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by Alexis Mattera

After you rub the sleep out of your eyes left over from the midnight “Deathly Hallows” showing, consider this: How well does Hogwarts prepare its students for college? Well, we Muggles would have some definite competition if our applications went head-to-head with Harry Potter's, Hermione Granger's and Ron Weasley's before They Which Shall Not Be Named (aka admissions committees).

First, there’s Harry. From losing many people he loved – parents, godfather, mentor and friends – to having the Dark Lord trying to kill him at every turn, his application essay would tug at the heartstrings but also reveal a young man able to succeed against all odds. He’s as skilled with a quill as he is with a wand and admissions committees would be impressed with his ability to work with others toward a common goal. He’d gain admission because he’d be an asset to any department (I’m thinking his major would be chemistry or political science), study group and, obviously, the Quidditch team.

Next, Hermione obviously has the brains and could dominate the SATs or ACTs just like she owned the O.W.L.s…but what about extracurriculars? In her case, wizarding and witchery definitely count as community service and her compassion for oppressed individuals (mudbloods, ogres, elves, etc.) hints at possible careers in social work, nursing or medicine. Maybe the actress portraying her can put in a good word with the dean at Brown, though Ms. Granger would surely gain admission on her own merit. She wouldn’t have it any other way!

Lastly, we have Ron. As one of seven Weasley kids, Ron knows a thing or two about standing out in a crowd…even if he does so while wearing his older brothers’ hand-me-downs. His athletic skills may garner a scholarship or two but admissions committees will be most impressed with his essay, which would detail his problem solving skills and loyalty demeanor. His innate investigative skills are top notch and could easily translate into aced journalism and criminal justice classes. And don’t worry, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley: Not only will Ron get in but he’s also going to get an excellent financial aid package!

Though Harry, Hermione and Ron won’t be applying for a spot at your dream school, other students possessing equally impressive skills and backgrounds will so it’s important to make your college application memorable. We’ve got plenty of tips on the college application process throughout our site as well as strategies for winning valuable scholarships. Hurry, though: Application deadlines are approaching faster than the Hogwarts Express!

by Emily

Healthcare is constantly growing and changing in many ways, making it one of the most interesting fields to enter as a career.  Even people who don't plan to devote their lives to health professions often find themselves following medical advances with interest.  A major step in the evolution of healthcare in coming years will be the adoption of medical software that will allow for more universal recordkeeping and hopefully better patient care. This week's Scholarship of the Week gives current college students an opportunity to research this topic in depth for the chance to win $2,500.

To encourage college students in all disciplines to think and write about this topic, Claricode is sponsoring a scholarship essay contest asking students to discuss the potential of medical software in essays of 500 to 1,000 words.  Essays will be judged on the following criteria: idea development, clarity of vision, creativity, practicality, and spelling and grammar.

Prize: First place: $2,500; Second place: $1,500; Third place: $1,000

Eligibility: Any U.S. citizen or resident age 18 and up who is currently enrolled full-time in an accredited degree program and will remain enrolled full-time when the scholarship is awarded in January 2010. Applications are welcome from students in all areas of study.

Deadline: October 31, 2009

Required Material: Completed scholarship application and scholarship essay of 500-1000 words addressing the question, "How will medical software improve the future?"

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.

by Agnes Jasinski

If you're a decent writer, essay scholarships may be your opportunity to shine and win awards to help you cover your college costs. This week's Scholarship of the Week doesn't ask for things like your race or financial status. All it asks for is an essay and verification that you'll be enrolled in at least three credit hours this summer or fall.

The Alvin Cox Memorial Scholarship asks applicants to write an essay on what you've probably already thought about - their reasons for deciding to go to college. (An essay like this could also easily be retooled to serve other purposes, from personal statements to other awards that have broad essay requirements.) The fund was created in 2006 in memorial of Alvin Cox, a public school teacher for more than 40 years whose passion was matching students with financial aid opportunities so they may have a way to pay for college. Although the prize money may not seem very impressive, if you're a natural when it comes to the written word, winning several scholarships like this one will make a difference when you're determining how much to borrow to pay for college.

