Writing a winning scholarship essay is one of the most important steps you must take in winning a scholarship. Your essay gives you a strong foundation and a chance to stand out among all the other applicants and competitors for scholarship even before your grades and achievements.
A well detailed scholarship essay must follow some certain guidelines and meet some certain criteria. There are steps to writing one. So whether you are a good writer or have submitted multiple scholarship applications in the past, these 8 tips we are about to share in this post are essential tips to guide you further.
1. Understand the essay requirement
Before you start writing your essay, you have to carefully read and understand the essay requirements. Make sure you highlight and address every part of the essay question. If part of the requirements are that you write on your career goals, personal experiences, or reasons for applying, ensure your essay touches on all of them. Before you start writing, you can highlight these points separately in a different place then build your essay with them as you write.
If you have an already written essay that you want to use, you can just rewrite and edit it to include these points. You have to note that these specific points give by the scholarship body as part of the essay requirements are what they are looking for. These are the things they want to know about you. If you use a generic essay you would have skipped these important details.
2. Start with a strong hook
Scholarship bodies receives a lot of applications every year and so there will be so many essays to be attended to. This is why you need to start your essay with a strong hook. Something that is attention grabbing and can keep the reader till the end. The truth is the first few lines of your essay determines a lot. So wether you have added all the details in the latter part is as well important as your introduction. You can start with a powerful quote or a brief personal story to introduce the main idea. Just ensure you are on point.
3. Be personal and honest, and humble
Authenticity will always win. Do your best to be as real as possible, do not exaggerate or try to sound like someone you are not. Share your true story, your struggles, achievements, and what motivates you. Let your passion and personality be felt. Don’t write to forcefully impress.
Also, do not sound boastful watch the tone of your essay. Your tone matters. Aim to sound confident, optimistic, and enthusiastic, without being arrogant. Even when discussing challenges or failures, focus on how you overcame them and what you learned. Choose your words carefully no matter what you have achieved in the past, present it with total humility and honesty.
4. Stay focused and clear
Sometimes, as you write your essay, you may tend to get carried away with all the exciting things about you which may prompt you to over sharing. Stick to the main topic and avoid going off track or over sharing. Organize your essay with clear paragraphs. The introduction, body, and conclusion. Each paragraph should flow organically into the next. Avoid vague statements and filler words.
As we have already talked about, follow and respond to the questions they have asked. You may have more to say about your self, but if it is not requested in the essay question, then it is not necessary for you to share unless there is a link with which you can bring it into your essay. This is also the reason why scholarship bodies give an exact number of words for essay to guide the writing. One of the best hack is to allocate number of words to each part of the essay you are planning to write even before you start.
5. Proofread and edit thoroughly
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Once you are done with the writing you need to proofread and edit thoroughly. You need to check for Spelling and grammar errors. You can use grammar tools to check and you can also ask your friends to help you read your essay for clarity and correctness.
6. Tailor your essay to each scholarship
Do not send the same essay to every scholarship you are applying for. You have to write a fresh essay for each scholarship you intend to apply to. Your essay has to answer the specific questions that are required. Show that you have done your research and that you are a good fit for their program.
7. Follow the word or character count
Every scholarship body usually give word or character limit for essays. Respect it. You should have this in mind when writing your essay, and write accordingly. Your word count should not be too far away from this number and should not exceed it either. If you notice any slight difference after editing and proofreading, you should try to fill up the gap so you are close to the given word count.
8. End with a memorable conclusion
Conclude your essay in a memory way as this is the final chance for you to impress the scholarship body and leave a great impression. Reaffirm your commitment to your goals and express gratitude for the opportunity.
Conclusion
A well written scholarship essay can be the key that unlocks scholarships opportunities for you. By following these eight tips that we have given above you can write an essay that not only stands you out but also tells your story in a powerful and memorable way. So take your time, write from your heart, and give the scholarship body every reason to choose you.
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