Niche College Scholarship

Scholarship Contests & Sweepstakes

Scholarship contests and sweepstakes are some of the easiest and quickest ways to land money for college. They typically do not request your academic achievements, standardized test scores, or an essay. The requirements may be as simple as completing an online form, providing some contact information or answering some quick questions. That could mean a lot of scholarship money for little to no effort!

Be mindful that, due to the random selection process, you may be less likely to win. Your chances of winning a sweepstake or contest vary based on the number of applicants who enter each drawing.

As always, beware of scholarship scams. You should never have to pay a fee to win scholarships. Ultimately, someone has to win the sweepstakes, so if you're feeling lucky, consider applying for a chance to win! Check out some of our featured scholarship contests and sweepstakes that we think are worth a shot.

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Of the millions of scholarships out there, these are some that truly stand out. Whether it is because they have been around for decades and benefited hundreds or even thousands of students or due to their unique rules and selection process, they deserve your attention

Scholarships can be more than just some money to keep you from going too far into student loan debt. Some organizations offer different types of support, academic and beyond. Some are more of a community, which you will be a part of for the rest of your life, making friends and future alumni as you go.

What are Some of the Top Scholarships Available?

Well, we're glad you asked! Below is a short list of what we feel are among the best you can apply for. Just be sure to read all of the requirements and instructions once you have verified that you are qualified to apply. And make sure to keep track of the process, too. We make it easy to mark scholarships favorite, applied to and won and save them accordingly in your Scholarship Matches.

Niche $2,000 No Essay Scholarship

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline November 30, 2023

Are you a high school or college student, or planning to pursue higher education next year? If so, the $2,000 No Essay Scholarship is your ticket to financial support. This scholarship is open to all eligible individuals, making it easy to access funds for your education. Scholarship Details $2,000 No Essay Scholarship offers a straightforward path to financial assistance for high ... Read more

FRA Americanism Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,500
  • Deadline December 1, 2023

FRA is first and foremost a community of the Sea Services; U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard personnel. Enlisted service in any of these branches—past or present, for a short time or for the long haul—is your passport to membership in an association that works hard for you and your family on Capitol Hill and in your local community. FRA’s guiding principles are Loyalty, Protection and ... Read more

Niche $50,000 "No Essay" Scholarship

  • Amount $50,000
  • Deadline December 14, 2023

Niche presents an extraordinary opportunity for high school seniors to win a $50,000 scholarship, alleviating the financial burden of tuition, housing, books, and other college expenses. The standout feature? No essay is required for this life-changing award! Scholarship Details $50,000 scholarship can be used for any education-related expenses, including books and housing Apply in ... Read more

First Amendment Freedoms Art & Essay Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline December 31, 2023

Each year, ADL Midwest invites 6th-12th grade students in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Wisconsin, North Dakota or South Dakota to participate in the First Amendment Freedoms Art & Essay Contest. Using a personal example or experience, describe or portray how one of the five freedoms in the First Amendment affects your daily life. Please clearly label your entry ... Read more

NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund Youth Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline December 31, 2023

The NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund sponsors a scholarly writing contest for grades K-12. The theme for the essay is "What Does The Second Amendment Mean to You?" Essays will be judged in two categories: Senior (grades 9-12) and junior (grades 8 and below), with separate cash prizes awarded to the winners in each category. First place cash prizes are $1,000, $600 for second place, $200 for third ... Read more

L. Ron Hubbard Illustrators of The Future Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline December 31, 2023

L. Ron Hubbard's Illustrators of the Future Contest is an opportunity for new science fiction and fantasy artists worldwide to have their work judged by some of the masters in the field and discovered by a wide audience. Entries in the Illustrators of the Future Contest are judged only by professional artists. Three prizes of $500 are awarded each quarter. From the twelve quarterly winners each ... Read more

Live Poets Society of New Jersey - National High School Poetry Contest

  • Amount $500
  • Deadline December 31, 2023

In an effort to encourage the youth of America in the pursuit of literary exploration and excellence, and to help provide a venue in which American High School students may share their poetic works; The Live Poets Society of New Jersey presents our annual, National High School Poetry Contest. We believe it may be beneficial to browse through our other webpages before you decide to enter this ... Read more

Teen Changemakers Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline January 12, 2024

We All Have Mental Health… How Can Students’ Mental Health Be Supported Virtually and In-Person? For this years' topic, create a virtual mental health campaign or program, including details on how it would impact others and how you would implement it by working with school staff. Connect with your peers to understand what is needed to support their mental health during this time! Essays ... Read more