Prize:

Eligibility:

Undergraduates and graduates enrolled in at least three credit hours this summer or fall are eligible to apply. Those attending career schools are also eligible to apply, as long as they describe why they chose a career school in their essays. (About 10 percent of the fund's scholarships are awarded to those attending career schools.) High school students enrolled in dual credit courses that require out-of-pocket expenses are also eligible to apply.

Deadline:

May 31, 2010

Required Material:

Those interested in the scholarship must submit online their name, email address, academic year, and and an essay based on the following: Please discuss any factors that influenced your decision to pursue a college degree. You may discuss any people who affected your decision making process and explain how your decision may have been different without their influence.

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.

by Emily

Here's an essay contest especially suited for all those history buffs who can't get enough of World War II documentaries on the history channel, as well as the English majors and budding political scientists fascinated by propaganda campaigns.  If you're interested in researching and writing about the invasion of Poland in 1939, you could win $2,000 in scholarship money through this week's Scholarship of the Week.

In recognition of the 70th anniversary of the Nazi-Soviet invasion of Poland, the Kosciuszko Foundation and the Polish Army Veterans of America are sponsoring an essay contest for American students ages 18-22.  On September 1, 1939, after waging a sustained propaganda campaign, the Nazis invaded Poland from the east, and on September 17, 1939, the Soviets invaded from the west without a formal declaration of war.  The Historical Essay contest asks students to research these events in Poland, paying particular attention the propaganda used by the Nazis and Soviets leading up to each invasion and the impact the 1939 invasion of Poland had on the international community.

Prize:

First prize: $2,000

Second prize: $1,000

Eligibility:

Must be a current U.S. resident and between the ages of 18-22 as of September 1, 2009 

by Agnes Jasinski

If you've had classes since 2001, the year the (in)famous online, user-edited encyclopedia was launched, chances are you're guilty of using Wikipedia as a source of information while completing your coursework. A new report from First Monday, an online peer-reviewed journal, took a look at just how prevalent the site has become on college campuses in particular (although high school students are probably just as bad offenders), and how students have begun to rely on Wikipedia as a resource.

According to the study, more than half of all respondents use Wikipedia frequently or always for course-related research. Students in architecture, engineering, or the sciences were more likely to use the site in their courses than other majors. (This could have something to do with the fact that students in social sciences like psychology or history must provide reference lists more often for papers they turn in, and citing Wikipedia simply won't fly on a college level essay.) The study surveyed 2,318 students, and took qualitative data from 86 of those students who participated in focus groups.

Other major findings of the study include the following:

• Most students said they used Wikipedia for a summary about a topic (82 percent), the meaning of related terms (67 percent), and to get started on research (76 percent).
• About 52 percent of the respondents were frequent Wikipedia users, even if an instructor advised against it.
• Only 22 percent reported that they rarely, if ever, used Wikipedia.
• About 17 percent used Wikipedia because they thought it was more credible than other sites.
• Only about 2 percent used Wikipedia toward the end of their research process.
• Overall, the strongest predictor of using Wikipedia was being someone who also used Google for course–related research.
• Those enrolled in two–year campuses were less likely than those in four–year institutions to report that they used Wikipedia.

Whether you're writing a college essay or applying for an essay scholarship, here's a good rule of thumb on citing Wikipedia as a reference—don't do it. While the site can be an excellent tool for you to kick off your search, as the study above suggests, it simply isn't reliable enough to be taken seriously by academia. Anyone can add to and edit entries on the site, so it's always best to do some fact-checking after you get your Wikipedia summary prior to the start of the rest of your research. (Stephen Colbert proved this point when he edited Wikipedia articles on his own show, George Washington, and elephants, all while viewers watched. He also coined the term "wikiality," which refers to the reality that exists if you make something up and enough people agree with you.)

Majoring in engineering can lead to a stable, lucrative, and challenging career, but it involves a lot of hard work and often more than four years of college with little free time to earn money to finance your education. Luckily, in addition to a good job, your engineering major can also land you college scholarships, such as this week's Scholarship of the Week. The Scholarships.com College Engineering Scholarship offers an annual award of $1,000 to an undergraduate student majoring in engineering. There are no GPA or test score requirements. To win, all you have to do is write a scholarship essay explaining what has influenced you to pursue a career in engineering.

