Top Ways to Make Your Scholarship Essay Get Results!

By MyStatementofPurpose

April 21, 2013

A personalized - not cookie cutter! - passionate scholarship essay can mean everything when it comes to obtaining your scholarship dollars.

It's not easy to separate your scholarship application from the background noise of thousands of other applicants. Even if you fit the main criteria for a scholarship, you're still going to have similar grades, goals, activities, and aspirations as dozens of other applicants.

That's where a great application essay comes in. The essay is your best chance to state your case for why you above all others should receive a scholarship; it helps the scholarship provider learn about the person behind the application, and gives them a much more detailed look at your unique story, what you took away from school and what it truly means to be you!

When done right, those few paragraphs can help your application stand out—and could mean the difference between getting a "thanks for applying" E-mail and the award you're looking for.

Of course, putting so much emphasis on a scholarship essay may make it seem like a daunting task, especially if you don't consider yourself a great writer. By following these four tips, just about anyone can create an amazing scholarship essay.

1. Research your audience: Each scholarship provider is different and looking for a specific set of students who meet their specific criteria. Look closely at the application questions, the organization giving the scholarship, and any past recipients, if they are listed.

Do they emphasize school performance? Looking for someone who's dealt with adversity? Interested in character or community service more than grades? Whatever the answers, your research will put you a step ahead of applicants who are copying and pasting "cookie-cutter" essays.

2. Plan, plan, plan!: Don't settle for a cookie-cutter essay!  Start your research and planning as far in advance as possible.  This will give you time to develop an outline.  List two or three main points you want to make in response to any essay questions, add some supporting information under each and consider a sentence or two of introduction and conclusion. 

3. Make it personal and passionate: The scholarship committee does not want to read dry, sterile drivel!  If you can't be passionate about your future, then who can?!  You want to convince the committee that you're the student they've been looking for. Answer the questions you've set out in your outline, but make sure every point you make is illustrated with a specific detail that shows you care about the subject.

Don't just mention that you work with disadvantaged kids; tell them how your love of soccer got you into coaching those kids. Don't just tell them about your acting awards; show how the stage helped you conquer your shyness.

4. Find an editor: Last but not least, make sure you have time to run your essay by a good editor. Even a well-researched and passionately written essay can be derailed by spelling mistakes or awkward sentences, and if you've spent a lot of time looking at your words, it's easy to miss the obvious.

A few minutes of proofreading by a trusted editor can make a huge difference. I also recommend reading your essay aloud to yourself, so you can hear how it flows.