Creativity Scholarships

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What are Creative Scholarships?

Creative scholarships are merit based awards that tend to reward talents rather than grades. So, if you like to express your creativity, they can be a useful way to pay for college.

Many creative scholarships are for fine arts students with gifts in the visual arts. Visual arts majors are photography or design based arts like painting, graphic design or animation.

But you do not have to be a visual arts student to apply for a creative scholarship. Your artistic interests may lie in music, creative writing, dance, theater or film. It may be a hobby for you rather than your college major.

Either way, applying for a creative scholarship may be quick and simple. In fact, all you might need to do is upload a portfolio, project, photo, short video or essay.

What Creative Scholarships Can Students Apply for?

High school and college students may find many creative scholarships to show off their imagination. These types of awards are really fun to get your creative juices flowing in order to help pay for college.

Dixie Belle Paint Company Scholarship wants to help students succeed and graduate. To do this they offer a new award called the Creativity Leads to Success Scholarship. It is open to all high school, college and grad students who are also US citizens.

To apply, you fill out a quick form and write a 500 word essay that answers the question, “How does individual creativity lead to success?” There will be three winners. One grand prize of $2,500 and two prizes of $1,250 each.

Each year Arts for Life! awards $1,000 creative scholarships to 25 graduating high school seniors in Florida. Winners show their excellence in creative writing, dance, drama, music or visual art.  Launched by former First Lady Columba Bush in 1999, the program has awarded scholarships to more than 500 gifted high school seniors.

To apply, you must submit a completed application, a brief essay explaining “How the arts have positively influenced my life” and a portfolio of work in one of five areas. Creative writing, dance, drama, music or visual art.

How a Creativity Scholarship Helps Pay for College?

Scholarships could cover the high costs of pursuing a college degree. Tuition, fees, housing, and other expenses may be paid for by a creative scholarship. Also, scholarships are a better alternative to a student loan.

According to the NCES, the average student loan amount for undergraduates was $7,200 for one academic year. Within the last decade, college tuition has increased by 19% on average. Public institutions tuition and fees went up by 18% compared to private nonprofit schools increased by 15%.

Since college is getting more expensive every year, you should start applying for creative scholarships today! Many creative scholarships tend to be renewable so it may help pay for college until you graduate. That means you might not have to pay out of pocket or borrow more student loans!

List of Creative Scholarships

To help you in your search, here is a list of creative scholarships to apply for. Follow the application guidelines, be mindful of deadlines and let your originality and creativity shine through!

AI Innovators Undergraduate Scholarship

At CommandBar, we have always believed in the power of education and its role in shaping the future. Our company traces its roots to the halls of an undergraduate computer science program, where our founders met. The seed for their first product (a computer science education tool codePost) came from a group project for a computer science course. Today, our mission is to make the internet more efficient, user-friendly, and enjoyable, with a particular focus on harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance user experience. We know AI has the to change the way we engage with technology — from user onboarding, to universal search, to self-service — and everything else in the world. In line with our commitment to education and innovation, we’re thrilled to announce the AI Innovators Undergraduate Scholarship for undergraduate students pursuing studies in the field of AI. We hope to encourage students to explore, innovate, and contribute to the field of AI.

Total: $2000

Awards: 2

Deadline: December 15, 2023

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“Gutsy Graduate Student” Essay Scholarship

Ok, so first question–why is this scholarship named the “Gutsy” Graduate Student Essay Scholarship? If you are enrolled in graduate school (during the 2023-24 academic year) or have heard stories from those enrolled, you already know! “Gutsy” means courageous and determined, which nearly all successful graduate students are. Why else would one continue on with rigorous academics while often living on a shoestring? The rewards of graduate school are numerous, especially the more focused and advanced level of specialized study in your chosen field. Learning with like-minded people who share your passion is fulfilling, and the networking is awesome. The flipside of graduate school is the costly student loans to fund it. With this in mind, the “Gutsy” Graduate Student Essay Scholarship aims to help out a passionate graduate student who is actively looking for ways to fund their higher education journey. Thus, this scholarship will be awarded to students based on both the quality of their essays and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Good luck on your educational journey, and we hope to read your application!

Total: $1000

Awards: 1

Deadline: January 31, 2024

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DePaul Art Scholarship

To be considered, you must be admitted to DePaul as a first year student and as a declared Art, Media and Design major by February 1. To apply, go to depaul.academicworks.com and login using your Campus Connect user ID and password. You will first need to fill out the “General Application” and then should upload a portfolio containing 10 digital files as follows: nine digital images (one for each of your artworks) and one digital file with your name and resume. All submissions are due by February 1. Each digital image should be saved as a JPEG file (100 dpi and no larger than 7 x 5 inches) and include your name, the title of the work, medium, size (HxWxD) and year completed. For your resume, please include your name and contact information, schools attended, art exhibitions you’ve participated in, awards you’ve received and any other art-related activities. If you submit a video file, use QuickTime and title the file using the same guidelines outlined above. Submissions uploaded as a PowerPoint will not be accepted.

