By Will Geiger

Will Geiger is the co-founder of Scholarships360 and has a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. He is a former Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at Kenyon College where he personally reviewed 10,000 admissions applications and essays. Will also managed the Kenyon College merit scholarship program and served on the financial aid appeals committee. He has also worked as an Associate Director of College Counseling at a high school in New Haven, Connecticut. Will earned his master’s in education from the University of Pennsylvania and received his undergraduate degree in history from Wake Forest University.

Updated: October 14th, 2021

Sophomore year of high school is very much a transition year for students. You are probably feeling more comfortable in school, but you are still a year away from having to worry about testing and the college admissions process. With this said, it is not too early to begin to think about paying for your college education. Luckily, there are some great scholarships for high school sophomores to apply for!

Jump ahead to:

• Top scholarships for 10th graders
• Tips for high school sophomores
• Summary of scholarships for high school sophomores
• Upcoming scholarships

Keep on reading to learn more about the top scholarships for sophomores including eligibility, amounts, and deadlines!

Top scholarships for 10th graders in 2021

Scholarships360 $1,000 No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: Easy scholarship open to any student who creates a Scholarships360 account!
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: September 30, 2022

$2,000 “No Essay” College Scholarship

• Eligibility:  Open to all high school and college students
• Amount: $2,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

Student Loan Hero Smart Money Giveaway

• Eligibility: High school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

Tallo’s $1000 “Nature of Work” Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school and college students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: October 17, 2021

$500 CollegeVine Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school students who are U.S. residents
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: Weekly

$1,000 Cappex Easy College Money Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students ranging from high school students to college and community college students. 
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

$2,222 ScholarshipOwl ‘You Deserve It’ Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students who are at least 16 years old
• Amount: $2,222
• Deadline: October 29, 2021

$10,000 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship Program

• Eligibility: High school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

$2,500 Christian Connector Scholarship

• Eligibility: Current high school freshman, sophomore, or junior interested in attending a Christian university or college
• Amount: $2,500
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

$2,000 CollegeXpress Scaredy Cat Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students ages 13+
• Amount: $2,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

$10,000 CollegeXpress Scholarship

• Eligibility: High School Freshman, Sophomores, or Juniors
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: May 1, 2022

Act Locally Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school and undergraduates with an interest in volunteering or working to better their local community through social, environmental, or economic change
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: October 29, 2021

FieldLevel Athletic Recruiting No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school athletes who aspire to play sports in college
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: October 31, 2021

Better Food, Better World Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students at every level of education who share their passion for natural foods & the environment
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: November 30, 2021

Elevate Mental Health Awareness Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students at every level of education who write a short essay about mental health
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: December 1, 2021

Pandemic’s Box Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school students who submit a short essay or video about how they were positively influenced by the pandemic
• Amount: $2,000 (4 winners, $500 each)
• Deadline: December 1, 2021

Denny’s Hungry for Education Scholarships

• Eligibility: All high school and college students with at least a 2.5 GPA who share their ideas to fight childhood hunger
• Amount: $1,000 to 3,000
• Deadline: Varies (most are due December 10, 2021)

Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship

• Eligibility: All high school students, college students, graduate students, and adult learners
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 31, 2021

Air Force ROTC High School Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school students
• Amount: Full-tuition plus book, living, and travel expenses 
• Deadline: January 13, 2022

JFK Profile in Courage Essay Contest

• Eligibility: United States high school students in grades nine through twelve attending public, private, parochial, or home schools
• Amount: 15 Awards range from $100 to $10,000
• Deadline: January 14, 2022

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

• Eligibility: Students ages 13 and up in grades 7 through 12
• Amount: $500 to $10,000
• Deadline: Depending on your state, December 2021 through January 31, 2022

Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarships

• Eligibility: Open to high school students who are vegetarians or vegans
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: February 20, 2021

Ocean Awareness Contest 

• Eligibility: Students ages 11 to 18 who create a work of art in their chosen genre, including visual art, film, music, poetry, prose, and interactive and multimedia
• Amount: Scholarships worth from $100 to $1,500
• Deadline: June 13, 2022

Ethel Hayes Destigmatization of Mental Health Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students at every level of education who write a short essay about mental health
• Amount: $900
• Deadline: June 14, 2021

WayUp Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: Undergraduate and graduate students who create amazing job candidate profiles on the WayUp platform 
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: June 30, 2022

Tips for high school sophomores

1. The National Merit Scholarship Program is a scholarship that is open for high school juniors and is based on your PSAT score. Take your PSAT as a sophomore to prepare and put yourself in the best position for the National Merit Scholarship Program.
2. Choose your junior year classes wisely. Junior year is an important year academically, so make sure that you take the most challenging classes you can handle.
3. Try something new! Whether it is a new club, sport, or class, sophomore year is a great time to explore so that you can develop your passions!

Summary of top scholarships for high school sophomores

1. $2,000 “No Essay” College Scholarship
2. Student Loan Hero $1,000 Giveaway
3. Tallo’s $1000 “Nature of Work” Scholarship
4. $1,000 Cappex Easy College Money Scholarship
5. $2,222 ScholarshipOwl ‘You Deserve It’ Scholarship
6. $10,000 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship Program
7. $500 CollegeVine Scholarship
8. $2,500 Christian Connector Scholarship
9. $2,000 CollegeXpress Scaredy Cat Scholarship
10. $10,000 CollegeXpress Scholarship
11. Act Locally Scholarship
12. FieldLevel Athletic Recruiting No-Essay Scholarship
13. Better Food, Better World Scholarship
14. Elevate Mental Health Awareness Scholarship
15. Pandemic’s Box Scholarship
16. Denny’s Hungry for Education Scholarships
17. Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
18. Air Force ROTC High School Scholarship
19. JFK Profile in Courage Essay Contest
20. Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
21. Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarships
22. Ocean Awareness Contest 
23. Ethel Hayes Destigmatization of Mental Health Scholarship
24. WayUp Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship

Expired scholarships

Breakthrough Junior Challenge Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students ages 13 to 18
• Amount: $250,000
• Opens: March 15, 2022

“Fight for Equality” Women in STEM Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to female high school students who have an interest in STEM fields
• Amount: $500

Kaplun Essay Contest

• Eligibility: Students who are in grades 7 through 12 who submit an essay about their Jewish faith 
• Amount: $500 to $1,800
• Opens: Late September 2021

Little Bundle Supermom Scholarship–High School Award 

• Eligibility: Open to all high school level single moms, children of single moms, or people whose lives have been impacted in positive ways by single moms 
• Amount: $1,000

Princeton Prize in Race Relations 

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students who are involved in an activity that promotes positive race relations.
• Amount: $1,000
• Opens: January 1, 2022

Selectblinds $1000 Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school, college, or university students with a minimum GPA of 2.5
• Amount: $1,000

Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest

• Eligibility: High school students who create prom outfits with duck tape
• Amount: $500 to $10,000