Because most scholarships require applicants to write at least one essay, it is very important that the essay you write speaks to the scholarship judges. Not only does it have to meet your specific criteria, but you also have to make sure there are no spelling or grammatical errors.

Also, you need to make sure that the quality of your essay is up to your requirements, which can seem very intimidating. Many students struggle with the writing process to begin with, and having to write a well-written essay on another topic can seem like too much work to bother with.

However, if you’re serious about getting scholarship money for college, you should be prepared for the fact that you’ll have to write an essay or two for most scholarships you apply for. While many scholarships have writing prompts that you are expected to answer in your essay, the judges’ main goal is to gain an understanding of you as a person – your beliefs and ideas should come through when you are writing the essay.

Starting the essay

Unfortunately, the beginning of your essay is often the hardest part. How do you start? Well, there are some general guidelines that you should keep in mind when you start your essay.

1. Understand the purpose

First of all, you need to gain an understanding of why you are writing this essay. What reason might the judges have had for choosing your particular question to base their essay on? Analyze the writing prompt. Find out why you are writing what you are writing. You can also write the essay question and find out how many parts the question has and in what order you need to structure your essay according to the message.

You can also find out if the essay question requires any prior research or if the question can be answered only through your life experiences. Also, because the ultimate goal behind any scholarship essay question is to learn more about yourself, find out how the judges will learn more about you through your essay.

2. Goals

Before you start any essay, you need to figure out what your goals are for the essay. These goals will vary depending on the specific essay question and who you are writing the essay for. For example, one of your goals may be to show the judges through your writing that you have a healthy balance between your personal life and your academic life. Another goal may be to show that you were able to succeed despite the many difficult obstacles you faced throughout your life.
These goals are just examples, and your goals may be similar or different depending on the essay topic. The bottom line is to formulate a set of goals for your writing and allow your personal character to show through. During this process, you’ll also want to develop an overarching theme for your essay that relates to the topic you’re writing about, whatever the topic may be.

3. Create an outline

While some people choose to start writing without having a set plan, for a scholarship essay you may find it easier to start with a set outline. With an outline, you can be sure you’re covering all the points you want to make in your essay, and you’ll have a guide to follow when trying to structure your essay in a logical way.

Once you’ve determined your writing goals, decided on a topic for your essay, and created a general outline, it’s time to write your first draft. Notice I said “first draft” – an essay is rarely, if ever, done on the first try. When you’ve written your first draft, it’s time to go over your essay and see what areas could use some improvement.

Check

The key to crafting a well-written essay is to show the judges rather than tell them. If there are specific examples in your essay that say something, add to it by showing the judges why that is important and how that example is relevant to your life and the topic of the essay. Also, remember to keep the essay in the present tense as much as possible. It may not always work, but if you can use it, go for it!

Another tip to keep in mind when revising your essay is to cut out as many unnecessary words as possible. You want to be as succinct as possible, which means saying what you need to say in as few words as possible. Sometimes you’ll find that it’s not always possible, but if you find that a part of your essay can be revised with fewer words, it’s always a good idea.

Double check your introduction and make sure it’s captivating enough to grab the attention of the judges. If they aren’t interested in the first sentence, they probably won’t read the rest of your essay. In a way, your introduction is the most important part of the document: it gives your readers a taste of what’s coming next.

Finally, you need to end with a strong conclusion. Don’t just summarize every point of your essay. Instead, summarize the main point and keep it short and sweet. Once you’ve revised your essay, set it aside for a while so you can come back to it with fresh eyes. You may find that you need more work, and you’ll probably notice some errors that you didn’t catch beforehand.

Once you think you have an acceptable and well-crafted essay, you can congratulate yourself. You have overcome the most difficult part of the scholarship application! Regardless of the topic of the essay or who you are writing the essay for, it is important to keep the above guidelines in mind to create the best essay you can. The important thing to remember is to let your unique views come through in the essay so that the judges can ultimately learn about you through the message of the essay.

Writing your scholarship essay may seem like an impossible task, but with a little hard work and the tips above to guide you, you can create a well-written essay that lets the judges know what a unique person you are.