For those thinking about the cost of their college education and wondering how to make it work, consider the benefits that occur when you apply for college scholarships. Scholarships are funds provided to those who meet the requirements and win the award. Those funds may be used to cover the cost of tuition, pay for books, or cover other expenses, depending on the terms of that scholarship. Often, these funds do not require repayment – that means they could be very valuable to students looking for help covering the cost of their education. Who Should Consider Applying for College Scholarships? High school juniors and seniors may wish to apply for college scholarships for their undergraduate education, such as completing a bachelor’s degree. There are also grad school college scholarship options available to some. For those who are considering the value of enrolling in grad school, start working on completing scholarships for it between the junior and senior years of your undergraduate studies. That may give you ample time to complete your scholarships to potentially cover the cost of your education. Who Is Eligible to Apply for College Scholarships? Each scholarship program itself typically provides very specific rules on who may qualify for the award. This may be set by the organization that sets the terms for the scholarship or a governing body. Read through the details on the scholarship to determine who the scholarship is meant for to be sure you fit within those rules. However, many people may qualify for scholarships of different types. Some people may qualify because of the hard work they have done to get good grades or achieve other academic accomplishments. These are typically merit-based scholarships. Some people may qualify if they have a specific ethnic, cultural, or religious background. You may be able to apply for a scholarship because your parents worked for a specific company. Or, you may qualify just because you want to study computer science or engineering. As you may see, there are a lot of ways to be eligible, depending on the scholarships themselves. Unigo offers tools to help you track down scholarships you may qualify to apply for. So that could be a great starting point for you. Why Apply for College Scholarships, Though? It does take a lot of work to apply for scholarships, but there are often many benefits to doing that work. That includes reducing the expenses to help you pay for your college education. Many people may find that scholarships fill in gaps that student loans or other financial aid does not. Financial aid may be available to those who qualify. Here are a few more reasons why scholarships may prove to be valuable to you: They let you focus on your studies. For those who do not want or are unable to obtain other funding sources, scholarships help cover the costs, so you do not have to work while going to school. As a result, you may be able to focus more of your time on studies or other goals rather than have to work to cover your educational goals. They may help you go to a school you otherwise could not attend. For those interested in attending a college or university that is a higher cost than their budget allows, a scholarship may help reduce costs enough to make attending possible. In this way, scholarships may help cover costs to allow for greater flexibility in choosing a school. They help fill in gaps. Many students obtain financial aid to pay for college. Yet, how much a person is eligible for financial aid depends on their family’s earnings and other factors. That means some may still be priced out of their college education. Scholarships may help to fill in those gaps, providing more financial support. For all of these reasons, it may be worth spending the time to apply for college scholarships, even though the process may take time and may seem challenging. Quite often, it may be the best opportunity to create a stronger financial future. Do All Scholarships Require Essays? Sometimes people may not want to apply for scholarships because they believe they involve long, complicated, or hard to write essays. However, not all scholarships require essays. It is a misconception that all scholarships are difficult to apply to or have lengthy essays that may be hard to complete. Some students may not realize that they qualify for a scholarship because they are simply afraid they may not do well on the actual essay. Unfortunately, not everyone writes well or is able to create a stellar essay to outshine others. There are some no-essay scholarships available. You may be able to find them here at Unigo. The key is that you still need to put forth the effort to find and complete these scholarships’ requirements. Without the need to complete an essay, why not apply for a scholarship? Is It Really Possible to Win a Scholarship Award? Another frustration for some students is the misconception that there’s too much competition to get a scholarship. However, it is possible to win a scholarship award. There are many scholarships available – and so many that many people are able to find opportunities that meet their needs. Just because there is a lot of competition for some scholarships doesn’t mean that you are unlikely to get one. There are some ways for you to increase your chances, potentially, of receiving one. Go local: Look for scholarship opportunities that are available to those living in your community. Local community organizations, groups, religious organizations, companies, and others offer scholarships to those just within a small area. That means there may be less competition.Tap into what makes you unique: That group you belong to may be able to provide a scholarship for you. For example, if you are interested in a very narrow field of study, look for professional organizations in that area. That may help you qualify for a scholarship that others do not qualify for, increasing your chances of an award.Turn to others for support: It may also be a good idea to turn to local counselors at your high school or college to help you find more unique scholarships. Unigo is a strong resource because it includes a wide range of scholarship options for students. Should you apply for college scholarships? There really is no reason not to give them a try unless you do not care about paying full price for college. Many students find Unigo helps make obtaining a scholarship a bit easier and, therefore, well worth the time.