John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest

  • Amount $10,000
  • Deadline January 12, 2024

The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides financial support, staffing, and creative resources for the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. The Kennedy Library Foundation is not a grant-making foundation. Through its Board of Directors, its committees and staff, the Foundation assists the Library in the planning and establishment of its long-term ... Read more

The Christophers Video Contest

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline January 15, 2024

College students are invited to create a film or video (five minutes or less in length) that best communicates the message and mission of The Christophers and its belief that one person can make a difference. Entries can express this theme in any genre or shooting style, but must be submitted online below. Entrants must be enrolled in and attending undergraduate or graduate college classes, full ... Read more

DAR Good Citizens Award

  • Amount Varies
  • Deadline January 31, 2024

The DAR Good Citizens Award and Scholarship Contest, created in 1934, is intended to encourage and reward the qualities of good citizenship. This award recognizes and rewards individuals who possess the qualities of dependability, service, leadership, and patriotism in their homes, schools, and communities. These students are selected by their teachers and peers because they demonstrate these ... Read more

Elks National Foundation Legacy Awards

  • Amount $4,000
  • Deadline February 6, 2024

Legacy Awards are $4,000 scholarships available to children and grandchildren of Elks members. Any child or grandchild (or step-child, step-grandchild, or legal ward) of a living Elk or a charter member of a Lodge is eligible to apply. Great-grandchildren are not eligible. The applicant must be a high school senior and must apply online only. The Legacy Awards application deadline is February ... Read more

Dolly Parton Songwriters Award

  • Amount $20,000
  • Deadline February 6, 2024

The Dolly Parton Songwriters Award is an annual, nationwide competition open to aspiring songwriters. The award was established in 2015 as the Nashville Songwriting Scholarship by BMI to celebrate the company’s 75th Anniversary year and pays homage to musical epicenter and “Songwriting Capital of the World,” Nashville, Tennessee. The revised program offers $20,000 for up to two of the best ... Read more

George S. & Stella M. Knight Essay Contest

  • Amount $6,000
  • Deadline February 15, 2024

The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) invites all high school students (9th through 12th grades) interested in the American Revolution to participate in the George S. & Stella M. Knight Essay Contest. The contest is open to all US Citizen and Legal Resident students attending home schools, public, parochial, or private high schools in that same grade range. The ... Read more

Live Deliberately Essay Contest

  • Amount $500
  • Deadline February 20, 2024

Each year, the Live Deliberately Essay Contest invites youth around the world, ages 14-18, to consider a selected Henry David Thoreau quotation and accompanying prompt. Contestants are asked to write a thoughtful essay that uses personal experience and observation to demonstrate how that year’s quotation and prompt relate to their own lives and to the world around them. Like Thoreau, these young ... Read more

Cardinal Newman Society Essay Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline February 20, 2024

The Cardinal Newman Society’s essay scholarship contest is open for submissions from high school seniors. The winner of the annual Contest will be awarded $5,000 toward the cost of attending one of the institutions recommended in The Newman Guide. Additionally, there is the opportunity for the winner of the Contest to be awarded $20,000 over the course of four years. Several of the Newman Guide ... Read more

BMI peermusic Latin Scholarship

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline February 24, 2024

The peermusic Latin Award is an annual competition open to student songwriters and composers of Latin music. One of the few distinctions of its kind, the award was established in 2003 through the generosity and vision of peermusic CEO, Ralph Peer II. For over a decade, the program has nurtured promising musicians who have gone on to distinguish themselves in the fields of television, film, ... Read more

MathWorks Math Modeling (M3 Challenge)

  • Amount $20,000
  • Deadline February 24, 2024

MathWorks Math Modeling (M3 Challenge) is a contest for teams of high school juniors and seniors in the U.S. and sixth form students in England and Wales. Through participation in this competition, students experience what it's like to work as a team to tackle a real-world problem under time and resource constraints, akin to those faced by professional mathematicians working in the industry. ... Read more

ASHG DNA Day Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline March 1, 2024

The ASHG DNA Day Essay Contest is open to students in grades 9-12 worldwide and asks students to examine, question, and reflect on important concepts in genetics. Essays are expected to be well-reasoned arguments that indicate a deep understanding of scientific concepts related to the essay question. They are evaluated by ASHG members through three rounds of scoring. Current ASHG members have the ... Read more

Cancer Unwrapped Teen Writing Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline March 1, 2024

