Seven Secrets to Winning Scholarships

1. Get Started Early – Start building your leadership experience early. This will give you an impressive resume to use when applying for scholarships as early as 9th grade. Everything counts! Keep a record of your volunteering hours and look for opportunities that sound fun to you. This requires effort on your part. Opportunities are out there, but you have to find them. 

2. The Art of Storytelling – Your story is already interesting. Learn to tell it in a precise way that others can connect with. Being a good storyteller is a talent that few have. Learning to tell your story in a way that engages your audience is a life-long skill that will benefit you in many ways. Learn it now. Scholarship applications offer a great place to practice. Make sure your social media tells the story you want to share. If I were giving away a lot of money, I would do my homework on the possible recipient to make sure the way they are presenting themselves is the truth of who they are. 

3. Set Goals for Submitting Applications – Weed out the scholarships that aren’t a good match for you. Be careful of scholarship scams that are there to capture your information and sell it to other companies. If you’re not paying for the product, you are the product. Use a reputable source like Imagine Scholarships when searching for scholarships. Imagine Scholarships offers quality scholarships, internships, videos and resources, and never sells your information. Your privacy is our #1 top priority. Imagine Scholarships recommends submitting a minimum of 3-5 scholarship applications each week. This can have a huge pay off!

4. Have a plan – Start with local, then state, then national scholarships. Use Imagine Scholarships’ nifty search bar to search keywords that are applicable to you and your interests. Any word that may be found in a scholarship title or description is a good word to try.

5. Follow Directions and Dates Carefully – This secret actually should be in the #1 spot. Many students miss deadlines or fail to send appropriate information to scholarships they could have won. At Imagine Scholarships we have a great way to organize the scholarships you find, save and apply for. Having this system in place helps students stay on track and keep up with the process. Be sure to make a checklist of all the requirements for each scholarship. 

6. Know your Audience – Know what they are looking for by doing research on the company offering the scholarship. This is important because it helps you understand their purpose and mission, and you can speak more specifically about that in your essay or in the materials needed to apply. See how your life and experiences connect with their purpose and mission. Send a thank you note. This is a game changer! Before you win, consider thanking the scholarship coordinator for the opportunity to apply and for offering this award to students. Once you win, writing a thank you note is non-negotiable. Just do it! It sets you apart, and you’ll be glad you did!

7. Have essays prepared in advance – Many (not all) scholarships require essays. You should have 3 essays completed, and then you can adjust those to fit individual scholarship essay prompts. Don’t use AI/ChatGPT on essays! I suggest writing essays that address these 3 topics ahead of time:

1. 1. Some students have a background, identity, interest or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, please share your story.

   2. Discuss an accomplishment, event or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

   3. What would make you the best candidate for our scholarship and why?

What is Imagine Scholarships?

Built by a first generation college graduate and parent of four, Imagine Scholarships provides students access to quality scholarships, internships and hundreds of video resources. Founder Sherri Graf has worked with thousands of students and understands from a personal perspective the importance of finding scholarships for all students. Imagine Scholarships offers a blog covering creative topics to support parents in the process and encourage students to be successful in high school and college. 

Imagine Scholarships offers a subscription for just $175 a year. Imagine where you can go with a scholarship and a dream!

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