Prize: $1000

Eligibility: Registered Scholarships.com users and current undergraduate students or high school seniors who will be enrolled in a two-year or four-year college or university in the coming academic year.

Deadline: September 30, 2009

Required Material: A completed online scholarship application and an essay of 250 to 350 words in response to the question, "What has influenced you to pursue a career in engineering?"

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.

by Emily

In addition to being a day off from work or school, today is designated as a day to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. and his immense contributions to the Civil Rights movement.  America has taken tremendous strides toward equality in the past several decades, in large part due to King's activism in the 1960's.  While honoring King, now is also a good time to keep in mind some of the other major contributors to the civil rights movement.

This week's Scholarship of the Week gives high school students an opportunity to do just that.  High school seniors have a chance to win two $2,500 scholarships by writing a scholarship essay of 1,000 words or less about Jackie Robinson, the first African American player in Major League Baseball, focusing on his contributions to the Civil Rights movement and the way he broke racial barriers in his career.   The Jerry Malloy Negro Leagues Committee Scholarship is sponsored by the Negro Leagues Committee of the Society for American Baseball Research.

Students respond to one of two prompts: "What influence or impact did Jackie Robinson, as the first African American to play modern day Major League baseball, have on the Civil Rights Movement?" or "What are the comparative aspects of the historical breakthroughs of Jackie Robinson in baseball and Barack Obama in politics?"  Formatting guidelines and a list of potential references can be found on the contest website.

Prize: Two $2,500 scholarships

Eligibility: Current high school seniors who are planning to pursue a degree at an accredited U.S. post-secondary institution.  Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 2.5 at the end of their junior year and must be planning to graduate this academic year.

Deadline: February 19, 2010

Required Material: A completed scholarship application, found online, a list of high school and community activities you have been involved in, a letter of recommendation from someone in your high school (a teacher, counselor, or school administrator), and a 1,000 word essay response to one of two essay prompts.

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.

As our annual Resolve to Evolve scholarship essay contest draws to a close and we move closer to the time of year when a number of other scholarship competitions begin accepting applications, we thought it would be a good time to review an often overlooked aspect of applying for scholarships: the actual act of submitting your scholarship application.

By applying for a scholarship, you are making contact with someone who could potentially award you money, so you want to make sure that your application makes a good first impression before the reviewer even gets to the content.  At the very least, you certainly do not want your application to wind up in the discard pile due to a failure to follow the contest's official rules. While official rules for scholarship opportunities can often come across as dense and full of legal language, you should still take time to review them and ensure your application complies before you spend the time, money, and effort involved in creating and submitting a scholarship application.

A good idea is to make a note for yourself of the requirements for each scholarship for which you intend to apply. Print off sheets or make a spreadsheet on your computer. Get organized. We suggest including the following items in your list of rules to note:

Eligibility Requirements: This may seem like a no-brainer, but before you apply for a scholarship, make sure you're actually eligible to win. Pay attention to details like age, grade level, and enrollment status, since your answer for these could be different from what you think, depending on the scholarship provider's cutoff dates. For example, a scholarship could ask for "currently enrolled" students as of summer 2009, but if your first class starts during the fall term, you may not be eligible to apply. If you are not sure whether you are eligible based on the official rules, it doesn't hurt to contact the provider and ask.

Length and Format of Submission: Once you've made sure that you are eligible to apply, make sure what you plan to submit is eligible to win. Your 20-page scholarship essay may provide a brilliant analysis of the subject matter, but if the upper limit for the contest is 800 words, you are not going to win a scholarship with it. Your scholarship application also can't win if you forget to provide appropriate contact info or include required items, so make a list of what you need and check off each item as it goes into your application packet. Similarly, you'll want to pay attention to any rules about file format, typeface, and other details that may disqualify you, or at least generate the impression that you didn't carefully read the rules.

Submission Method: Does this scholarship contest ask for applications to be submitted via e-mail, via a form on their website, or via postal mail? Do they request that you use a specific mail carrier, or avoid using others (some scholarship providers will include stipulations such as sending your application only through the United States Postal Service)? Do they want you to label your submission in a particular way or address it to a particular person or office? All of these questions are important not only to make sure your application gets to where it needs to go, but also to demonstrate your interest in the award and your ability to follow instructions.

