What are Private/External Scholarships?
As you may be aware, private scholarships are a valuable source of financial aid for many college students. These awards are funded by various organizations such as companies, service groups, foundations, and individuals. They can vary greatly in value and are often tailored to specific fields of study or personal circumstances.
The possibilities are vast, and there are scholarships available for just about any purpose or situation, as long as you know where to look. Students are encouraged to explore the various options for private scholarships, as they can greatly assist in reducing the financial burden of higher education. Keep in mind that many private scholarships have specific application deadlines and may require additional materials, such as essays or transcripts, so be sure to plan accordingly.
What are Institutional Scholarships?
Institutional scholarships are a form of financial aid that is awarded by the university or college you are attending. These scholarships can be based on either need or merit, and are designed to help offset the costs associated with higher education. Just like other types of scholarships, institutional scholarships can play a significant role in reducing the financial burden of college or university education.
Scholarships.com offers a wide range of scholarships organized into various categories such as GPA, military affiliation, ethnicity, artistic ability, ACT or SAT score, and state of residence. By selecting a category, students can access a list of subcategories to view all relevant scholarships. This system is designed to help students find niche awards with fewer applicants, increasing their chances of winning.
Fastweb is a scholarship search platform that compiles awards from multiple sources, both big and small. To access the scholarships, users must create a profile. Once the profile is created, users can easily search for scholarships and filter the results using various data points. Fastweb also sends notifications to users when new scholarships that match their profile are added and when deadlines are approaching. This feature helps users stay up-to-date on new opportunities and not miss deadlines.
College Board offers a scholarship search function to help you find awards to pay for college. By creating an account, you can filter scholarships by your interests, field of study, club affiliations, or specific situations. College Board will also automatically match you with eligible scholarships based on your profile information. Additionally, there is an autofill function to help save time and allow for more applications.
Going Merry is a website that makes the process of applying for scholarships less repetitive. It allows students to enter their information once and apply for multiple scholarships at the same time. The website is a great resource for those in a time crunch, as it has a variety of awards to choose from. Going Merry also features local scholarships which may be less competitive and easier to win than larger, national awards. The website prides itself on including these local awards as an option for students.
ScholarshipOwl is a well-known website that helps students find scholarships by compiling and organizing awards. The website organizes scholarships by amount, types of requirements, number of winners, and length of time until the application is due, making it easy for students to find scholarships that suit their needs. One of the unique features of ScholarshipOwl is its automatic resubmission of applications to recurring scholarships that don't require additional information, allowing students to focus on awards that require essays and recommendation letters.
Bold.org is easy to navigate and search for scholarships that you may be eligible for. The website allows you to filter scholarships by your education level, award category, award amount and deadline, making it easy to find scholarships that align with your needs. A unique feature of Bold.org is the option to toggle on the "no-essay" button, which allows you to find scholarships that don't require a written essay, making the process of applying for scholarships less time-consuming.
Cappex is worth checking out for students looking for scholarships, as it offers a wide variety of options. To access all the scholarships you may qualify for, you must create an account on the website. Cappex has a filter system that allows you to sort awards by year in school, scholarship amount, gender, ethnicity and award deadline, making it easy to find scholarships that align with your needs. Additionally, the website also allows you to search for renewable scholarships, which offer college funding for multiple years, making it easier for students to plan their education finances.
Scholly is a website that helps students find scholarships by matching their profile to available awards. When you create a profile on Scholly, the site's algorithm will search through scholarships and generate a list of those that are a good fit for you. Each scholarship will be assigned a Scholly score, which indicates how well it aligns with your background and experience. The higher the Scholly score, the stronger the match between the scholarship's requirements and your profile.
Chegg is a popular website that provides textbooks, flashcards, and other study resources for college students. It also offers a scholarship finder with over 25,000 options available. The scholarship finder allows users to search for scholarships based on their school year, age, and GPA. By creating an account and completing a profile, users can further narrow down the selection of scholarships. Additionally, Chegg allows users to explore colleges and search from a database of over 75,000 internships opportunities.
CareerOneStop is a website run by the U.S. Department of Labor that offers a scholarship portal. It features over 8,000 scholarships that can be sorted by keywords, amounts, deadlines, and locations. Scholarships are available for students in vocational school, associate's degree programs, as well as undergraduate and graduate students. The website allows students to filter scholarships by state of residence and state of study.