Academic Scholarships and Merit Scholarships
Academic scholarships, or as they are sometimes known, merit scholarships, are basically
just what you probably think they are. In order to get an academic scholarship to
pay for school,
you are going to need to get exceedingly good grades and, most likely, graduate
in the top five to ten percent of your class. Merit scholarships are often related
to academic performance, but can also be given to a candidate displaying artistic
or athletic excellence or sometimes a combination thereof. It's probably safe to
say that, while all academic scholarships are merit scholarships, not all merit
scholarships are academic scholarships. You have a chance at
winning scholarships of this nature if you’re a strong student, either generally
or in your area of study, and an even better chance if you’re heavily involved in extracurricular
activities.
Finding Academic Scholarships
Many merit scholarships, are offered by the colleges and universities themselves,
and may require more than just academic excellence. For example, some may require
you have some other honorary title or have received some other scholarships or recognition
by an esteemed organization or society such as National Merit Scholarships or the
National Council of Teachers of English awards. Others simply require you to get
a certain score on the ACT or
SAT and to graduate near the top of your class. While these are common
varieties of academic scholarships, very few students qualify for large awards through
their schools. Rather, most students have better luck finding money for college through private providers of academic
scholarship awards.
Academic Scholarship Opportunities
As previously mentioned, academic scholarships all come with their own requirements
regarding academic performance and extracurricular involvement. Merit scholarships
can sometimes include a community service requirement, or demonstrated leadership
potential. This may be based on your involvement in school sports or politics, for
example. If you were the quarterback of the football team or captain of your basketball
or gymnastics team as well as student class president, you may be more attractive
to an organization that wants to bankroll the formal education of a future leader.
In order to find the academic scholarship opportunities
that are right for you, conduct a free college scholarship
search on Scholarships.com. By completing a free profile, you will have
access to scholarship information for
a variety of awards for which your education and experience qualify you. Below is
a list of just a few of the academic and other merit scholarships available in our
database.
Bridgewater College President's Merit Award
Application Deadlines:
Varies
Bridgewater College recognizes the academic achievements of high school seniors and transfer students through its ACE program. Each year, the College commits significant institutional resources for grants and scholarships to assist students.
The Bridgewater College President's Merit Awards range from $11,000 up to full-tuition and are based on an applicant's academic performance in high school [...] More
EWNJ Graduate Merit Award Program
Application Deadlines:
April 19, Annually
One of EWNJ's priorities is to provide encouragement and a strong foundation of leadership development for the next generation of female executives. To advance this goal, EWNJ established the Graduate Merit Award Program in 1986, a scholarship program to benefit women who reside in New Jersey and are pursuing graduate level degrees at New Jersey colleges and universities. Since that time, EWNJ [...] More
Furman University National Merit Scholarships
Application Deadlines:
Varies
The National Merit Scholarships are renewable scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $2,000 depending on need, for National Merit finalists who indicate Furman as their first-choice college.
For more information about scholarships at Furman University, please [...] More