Scholarship Contests

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Are Essay Contests Worth Entering for?

An essay contest is a writing contest that often pays a cash prize. As a rule, you have to write on a specified topic or answer writing prompts paying attention to style, clarity and word count. Winning writers often have their work published and prize money that helps to pay for college. Plus, entrants don’t typically need to fill out a long application or pay an entry fee which makes these contests pretty easy to apply for. 

According to a Sallie Mae study, only 21% of students have applied for scholarships in 2019 to 2020. Essay contests could be worth it for college students. It depends on your goals, the competition, and how well you may handle rejection. Writing contests could be fun to get your creative juices flowing. Also, you may win extra funds to help pay for textbooks, tuition, and other fees.

Different Types of Essay Contests

There are writing competitions of all kinds due to the many genres and platforms including social media. Here are a few you should write for:

  • Novella or Short story contest
  • Creative writing / creative nonfiction
  • Poetry contest
  • Short fiction
  • One act play 
  • Science fiction
  • Flash fiction 
  • Personal essay 

Another type of essay competition is all about the work of a specific author. Ayn Rand Institute’s essay writing contests ask students for an 800 to 1,600 word essay discussing a book such as ‘Atlas Shrugged‘. Current high school seniors and undergraduate and graduate students are eligible to apply. 

Scholarship essay contests are the same but the prize winner may have to verify enrollment for college at an accredited university. This is true for the Race Entry Student Scholarship. It’s an annual $500 scholarship writing contest where you write about why you enjoy running a race.

If you prefer to write what’s on your mind, check out the Think For Yourself College Scholarship Essay Contest. There are four awards (one first place top prize and three runners up). The contest is only for high school students. It asks you to consider the value of free speech, curiosity, and open mindedness in your everyday lives and write on the topic.

You might also pick up your pen to kickstart a writing career. Writer’s Digest helps up and coming writers in all genres with their annual competition. Winning stories (articles, memoirs, poetry etc.) may catch the eye of editors and literary agents alike. One grand prize winner takes away $5,000 in cash, first place is $1,000, second place $500 and another 8 writers also win money. The literary magazine also publishes the names of honorable mentions. 

10 Essay Contests You Should Write for in 2021

Eligibility for many essay contests vary but there are ones for seasoned and new writers. If you live and study in the United States, see if you qualify for the scholarship essay awards below and apply soon!

  1. Cafe Bustelo® El Cafe Del Futuro Scholarship Essay Contest
  2. 2021 Think For Yourself College Scholarship Contest
  3. Americans United Essay Contest 
  4. Americanism Education Leaders Essay Contest
  5. Zavodnick, Zavodnick & Lasky, LLC Essay Contest 
  6. Nicholas Braswell Strong Roots Scholarship
  7. Eyre Writing Center Ayn Rand – Atlas Shrugged Essay Contest
  8. Race to Inspire Essay Contest 
  9. Ayn Rand – Fountainhead Essay Contest
  10. Ayn Rand – Anthem Essay Contest 

How Do You Write a Winning Scholarship Essay?

Expressing yourself in a unique way that addresses the topic at hand is one aspect of writing a winning scholarship essay contest. When you’re writing a winning essay, consider the following tips.

1.  Identify the question or idea to write a clear and personal answer. Is it about leadership, community service, family, etc.? Then find examples of how you led, helped out or interact.

2. Dig into the theme a bit more. Maybe you did not lead a group but you babysat or tutored. Take part in the discussion in the best way for you.

3. Use any key words that the essay asks so that the team looking over your statement knows you read the question.

4. Engage your audience. Some people add quotes or pull in inspiration from others. If it stays on topic, try to show you have a broad experience in some way.

5. If you are applying for a named scholarship, find out about the person’s legacy. Try to show how they inspire or motivate you.

6. Know what criteria the committee is using to evaluate your essay. Try to check them all without it sounding rote. 

7. A essay contest is an award and also an investment in your education and future. Make sure to explain how you plan to use your degree and leader skills once you graduate.

8. Many full ride scholarships look beyond grades. If this is the case, you may have to show how you helped others. Apart from stating your experience, relate it to what you learned through giving back. 

