Scholarship Process: 6 Things You Need to Know

A scholarship is an award of financial aid conferred to a student to pursue or continue their education at varied levels and upgrade their learning skills. Scholarships may be awarded based on several criteria, including but not limited to academic performance, athletic skills, financial needs, diversity and inclusion. Scholarship criteria usually reflect the values of the donor or the organization that confers it upon students regularly. 

Scholarship recipients are not required to repay the amount after the completion of their studies, as is the norm. However, some scholarships might have a set standard that students are expected to follow through the course – such as the recipients might be expected to maintain a minimum level of academic performance throughout the duration of their benefit. 

Despite the multiple benefits that students receive from a scholarship process, the idea itself might be overwhelming for many. Indeed, there is an array of misconceptions among students as well as their parents when it comes to a scholarship application process, as they fail to understand the basic idea of it. 

Many parents might believe that their students should be super-active in extracurricular activities, or should be beyond exceptional in academics. True, academic excellence does have a role to play in the entire process, though it does not necessarily remain the only criteria that is taken into consideration. There are several other tips to get you going.  

To help you get rid of some of the most common misconceptions, Toppr has curated a list of 6 key things you need to be aware of, about the scholarship process as well as some additional scholarship tips. 

• Scholarship Process Requires Efforts

The scholarship process is not all easy and requires some amount of effort. Indeed, with sheer hard work and dedication, your child tends to gain during the scholarship process. Hard work remains among the key scholarship tips to gain the maximum benefits for your child. 

Many students simply abandon the scholarship application process because of the efforts that are required. Hence, the number of applications reduces to a greater extent, giving an extra edge to students who have successfully completed the scholarship application process, and thus are at better odds of bagging it. Thus, frequent applications remain among the key scholarship tips.

• Your Child Is Eligible for Scholarship for Higher Education

Many parents and students believe that they can avail scholarships only up to high school. However, this is again a misconception. Simply put, students can participate in the scholarship process to pursue higher education as well. Among other major scholarship application tips, students should be aware that being denied a scholarship initially doesn’t mean that they can’t apply for it later. 

Scholarship exams allow students to try their luck again in the later stages of their education. There have been instances where students have received scholarships even at the postgraduate or doctoral level of studies. Thus, accessibility to higher education remains among the key scholarship application tips that every student and parent should know. 

• Research Organizations That Offer Scholarships

One of the better ways to ensure a smooth application process, is by researching and noting down about every organization that offers scholarships. Internet accessibility has made it a simpler task. Moreover, students should align their scholarship application with the values of the organization. 

A simpler way to figure out the organization’s values is by going through their mission statement and activities. A little knowledge about the organization will provide you with the extra edge throughout the duration of the scholarship process.  

• Scholarship Process Is Easy Once Students Are Familiar 

Regular practice makes people perfect, not only in studies, but in life as well. Similarly, being familiar and aware of the entire process is among the key scholarship application tips. For instance, students might find the scholarship application process cumbersome initially. 

But their confidence increases with an increase in the number of applications that are completed. Repeating the process in the current academic year might also simplify the process when the students apply for scholarships next year. Moreover, once students receive the benefits of the scholarship, they are bound to apply for many more such scholarships in the near future, if need be. 

• Many Scholarship Amounts Are Sent to Students 

Among the major scholarship application tips, parents and students might arguably be least aware that several scholarship amounts are sent directly to students. There might be instances where colleges or institutions receive the scholarship amount directly. However, this is not true for all. But why would the students receive the scholarship amount when the college or university remains the ultimate beneficiary? Know this in the following point of the scholarship tips. 

• Scholarship Use Is Not Restricted to Tuition Fees

Another key revelation among the major scholarship tips is that students can use the amount for expenses beyond their tuition fees. Although this is not a universal phenomenon, there are scholarships that permit the use of funds for school expenditure other than the tuition fees. Students can use the amount for the purchase of textbooks or other study resources. Some or other scholarship process that allow flexibility are crafted to make these costs manageable for students. 

Thus, following the above 6 scholarship application tips will help students and parents in resolving the issue of finances to a greater extent.