Learning about a cancer diagnosis – your own or that of a loved one – can cause a storm of emotions, and everyone experiences it differently. We want to know what this experience was like for you. Did you feel angry, sad, lonely, or maybe something you didn’t expect? What happened in your life, and did it change you or your perspectives? We invite you to submit a short essay about your experience ... Read more

Morris J. and Betty Kaplun Foundation Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,800
  • Deadline March 12, 2024

The goal of the annual Kaplun Essay Contest is to encourage students to think about their heritage, reflect on their values, and better understand Judaism’s contribution to civilization and culture. We believe strongly in the value of this writing process as a way for young people to explore challenging ethical topics. The first-place winners in Level 1 and Level 2 will each be awarded ... Read more

Growing Up Asian in America Art & Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline March 15, 2024

Growing Up Asian in America provides a unique platform for young people to creatively explore and celebrate being both Asian or Pacific Islander and American. Applicants must be Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese or other Asian/Pacific Islander, multi-cultural ethnicity in grades K-12. Applicants must live in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa ... Read more

Protect American River Canyons Essay Contest

  • Amount $500
  • Deadline March 15, 2024

Students may enter the PARC Essay Scholarship Contest by submitting an original essay of 500 words or less describing their response to the following question about the North and Middle Fork American River canyons located upstream of Folsom Reservoir, in the Auburn State Recreation Area: "What is your personal connection to the American River and its canyons, and how has a current concern, ... Read more

Star-Spangled Banner Flag House Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,812
  • Deadline March 18, 2024

This year, the tenth annual Star-Spangled Banner Flag House Scholar Award will be given on Flag Day, June 14. The Flag House will award the Flag House Scholarship for $1,812.00 to a Maryland high school senior to put toward the college of their choice. Please read the contest rules and response prompt carefully before submitting your entry. Your essay must be no more than 350 words and must ... Read more

Walgreens Expressions Challenge

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline March 31, 2024

The Walgreens Expressions Challenge program was launched at the suggestion of the Walgreens Community Task Force. The group was alarmed by the rising incidents of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV and AIDS, among high school students ages 13 to 18. How, the group wondered, could students find creative ways to express themselves about some very serious topics while also becoming ... Read more

Richard L. Brooks Memorial Scholarship

  • Amount $2,500
  • Deadline March 31, 2024

The American Galvanizers Association's (AGA) Galvanize the Future: A Richard L. Brooks Memorial Scholarship essay contest was developed to assist future specifiers with the rising cost of a college education. The scholarship is open to full- or part-time undergraduate or graduate students enrolled in an accredited college or university studying architecture, civil engineering, structural ... Read more

GRHS Youth Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline March 31, 2024

An International GRHS Essay Contest, sponsored by the Germans from Russia Heritage Society, will be held to encourage students to learn about the history and culture of the German-Russians, people who emigrated from Germany into Russia during the 18th and 19th centuries. Today, in the USA, Canada and other countries in the Western Hemisphere, these people have become known as Germans from Russia. ... Read more

Galvanize the Future Richard L. Brooks Memorial Scholarship

  • Amount $2,500
  • Deadline March 31, 2024

The American Galvanizers Associations (AGA) Galvanize the Future: A Richard L. Brooks Memorial Scholarship essay contest was developed to assist future specifiers with the rising cost of a college education. Any full- or part-time, undergraduate or graduate student of any age enrolled at an accredited college or university only in North America may apply. High school students are not eligible to ... Read more

Project Yellow Light Hunter Garner Scholarship

  • Amount $8,000
  • Deadline April 1, 2024

Project Yellow Light is a scholarship competition with a clear mission: to bring about change by discouraging distracted driving, especially the use of phones while driving. The scholarship aims to encourage applicants to create impactful PSAs (Public Service Announcements) to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving. Scholarship Details Scholarship Name: Project Yellow ... Read more

Road to Safety Scholarship

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline April 7, 2024

Enter Metzger Wickersham’s Road to Safety Scholarship Contest by submitting a creative project that educates people about the perils of dangerous driving. In your own creative way, tell us how teens can drive with safety in mind, all the time. Metzger Wickersham’s Road to Safety Scholarship Contest is open to graduating, college-bound high school seniors in Pennsylvania. Students may submit no ... Read more

NDS Student Recognition Award for Seniors

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline April 15, 2024

The purpose of the Dairy Shrine Student Recognition Award for Seniors is to recognize and reward graduating university or four year college seniors who are planning a career related to the dairy industry or production agriculture and who have demonstrated leadership skills, student activity participation, academic ability and interest in the dairy industry. Each university can nominate up to two ... Read more