How Should a Scholarship Essay be Structured?

Many scholarship essays come with prompts to help you format your writing. These guides are useful and necessary to stick to. Read them carefully and follow instructions because this is part of the exercise. 

Format

This includes style (e.g. AP, Chicago), double or single spaced, Word or PDF Document, margins and so on. 

Word Count

This is the number of words you have to stick to while answering every question. The judges want to see you understand the questions and answer them in a clear way so don’t attempt to write a full length book. 

Title

You may need a title for a short story competition but not always for a scholarship essay contest. 

Introduction

This is where you draw your audience in with opening remarks in 1 to 2 paragraphs. It should include the main points but should not go into detail. 

Main Body

After you introduce your main points, expand on each of them. If you made 3 points (e.g. first generation to go to college, faced a challenge, excited to reach my potential) make each point its own paragraph.

Conclusion

This is where you show how the essay contest could make a difference to your goals and future. 

Edit and Proofread

You read and followed directions now go back and double check yourself. Make sure to check your spelling and that you answered each prompt. Proofread to catch mistakes like grammatical errors, run on sentences, and others.

List of Essay Contests

Check out our list of 1,725 essay contests worth $7M.

DirectTextbook.com Haiku Contest Scholarship

This Haiku contest is open to U.S. undergraduate students who have a grade point average of 2.0 or higher.
Award Amount

Total: $500

Awards: 6

Deadline

Deadline: September 18

PAVE International Student Design Competition

The PAVE International Design Competition is open to undergraduate students around the world who submit a design proposal based on the current year’s project guidelines.
Award Amount

Total: $4500

Awards: 4

Deadline

Deadline: November 07

Young Innovators to Watch

The Young Innovators to Watch contest is open to U.S. students between the ages of 13 – 19 who submit a project or innovation that shows technical or scientific creativity. Applicants may work individually or in small teams.
Award Amount

Total: $1000

Awards: 10

Deadline

Deadline: November 22

TicketCity Annual College Scholarship Program

This scholarship essay contest is open to U.S. college freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who are enrolled full time in an accredited four-year university in the United States. Students must have a grade point average of 2.5 or higher.
Award Amount

Total: $3000

Awards: 1

Deadline

Deadline: December 01

Michigan First Scholarship Competition – College Division

This scholarship competition is open to current undergraduate and graduate students who are or become members of Michigan First Credit Union and are 17 to 25 years of age. Students must have a grade point average of 2.8 or higher and submit a video.
Award Amount

Total: $6000

Awards: 3

Deadline

Deadline: February 01

Michigan First Scholarship Competition – High School Division

This scholarship competition is open to high school seniors who attend high school in Michigan or are Michigan First Credit Union members attending high school anywhere in the U.S. Students must have a grade point average of 2.8 or higher, and submit a video or essay.
Award Amount

Total: $1811

Awards: 37

Deadline

Deadline: February 01

BBB Northwest Students of Integrity Scholarship

This scholarship is available for U.S. high school seniors in Alaska, Oregon, and Western Washington State. To apply, applicants must submit an original video that educates consumers about common business and financial scams.
Award Amount

Total: $5000

Awards: 1

Deadline

Deadline: March 11

PICPA Student Writing Competition

This writing competition is open to graduate and undergraduate accounting and business majors. Students must attend Pennsylvania colleges/universities or maintain a permanent residence in Pennsylvania.
Award Amount

Total: $2000

Awards: 3

Deadline

Deadline: March 15

Law Office of Cohen & Jaffe, LLP Scholarship Program

This scholarship contest is open to U.S. high school seniors and current college/university students. Students must submit an essay to be considered; public voting for finalists’ essays will determine the winners.
Award Amount

Total: $450

Awards: 5

Deadline

Deadline: April 05

Youth Free Expression Film Contest

U.S. residents aged 19 or younger are eligible to enter this film-making contest. Students must submit a four-minute film on a specified censorship topic.
Award Amount

Total: $2250

Awards: 3

Deadline

Deadline: April 15