracurricular interest by the application deadline. If you know in advance which scholarships interest you, you can work these things into your free time or your classes.

Another way to increase your odds of receiving  scholarship money is to apply for scholarships with very specific candidate criteria, scholarships for which fewer people will be applying.

3. Consider schools that offer academic scholarships to attract students like you.

Review the schools’ websites to see what kinds of recruitment scholarships they offer. Schools will invest in high-caliber students in order to boost their rankings. Additionally, schools may use scholarship money to attract students from different geographical areas, students who can contribute to the school’s ethnic and cultural diversity, and students who are involved in less popular areas of study. Check to see whether these schools require supplemental materials or separate applications from students interested in scholarship money.

4. Take applications seriously.

Be sure to do everything a scholarship application asks of you. Approach your potential patrons with humility: they’re considering giving you money, after all. The application itself – and how well you’ve managed to follow the directions – will influence your eligibility.

5. Write a killer scholarship essay.

Approach scholarship essays with the same seriousness of purpose (and attendant anxiety) you reserve for admissions essays. Remember that the people bestowing scholarship money are interested in you as an individual. They want to sponsor candidates that they can easily picture profiting in specific ways from the education they’ll be helping to fund.

Top Test Prep offers admissions counseling that can help you manage your search for scholarships and financial aid.

This article is on getting scholarship money for colleges. To get help from college admissions experts, go to TopTestPrep.com.

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We came across a unique article about the most interesting, dare we say “strangest” scholarships and wanted to share with our readers. Some pretty amusing ones and all credit goes to Jenny Sweeney, who we cite below. Top Test Prep writers thank her for posting this.

Oink, Oink

Has your room been compared to a sty? Are you comfortable living in a messy habitat? These aren’t requirements for a scholarship, but they are attributes of the creatures you care about – pigs! If you’re interested in creatures of the bovine persuasion, this is the scholarship for you; the International Boar Semen (IBS) Scholarship is available for those interested in swine management. For more information, visit piggene.com/IBS/ibs_home.htm.

The Next Generation of . . . Klingons

Trekkies, leave your capes, figurines, posters and other memorabilia behind. Just bring, well, yourself! Klingon Language Institute, in an effort to promote language study, awards one lucky winner a $500 Kor Memorial Scholarship-but don’t worry, fluency in Klingon is not a requirement. Check out the requirements for this scholarship at: kli.org/scholarship/.

Think Tall Thoughts

You’ve got Michael Jordan’s stature but you’re about as agile as a water buffalo. That’s okay with Tall Clubs International! Males over 6′2″ and females above 5′8″ are encouraged to apply. The reward is no small (pun intended) amount either; Tall.org awards a whopping $1,000 scholarship to the winner. Find more info at: www.tall.org.

Yo, Shorty!

For the vertically challenged, the Billy Barty Foundation offers scholarships to students of “short stature”. Similarly, the Little People of America awards students – and their families – scholarships. To join, members must be 4′10″ and shorter. Scholarship amounts range from $250 to $1000. Read all the requirements at: lpaonline.org.

Bit of the Bubbly, Please

Finally, your weakness for wine might serve another purpose-besides the pounding morning-after headache. The American Society for Enology and Viticulture (AASEV) awards multiple students for enrolling in science fields relating to the grape and wine industry. The scholarship amount is not predetermined; it varies year to year. To read other requirements for this scholarship, go to: asev.org/scholarship-program.

Bowling for Dollars

Though those middle-school years of loitering around bowling alleys have ended, your talent for earning turkeys may finally be cashing in. The United States Bowling Congress (USBC) offers a range of scholarships, including the Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow that offers a $1,500 renewable scholarship for distinguished male high school bowlers and the Alberta E. Crow Star of Tomorrow that also offers $1,500 in renewable scholarship funds for great female high school bowlers. Read more at: bowl.com/smart/locateState.aspx.

Got Milk?

The Scholar-Athlete Milk Mustache of the Year award is given to twenty-five graduating high school seniors who have what it takes to sport the famous milk mustache; winners receive $7,500 in scholarship funds. If that’s not enough, winners receive a special ad that runs in USA Today. If that’s not enough, winners receive an all-expense trip to an awards ceremony at Disney Wide World of Sports’ Milk House in Orlando, FL and an induction into the Milk House Hall of Fame. Check out applications at: sammy.bodybymilk.com.

Offer an Organ

You signed up to be an organ donor when you received your license. Put that heart on your ID to use! The Students for Organ Donation Youth Leadership award one or two $500 to $1,000 scholarships to full-time high school or undergraduate college students. Successful candidates actively promote organ donation and transplantation. More criteria to apply for this scholarship can be found at: studentdonor.org.

Tee It Up

You’ve seen them trudging up and down the greens, toting thirty pounds of iron on their backs, and offering tips to improve swings, distance and posture. Finally, they’re due their recognition; Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund, founded in 1949, offers anywhere from $1,500 to $7,500 per year to caddies. Eligible applicants must have served at least two years as caddies, helpers in the pro shop or course superintendent operations at a club in Massachusetts. Read more information: ouimet.org/scholarships/

Hot, Hot, Hot

You’ve heard it, those three little words…in case of a fire: stop, drop and roll to safety. Earning a scholarship from the American Fire Sprinkler Association is almost just as easy; AFSA offers ten $2,000 scholarships per year to graduating high school seniors. Requirements include reading an essay and taking an online (and open-book) test. Read more about this sizzling offer on: afsascholarship.org.

Sweeney, J. (2008, February 22). Top 15 Strangest Scholarships. Retrieved June 3, 2008, from http://ezinearticles.com/?Top-15-Strangest-Scholarships&id=1002481

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