Class Location: The Internet.

Description: This class will give you helpful advice in writing scholarship essays.

Objective: Write the best possible scholarship essays in order to obtain free money.

 

Don't Let Essay Requirements Keep You From Seeking Scholarships

It is easy to get overwhelmed by the amount of writing required during the application process. Putting together the very important scholarship essay may seem like the last straw. Not only are you being asked to write more essays, but they are essays that meet a completely different set of criteria.

Frequently, the perceived difficulty of completing scholarship essays causes potential recipients to pass up on otherwise attractive scholarship opportunities. Do not let this happen to you! Realistically, scholarship essays are not much different from the regular admissions essays you had to write. If you wrote persuasive and informative essay to get accepted into college, you can certainly write them to convince your college or other organizations of your worthiness for free money. That's right, just remember, scholarships are the best type of financial aid you can ask for because you don't have to pay any of it back!

We know you had to write the admissions essays, so you just did it. And while scholarship essays are optional and it's easier to not approach them the same determination you did with the admissions essays, you need to put all of your effort in them as well! You can overcome this barrier of not having to write scholarship applications by focusing on the potential reward for writing that last essay -- a scholarship, and the recognition that comes with the award.

Allow Plenty of Time for Topic Selection

Give yourself time to work on your college essay. It won't be a competitive essay if you throw it together last minute. We recommend spending at least two weeks just to choose your topic.

As essay topic ideas come to you, write them down. Jot down some notes about each idea, too. Once you have jotted essay ideas down, remember to take the time to write a formal outline. Even if your ideas don't seem brilliant at first glance, it does not hurt to write them down anyways. This jumble of ideas is part of the brainstorming process. Even what seems like the most half-formed idea can turn into something more promising.

Customize Each Essay

Just like you customized each admissions essay, remember to do the same for the scholarship essays. It will only benefit you to customize each essay to fit the award you are seeking. If you use the same two or three essays for all of the applications you submit, you will only appear to be saving a lot of time. That time saved will be money lost in the end if each essay is not tailored towards the specific award you desire. Keep in mind that scholarships are as competitive as college admissions. Strong and persuasive essays that are full of purpose will help you win an award. We highly recommend spending time writing a handful of highly customized, focused scholarship essays for a small number of awards.