Deadline: If your essay is to be submitted online, make note of the exact time of day at which the contest ends. Is there a time zone indicated in the official rules? You don't want to find yourself searching for a scholarship submission form on a website at 11:50 PM PST when the contest closed at 11:59 PM EST. If your esay needs to be submitted through the mail, check whether the application deadline is a postmarked by date or a received by date.  For example, our Resolve to Evolve Essay Contest requires that applications be postmarked by July 31, so students who are sending them overnight on July 30 are unnecessarily paying more for postage. Meanwhile, students who attempt to submit an application for a scholarship with a received by date of July 31 would not want to simply stick a stamp on it today and hope it's still accepted.

In the end, your application will still be judged primarily on its merit, provided it meets basic requirements.  However, closely following rules for each contest and showing that you have a legitimate interest in the scholarship as more than just a potential source of easy cash will improve your chances of winning scholarships.

The fall semester is just around the corner, and in addition to the start of classes, students are also beginning to gear up for scholarship application season, the time from late fall to late spring when the majority of scholarship applications are due. If you are just starting your scholarship search, there are a number of things to keep in mind when deciding which awards to apply for. The size of the award, the application deadline, the amount of work required, and your likelihood of winning are all criteria you likely use in evaluating awards. One other thing to think about before putting together an application, though, is whether there will be any costs associated with the scholarship contest.

Every scholarship application will have some degree of cost associated with it, whether it's postage, time, or the costs involved in creating your application materials (for example, printing an essay or filming and editing a video). However, some scholarship applications are going to be more costly than others, and when a scholarship charges an application fee on top of the time, energy, and money you're already putting into it, it should be cause for some careful thought.

Scholarship opportunities are generally seen as altruistic offers made by organizations that want to help students succeed in college. Sure, many scholarships have a promotional nature, as there are few better ways to attract interest in a company than by giving something away for free. However, some companies actually charge students to apply for scholarships. For example, we came across one scholarship essay contest that offered a $500 award and charged a $15 application fee. The scholarship provider boasted of receiving 10,000 applications in a year, meaning they hauled in $15,000 and only gave away $500. Unless they're spending over $14,000 promoting the contest and paying people to judge the essays, it's reasonable to believe they're profiting off the scholarship in more ways than just boosting traffic to their site. Not necessarily the most altruistic endeavor, huh?

This isn't the only example of a scholarship contest charging a seemingly unnecessary application fee. Offers like this aren't necessarily scholarship scams, as legitimate awards are offered to people who apply. However, why would you pay money for something when there are so many other ways to get it for free?

by Agnes Jasinski

Do you think you'll get bored during winter break? If so, or if you want to be more productive than most during your time off, it's not too late to apply for essay scholarships with upcoming deadlines. This week's Scholarship of the Week invites applicants to describe political courage by any elected official on the local, state, or national level. With the deadline fast approaching, taking some time out to apply for this and other awards could be the perfect way to kick off the new year - especially if you're chosen as a winner.

The John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest wants to know what you think about political figures who you think have acted courageously in addressing political issues since 1956, the year John F. Kennedy's book "Profiles in Courage" was released. That book recounted the stories of eight U.S. Senators who risked their careers by taking stands for unpopular positions. The scholarship is presented annually by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.

Prize: The winner receives $10,000 in the form of a $5,000 cash award and a $5,000 John Hancock Freedom 529 College Savings Plan. A second place winner receives a $1,000 cash award, and up to five finalists each receive $500 cash awards. The nominating teacher of the first place winner will receive the John F. Kennedy Public Service Grant in the amount of $500 for school projects encouraging student leadership and civic engagement.

Eligibility: The contest is open to U.S. high school students in grades 9-12 attending public, private, parochial, or home schools, U.S. students under 20 enrolled in high school correspondence/GED programs, and U.S. citizens attending schools overseas.

Deadline: January 10, 2010

Required Material: Applicants must write an essay between 700 and 1,000 words using at least five sources on how an elected official demonstrated political courage by addressing an issue at the local, state, or national level. John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Edward M. Kennedy are not eligible subjects for essays. A registration and essay submission form is available online through the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.

Further details about the application process can be found by conducting a free college scholarship search on Scholarships.com. Once the search is completed, students eligible for this scholarship award will find it in their search results.