IUSB has a great little page devoted to their top ten scholarship application tips. My favorites:

• "Give concrete examples.

  If your answer to an essay question is abstract, support it with a concrete example that illustrates your point. The scholarship sponsor wants to see evidence that you satisfy their criteria, not just unsupported statements."

"I am a leader who would use this leadership scholarship to help lead others."

Besides being a really bad sentence, it says nothing about you other than you think you are a leader. Most people do and most people aren’t. Give examples - clubs you’ve headed, organizations you’ve founded or held leadership positions in, projects you spear-headed, etc.

How are you going to lead? Are you running for student body president in college? Starting an organization to help an underserved cause or population?

• "Apply only if you are eligible.

  Read all the scholarship requirements and directions carefully, and make sure that you are eligible before you send in your application. Your application will not be considered if you are not qualified to apply."

Why waste your time and the committee’s time applying to everything that moves? It’s annoying and heaven forbid the same people decide on a scholarship you are actually qualified for!

Posted Thu, 28 Feb 2008 05:00:23 and filed under Scholarship Tips. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.