Quite often when students wish to apply to a college or university, they may be required to submit an essay. The strength of this essay, along with grades and extracurricular activities can help students win a scholarship. Scholarships usually entitle students to some amount of financial aid. The essay is often the most important part of your application, it gives the scholarship committee a sense of who you are and your dedication to your goals. You’ll want to make sure that your scholarship essay is the best it can possibly be.
If you’re planning to apply for a college scholarship, you will probably need to submit an essay along with a resume, transcript and other background information.
Wish you good luck!!
Scholarship Essay Helpful Hints:
The helpful hints here are organized around the Four Broad Steps of the Writing Process which is as follows:
- Prewriting—everything you do to prepare to write
- Drafting—writing “what you think” and “why you think that” in detail with examples
- Revision—improving content, structure, and continuity (logical progression of ideas)
- Proofreading & Publishing—eliminating bothersome mechanical errors
Scholarship Application Essay Example
Below are some common scholarship essay questions. You can use these as a great starting point for a personal statement. Some of these essay questions are used in the Maricopa Scholarship Database.
- What life experiences have shaped who you are today and what challenges have you overcome in achieving your education (i.e. financial, personal, medical, etc.)?
- Explain why you need financial assistance.
- Describe your academic and career goals and your plans to achieve them and discuss any of your extracurricular/volunteer activities (both on and off campus) that you may perform.
- Describe an event in which you took a leadership role and what you learned about yourself.
Sample Essay Guide:
This is a sample essay to help guide you when you are writing essays for scholarships. Keep in mind that all scholarship applications are different, so you may have to design your essay to meet those specific requirements.
Paragraph I
(State an overview of what you are going to talk about in the essay. If the essay is about you, give a brief description of your experiences, goals, aspirations, family background, etc. Touch on why you want the scholarship.)
Paragraph II & III
(Go into more detail on one of the topics listed in paragraph I. For example, elaborate on your previous experiences, family and financial situation, volunteer work, employment, academic career, future goals, college plans, etc.)
Paragraph IV
(Conclude your essay with a wrap-up of why you should be considered for the scholarship; how do your goals match those of the organization, etc.)
Scholarship Essay Formatting Tips:
- The most important tip is to be certain that you follow all formatting instructions specified for the scholarship contest.
- Print your essay on high quality paper. Most applicants will use standard copy paper and your essay will stand out if it is on a better type of paper.
- Use a font that is professional in appearance and easy to read. Recommended fonts include: Arial, Calibri, Tahoma, Times New Roman and Verdana. Do not use a script or “cute” style font.
- Do not use a font that is too small or too large. If a font size is not specified in the instructions, use a size between 10 and 12 points for the body of your essay and 14 points for the heading.
- If your printer is running low on ink, replace the toner or ink jet before printing your final copy.
- Make sure there are no smudges or unnecessary creases on the paper.
- Do not fold the essay or application form. Use an envelope large enough to hold all documents without folding them unless the instructions specify a smaller envelope.
- Make sure your essay is free of typos, grammatical errors and spelling mistakes.
- Even if you have proofread your essay several times, get someone else to proofread it before you send it in.
