10 Most Common Scholarship Mistakes
After so much research and interview with someone who has won over 25 scholarships worth over $120k, we were able to come up with a list of the most common mistakes that have been preventing you from winning scholarships in the past and now.
Even though she has won over 25 scholarships, she applied for over 90 different scholarships and faced rejections over 70 times.
These are the main reasons why we decided to compile the list of the top 10 most common scholarship mistakes that are preventing you from winning.
Putting All Your Eggs Into One Basket
By this, I mean so many students are saying they only apply for scholarships on scholarships search engines like Fastweb.com, Cappex.com, Unigo.com etc. And of course, these are great places to start with your scholarship process but at the same time, you shouldn’t be limiting yourself to just those platforms alone.
Make sure that you are not only applying for scholarships from scholarships search engines alone but also using Google because it is the most optimized search engine and also the best.
With scholarships being created every day, with the scholarships search engines database, it will take some time for their system to update their site with the most up-to-date scholarships.
So you are more likely to find newly created scholarships via Google search.
Only Applying In One Competitive Tier
With scholarships, there are different types of tiers.
You might probably be applying only in one competitive tier.
They are State level scholarships, National Scholarships, Institutional Scholarships, and Local scholarships which are only available to those in a specific city.
So if you are applying for those national scholarships that are very competitive and they are very small chances of you winning unless you have excellent stats.
If you are someone with Average stats, you should focus on those local scholarships.
Applying Only In One Specific Category.
You might probably be applying for scholarships from only one specific category and they are different types of scholarships.
They are Merit-based which is strictly based on merit. They are Essay based, it can either be a Personal Essay or Research Essay.
Others are on Leadership Experience, Community Service, what you have already done within your work field, your field of study, etc.
So if you are applying for only one type of scholarship and not focusing on other types, you are selling yourself short.
You need to figure out which one is your domain and which one is your territory where you will have more chances of winning.
Applying Too Early
Another very common mistake that is preventing you from winning scholarships is that you are applying too early.
You might probably be thinking, isn’t it better to apply early than to apply at the last minute?
Yes and No. Here is why.
Let’s say a scholarship is due in November and you applied for it in Mid or early June and in between that time, you experienced or accomplished something that could help stand out even more than the initial application that you already submitted.
But most of the time, once you submit your application, you cannot update it, you cannot give those up-to-date details and help your application stand out more.
That’s why sometimes, you should apply close to the deadline. Not necessarily the night of the deadline, but a few days before the deadline so that your application is more likely to win.
However, there is an exception to this. Sometimes they are scholarships that don’t usually have a deadline but rather when they read through the applications submitted and when they get a specific number of people that meets the criteria to be awarded the scholarship, they will close it.
Similar to FAFSA, some are usually based on First come first served. So when you come across this kind of scholarship, make sure you take note of that as that is the type you do want to apply early to.
Not Organized/Rushing Application
Some people are rushing their applications and are not organised with their paperwork.
There are several elements that go into a scholarship application and sometimes, it might require your resume, Essay, cover letter, letter of recommendation, official or unofficial transcript.
But if you are not organised with these things beforehand, you are going to feel overwhelmed which will dissuade you from even applying for scholarships in the first place and you are going to miss deadlines especially if you procrastinate.
With that in mind, I would highly encourage you to trick yourself into the scholarship deadline because if you procrastinate you will miss the deadline and make sure you are staying on top of those timezones.
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Not Thinking From The Perspective Of Your Competition/Not Thinking From The Perspective Of The Scholarship Committee
Most of the time, people do not think from the perspective of their competition.
Make sure you are thinking from the perspective of those competing against you and then do the exact opposite of what they will do.
Not Thinking From The Perspective Of The Scholarship Committee
There are these misconceptions that the only way to get financial aid for college is that you have to talk about traumas, you have to overshare.
You don’t have to do that. Think formally, if you are sitting as one of the judges for a particular scholarship and you are reading through hundreds of applications submitted and the vast majority of them are talking about traumatic things.
Over time, you are going to be desensitised and you are not going to be moved by those stories.
It is similar to how when we watch the news and we are overexposed to too much negative content and things going on throughout the world, it makes us less likely to want to watch the news.
If your essay can be a breath of fresh air, you will be more likely to win.
Taking The Essay Prompt Too Literary
Let’s assume the scholarship Essay is to identify why you deserve a scholarship, and you start your essay with I deserve this scholarship because my friend is immature in writing.
You want to indirectly yet at the same time persuade you to ask why you deserve the scholarship.
Your essay should speak for itself as to why you deserve the scholarship.
Trying Too Hard To Sound Smart
I don’t know if you already know this but literally about half of the American population only reads a Fifth to Sixth-grade level according to the data released by the US Department of Education.
Taking that into account, if you are within your writing and you are using super fancy, SAT vocabulary type of words and you are writing this to a scholarship committee that may or may not have people who read at that level.
You already lost the attention span of your reader. No one wants to comb through a thesaurus or dictionary just to figure out what you’re talking about.
So make sure your writing is readable to people, no matter their educational level.
Your Essay Reads Like A Resume
There is a clear distinction between the two and also on that note, sometimes scholarships will require you to attach your resume.
So why are you reiterating word for word what you have already said in your resume? You are wasting your time when you could be talking about something else.
With your essay, you want to make sure that there is a humanised element within your writing.
For example, you can talk about how you have made an impact on others, how others impacted or inspired you and also how you plan on continuing to make an impact on others, like your own life goals.
That is one thing the scholarships committee loves to hear because it shows that you are like-minded to your audience.
Not Seeking Constructive Criticism or Professional Help
Not seeking constructive criticism or professional help from an expert when you are rejected from scholarships.
If you have been rejected from scholarships several times and never seek professional help to figure out why you are being rejected, then you are wasting your time.
There are certain things within our scholarship application that we certainly will not be able to identify on our own.
And on that note, you can seek professional help from scholarship experts or teachers. You can also reach out to the people behind that particular scholarship via email.
I hope that this has been helpful. Don’t forget to share and come back for more.
