With a year of college costing over $50,000 at many schools, even the most affluent families become grateful for any additional scholarship help. Although some essay contest committees consider need in selecting winners, many others look only at the merits of the essay. Writing a really dynamite essay can pay off handsomely, and, unless the topic is unusually specific, essays can often be tweaked to fit the requirements of several contests.
First accumulate a list of essay contests and make note of the essay required for each. Group those that address similar topics, and spend your time crafting a really good essay. Your opening sentence needs to grab your reader—paint a scene and place your audience right in the middle. Use specific examples and work on those descriptive phrases. Spend time writing and revising; winning an essay contest can yield more money than a minimum wage job. Here’s a list of essay contests to get you started—find more by Googling “scholarship essay contests”.
Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead Scholarships: www.aynrand.org
The Jane Austin Society Essay Scholarship: www.jasna.org
The National Peace Essay Contest: www.usip.org
The Holocaust Remembrance Project: www.holocaust.hklaw.com
The Charles Shafae Scholarship Fund: www.papercheck.com/scholarship.asp
Mahatma Rice Scholarship: http://scholarship.mahatmarice.com
Signet Classics Student Scholarship Essay Contest: http://us.penguingroup.com