Bird Dog Foundation Annual College Scholarship Essay Contest

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline April 15, 2024

The Bird Dog Foundation, Inc. has established a Scholarship Fund to promote interest in hunting, wildlife conservation, the rich outdoor heritage of the United States, and other related subjects. An annual College Scholarship Essay Contest has been held for several years now. The contest was created in the hopes that it would promote interest in and education about the aforementioned subjects and ... Read more

NDS Kildee Graduate School Scholarships

  • Amount $3,000
  • Deadline April 15, 2024

The top 25 All-American contestants in the past three National Intercollegiate Dairy Cattle Judging Contests plus the Platinum winners in the past three National Dairy Challenge Contests are eligible to apply for up to two $3,000 scholarships for university post graduate study in a dairy related field. Students may apply for the scholarship in their junior or senior year at a four year college. ... Read more

Thomas F. Garrett Negro League Scholarships

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline April 15, 2024

SABR's Negro Leagues Committee will award $1,000 scholarships to high school seniors in its annual Thomas R. Garrett Scholarship essay contest. Students must write a 1,200-word essay answering a question related to one of the Negro League figures who are the namesakes of the scholarships. These scholarships are open to any senior attending any college in the upcoming school year. Each ... Read more

NPG Undergraduate Essay Scholarship

  • Amount $2,500
  • Deadline April 18, 2024

Each year, NPG offers a variety of Scholarship Contests for students across the country. Contestants are invited to answer a population-related challenge, with their own experience and insight guiding their ideas for a solution. Contests are open to high school seniors, as well as currently-enrolled college undergraduates. Winners will receive a designated scholarship amount, paid towards ... Read more

Create Real Impact Contest

  • Amount $10,000
  • Deadline April 25, 2024

The Create Real Impact Contest challenges students aged 14-22 to present positive solutions and strategies addressing the leading cause of young people's fatalities: car crashes resulting from reckless and distracted driving. Scholarship Details Two categories: Video or Graphic Design Community Champions Bonus Points available High School Campaign for schools, classrooms, or student ... Read more

IWSH Essay Scholarship Contest

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline April 28, 2024

Essay topic is "How can IWSH contribute toward the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and what can the foundation do to best lead by example?" The purpose of the IWSH Essay Scholarship Contest is to acquaint the uninitiated with the crucial importance the plumbing industry plays in our everyday lives. To introduce students to the global impact of IWSH projects. Students must ... Read more

A Voice for Animals Contest

  • Amount $500
  • Deadline May 21, 2024

The Humane Education Network in partnership with the Animal Welfare Institute offers an Annual A Voice for Animals High School Contest. Participants must currently be attending middle or high school, or be home-schooled and under 19 years of age on the date, the contest opens for entries. The competition has sections for 14-15-year-old students and sections for 16-18-year-old students. ... Read more

Fourth Circuit High School Essay Contest

  • Amount $2,000
  • Deadline May 31, 2024

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit is seeking submissions for its essay contest. The contest is open to all students currently in grades 9 through 12 from Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. Students are invited to consider and share their thoughts on the question: "In light of Meyer and later cases, may a state, consistent with the protections ... Read more

Freedom From Religion Foundation Essay Contests

  • Amount $3,500
  • Deadline June 1, 2024

The Freedom From Religion Foundation Essay Contests are open to all ongoing college students already attending a North American college or university. You remain eligible to enter this contest if you will graduate from college by spring or summer the year of the award. Please fill out online submission form and attach essay. The essay must be double-spaced, standard margins, font size of 11 to 14 ... Read more

Cornelius Vander Broek Essay Contest for Graduate/"Older" Students

  • Amount $3,500
  • Deadline June 1, 2024

The Cornelius Vander Broek Essay Contest for Graduate/"Older" Students is open to any graduate students through age 30, or to undergraduate students ages 25-30 who attend a North American college or university. You remain eligible to enter this contest if you will graduate by spring or summer of the current year. Winners may be asked to send verification of student enrollment. You may not ... Read more

William J. Schulz Memorial Essay Contest for College-Bound High School Seniors

  • Amount $3,500
  • Deadline June 1, 2024

The William J. Schulz Memorial Essay Contest for College-Bound High School Seniors is open to seniors who will be attending a North American college or university in the fall. Winners will be announced in July. Applicants must write a personal statement about why you trust science over faith, and why you think society should do the same. Please include an example of how religious faith has ... Read more

