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Scholarship
application tips

Dr. Susan Thurman, former 精东影视 Scholarship Director, provides essential tips for students applying for scholarships. Her advice covers the three key components of most applications: resume, essay, and recommendation letters. A crucial reminder for both scholarship and college applications is to meticulously proofread all documents.

Preparing scholarship essays

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Abide by the essay鈥檚 guidelines.聽If an essay has a maximum of 500 words, writing 1,000 words will not聽give you an edge over other applicants.

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Don鈥檛 try to force an essay you聽have previously written into a聽topic that doesn鈥檛 match.

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Reading your essay aloud helps you determine how your essay聽will read to its reviewers.

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Share your essay with your parent聽or guardian. Then, run it by a friend聽or a mentor for a more objective opinion without familial bias.

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Focus on depth, not breadth.聽Immerse yourself in 1-2 clubs or聽organizations, rather than joining聽multiple superficially.

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Include plenty of details; don鈥檛聽generalize.

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Stand out from the crowd! Don't bore the scholarship committee. Be unique, use quotes, references, and be yourself.

Preparing your resume

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Be sure your contact information is up to date, with address, telephone, email, and current school.

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Begin with academics: GPA, academic awards, Dean鈥檚 list, math bowl champion, etc.

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Include volunteer activities. Don't forget to list the dates of service activities.

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Music, sports, clubs/organizations, hobbies, academic camps, employment, internships, etc.

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Make it memorable! Be yourself! Use quotes and references to stand out from the crowd. References are available upon request, with permission obtained beforehand.

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Highlight high school achievements.聽Exclude pre-high school activities聽unless they're exceptional (e.g.,聽National Geography Bee win, early charity founding).

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Leadership is about actions, not聽titles. It's not just holding club聽officer positions or being a team聽captain. True leaders demonstrate聽their abilities through their actions.

How to ask for recommendation letters

  • Find an educator with whom you can discuss your extracurricular activities, college aspirations, other classes, etc.
  • Provide your recommender with all of the information they will need to prepare and submit your recommendation.
  • Read the application requirements carefully 鈥 an application may have a limit of one recommendation, may allow more than one, or may require more than one.
  • Make sure to give friendly reminders weeks before your deadline.
  • Give thanks! Surprise them with a hand-written thank you card (not an email or social media post!).
  • Maintain communication.

  • Ask for a recommendation at the last minute.
  • List someone as a recommender or reference without their knowledge.
  • Skimp on the information they need to prepare and submit the recommendation.
  • Take it personally if the educator is not able to prepare a recommendation for you.