Total: $10000

Awards: 1

Deadline: February 01, 2024

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Biotin Xtreme Hair Care Annual Scholarship

“We are dedicated to providing financial assistance to deserving students who want to build successful, long-term careers in this exciting and rewarding hair care field.” Innovations in hair care have the power to transform lives, boost confidence, and contribute to a better society. At Biotin Xtreme Hair Care, we believe in nurturing talent and supporting individuals who are passionate about the field of hair care. That’s why we are thrilled to offer an annual scholarship opportunity to one exceptional student.

Total: $500

Awards: 1

Deadline: April 30, 2024

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$3000 WEAR & I Fashion Pioneer Scholarship

WEAR & I is passionate about fashion and would like to help you pay part of your tuition fees or provide financial support in fashion! Both high school and college students can apply, and we aim to find candidates who have their own unique insights into fashion and outfits. We have set up scholarships with a total amount of 3000 US dollars (1500, 1000, and 500 each). We will pay directly to your personal account. Beauty, regardless of gender, race, body shape, or whether you are rich or poor, we hope you can share your fashion stories to impress every beauty lover??.

Total: $3000

Awards: 3

Deadline: May 01, 2024

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Microsoft Imagine Cup Scholarship

The Imagine Cup Games Competition is a global contest for the best new student games and the winning team will take home $50,000 (US). Create a desktop or tablet game using Windows, or a mobile game using Windows Phone, or a browser game using Windows Azure and you could win big at the Imagine Cup World Finals in Seattle. Many of our competitions are intended for teams, so you may also need to create a team to participate. If a competition requires a team, you’ll be able to pick your team right on the Submission page. If you don’t have a team yet, you can create one in just a few moments – you just need a team name and team country, and you’re ready to go. This competition is intended for a team of experienced coders. As part of this competition, you’ll submit a complete piece of software, usable by our judges, as well as supporting documentation.

Total: $100000

Awards: 1

Deadline: May 15, 2024

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Creativity Leads to Success Scholarship

1. ELIGIBILITY: Dixie Belle Paint Co. Scholarship contest is open to US citizens who are 18 years or older. Students must be attending college or grad school by Fall 2024. Current employees, officers, directors and agents of Sponsor and its related companies and members of their immediate families (defined as spouse, parents, siblings and children) and persons residing at the same address are not eligible to win. Void where prohibited. 2. HOW TO ENTER: To enter, beginning October 31, 2023, submit a complete scholarship Application online at the Sponsor’s Website no later than June 15, 2024 at 11:59 pm Pacific Time. Limit one (1) Application per person. Application must include name and contact information, background details, academic details, and a short original, previously unpublished written response to the following topic, “How has creativity helped you in problem solving?” (500 words or less). Your written response must be written in English, with correct spelling and grammar. No substitutions of new drafts or corrected pages will be accepted once you have submitted your original Application. Written responses that are obscene, pornographic, libelous or otherwise objectionable will be disqualified. All Applications become the property of the Sponsor and will not be returned. Sponsor assumes no responsibility for lost, late, misdirected, or unintelligible Applications. By submitting an Application, you fully and unconditionally accept and agree to these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor, which are final and binding. 3. SELECTION OF FINALISTS: A qualified panel of judges will identify finalists on behalf of the Sponsor. Finalists will be notified on or about August 15, 2024. Sponsor is looking for eligible FINALISTS who follow directions and submit Applications that are well-written and clearly and creatively address the topics described above. Answers will be evaluated in the following proportions: writing ability (25%), creativity (25%), originality (25%), and overall excellence (25%). In the event of a tie, the tiebreaker will be in favor or the Applicant with the higher score for overall excellence. The finalists will be notified by e-mail.

Total: $5000

Awards: 3

Deadline: June 15, 2024

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Café Bustelo El Café Del Futuro Scholarship

We’re honored to invest in our community by awarding twenty-five $5,000 scholarships to college students at HACU-member institutions to help further their education. This year, Café Bustelo asked applicants to share how their heritage, family, and community have impacted their desire and motivation to obtain a college degree; how they plan to give back to their community; and what they intend to accomplish with their degree in an essay in English or Spanish (800 words or less). Since the scholarship began in 2014, $800,000 in college funds have been awarded to 160 Latino students nationwide through the partnership.

Total: $25000

Awards: 5

Deadline: July 01, 2024

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Fight for Freedom Scholarship

J. Ryan Brown Law, LLC’s Fight for Freedom Scholarship is intended to award one student with $1,000 who shares a piece of legislation or regulation that has been a recent controversial topic, and best explains why this law should be abolished or kept in place. We ask students to please share how this law has personally impacted them.

Total: $1000

Awards: 1

Deadline: July 31, 2024

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Zombie Apocalypse Scholarship

This creative and fun scholarship program is open to all U.S. students who are 14 and older and who are currently enrolled (or enroll no later than fall of 2026) in an accredited postsecondary institution of higher education. One scholarship winner with an imaginative and well-written response to the scholarship question about the Zombie Apocalypse will receive a $2,000 scholarship.

Total: $2000

Awards: 1

Deadline: October 31, 2024

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