FFRF David Hudak Memorial Essay Contest For Freethinking Black Indigenous and Students Of Color

  • Amount $3,500
  • Deadline June 1, 2024

The FFRF David Hudak Memorial Essay Contest For Freethinking Black Indigenous and Students Of Color is open only to Black, Indigenous and Students of Color ages 17-21, who are either high school seniors graduating in spring who will be attending a North American college or university in the fall, or who are currently enrolled in a North American college or university. If you will be graduating ... Read more

Stuck At Prom Scholarship Contest

  • Amount $10,000
  • Deadline June 7, 2024

We’re giving away $20,000 in cash scholarships to high school students who make the best prom attire out of Duck® Brand Duct Tape! New this year? We want to make sure everyone has a chance to enter and win no matter what prom looks like for you. So, we have removed the requirement to wear your one-of-a-kind creation to prom -- you just need to be enrolled in high school or a home school ... Read more

AMS Father James B. Macelwane Award

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline June 9, 2024

The purpose of the AMS Father James B. Macelwane Award is to stimulate interest in meteorology among college students through the submission of original student papers concerned with some phase of the atmospheric sciences. The student must be enrolled as an undergraduate at the time the paper is written, and no more than two students from any one institution may enter papers in any one contest. ... Read more

Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Contest

  • Amount $1,000
  • Deadline June 10, 2024

The annual Ocean Awareness Contest is a platform for young people to learn about environmental issues through art-making and creative communication, and become advocates for positive change. Students are invited to create Visual Art (handcrafted and digital), Creative Writing, Film, Interactive & Multimedia, Performing Arts: Music & Dance, and Poetry & Spoken Word to contribute to the largest ... Read more

Chaffin Luhana Foundation Anti-Distracted Driving Scholarship Essay Contest

  • Amount $2,500
  • Deadline July 31, 2024

One of the Chaffin Luhana Foundation’s missions is to drive down the staggering number of distracted driving accidents in the United States. The Foundation will be awarding a scholarship to a student who helps us in this fight by submitting an inspiring personal essay. To be eligible for this contest, applicants must: be currently registered at an accredited high school, college, or university in ... Read more

Platt Family Scholarship Prize Essay Contest

  • Amount $1,500
  • Deadline July 31, 2024

The Lincoln Forum Scholarship Essay Contest is held annually, with a new Abraham Lincoln related prompt each year. Applicants must be full-time undergraduate students in an American college or university during the spring semester proceeding the deadline for the year the award is offered. Entries must be between 1,500 and 5,000 words. You do not have to be an American citizen, but you do need to ... Read more

NFWL Essay Student Scholarship Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline August 1, 2024

NFWL has a long-standing tradition of supporting young women. Over the years, the scholarship has brought together some of the nation’s leading young scholars for a week of mentorship, learning, and growth. Scholarship winners have gone on to attend top universities, found non-profit organizations, and pursue their dream careers. During NFWL’s Annual Conference, winners spend extensive time with ... Read more

L. Ron Hubbard Writers of The Future Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline September 30, 2024

L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest is an opportunity for new writers of science fiction and fantasy to have their work judged by some of the masters in the field and discovered by a wide audience. No entry fee is required and entrants retain all publication rights. Entries in the Writers of the Future Contest are adjudicated only by professional writers. Prizes of $1000, $750 and $500 ... Read more

Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest

  • Amount $5,000
  • Deadline November 24, 2024

All high school seniors may compete for college scholarships totaling $9,000 at the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest. A copy of the contestants high school transcript must be provided at registration along with a proper ID. The first-place winner will receive $5,000. Second place will receive $2,000, 3rd place will receive $1,250, and 4th place will receive $750. ... Read more

Poetry Out Loud Scholarship Contest

  • Amount $20,000
  • Deadline Varies

Poetry Out Loud encourages the nation’s youth to learn about great poetry through exploration, memorization, and performance. The inspiration for this program is to promote poetry in both the classroom and the community. Students compete in school programs and have the chance to advancing to the national finals in Washington D.C. Check with your school if it participates in the program. Only ... Read more

American Legion National High School Oratorical Contest

  • Amount $25,000
  • Deadline Varies

To enter the American Legion High School Oratorical Contest, participants must be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents. Contestants must be students under 20 years old on the national contest date, enrolled in grades 9-12 at any high school, and either reside within or attend an educational institution in the participating department. They can compete through only one department, and early ... Read more

Last Reviewed: November 2023