Top Scholarships for College Students
Are you currently in college? Here are some scholarships to pay for college and graduate debt free!
One of the biggest misconceptions about scholarships is that they are only for high school students. In fact, there are numerous lucrative scholarship opportunities that current college students can apply for. These scholarships for college students can help you pay for tuition, room, board, fees, and other expenses like books and laptops.
If you are able to win scholarships as a college student you can lessen the amount of student loans that you need to take out. This can literally pay off after you graduate as you will have a lower student loan burden.
Luckily, there are many scholarships for college students who are studying at all colleges, community colleges, and universities! Whether you are a college freshman interested in chemistry or a student interested in criminal justice, there is a scholarship for you!
In this guide we will be covering:
- Top scholarships for college students in 2020
- College scholarships by grade-level
- How to win scholarships as a college student
- Frequently Asked Questions
Top scholarships for college students in 2020:
$1,000 Fund Your Future No-Essay Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to college juniors & seniors in select STEM, Nursing, and Business majors
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: August 31
$1,000 Tallo’s “Easy 22 Questions” Scholarship
- Eligibility: High school and college students who set up a Tallo profile
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: End of each month
Annual Black Entrepreneurship Grant
- Eligibility: Open to current or aspiring Black entrepreneurs undergraduate or graduate students across any field or business stage
- Amount: $2,000
- Deadline: December 1
The “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to all students, including high school, college, and graduate students
- Amount: $10,000
- Deadline: August 31
The “Be Bold” No-Essay Community Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to students who register to Bold.org and has invited many friends
- Amount: $5,000
- Deadline: August 31
Bellhops Moving Forward Scholarship
- Eligibility: This scholarship is open to high school seniors and college students who submit an essay about the importance/impact of their major
- Amount: $3,000
- Deadline: September 15
Big Sun Scholarship
- Eligibility: Student athletes who are high school seniors or in college
- Amount: $500
- Deadline: June 19, 2021
Black Students in Public Health Grant
- Eligibility: Open to black undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing a career in any area of public health
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: November 1
CollegeXpress $1,000 Back to School Scholarship Contest
- Eligibility: This scholarship is open to all students who are 13 years or older and legal residents of the United States or DC.
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: August 31
Future Designer Scholarship
- Eligibility: To be eligible for this scholarship, students must be an incoming (graduating high school senior) or college student who designs a holiday greeting card
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: November 1
Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
- Eligibility: 9th-12th grade high school, college, or graduate students, including adult students
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: December 31, 2020
HireAHelper Skilled Trade & Technology Scholarships
- Eligibility: Currently enrolled (or planning to) as a high school senior, or in a community college, undergraduate, graduate, technical college, or vocational program
- Amount: $2,000
- Deadline: Deadlines are as follows: Winter: April 16, Spring: July 17, Summer: October 14, and Fall: January 15 at 11:59 p.m. PST of each year
Hustle Tech & Business News No-Essay Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to all undergraduate and graduate students who sign up for the Hustle free daily newsletter and share what they learned.
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: August 31
Lounge Lizard Web Design Scholarship
- Eligibility: High school seniors and college students with an interest in Web Design
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: October 4 and February 20
Markforged Distinguished Women Engineers Grant
- Eligibility: Open to all college and graduate students who share a project they are/have worked on that demonstrates their ability as an engineer
- Amount: $5,000
- Deadline: November 18
Share Your Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to students at every level who create a TikTok video about what a great day at their dream job would be like
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: August 31
Smart Borrower No-Essay Scholarship & Loan Forgiveness Grant
- Eligibility: Open to all high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students.
- Amount: $5,000
- Deadline: August 31
Solar Scholarship
- Eligibility: High school seniors, college and graduate students with an interest in solar energy
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: July 1, 2021
WayUp Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship
- Eligibility: Open to all undergraduate and graduate students who create amazing job candidate profiles on the WayUp platform
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: August 31
Zippia’s Teacher Dream Job Scholarship
- Eligibility: This scholarship is open to any college, university, associates program, junior college, vocational school, or high school students living in the United States who is planning on a teaching career
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: December 31
College scholarships by grade-level:
- Scholarships for College Freshmen
- Scholarships for College Sophomores
- Scholarships for Community College Students
- Scholarships for Transfer Students
- Scholarships for Graduate Students
How to win scholarships as a college student
- Apply to many scholarships to increase your odds of winning. A key part of any scholarship strategy should be applying to a broad array of scholarship opportunities. The more you apply to, the more you can win!
- Check your college’s financial aid website for scholarships. Your college’s financial aid office should be your first stop for college scholarships since they may be able to offer other forms of aid as well (like grants or work study programs).
- If you win a scholarship, check to see if you must re-apply each year. Certain scholarships may require students to maintain a certain GPA, or provide proof of enrollment each year. Check the details of any scholarship you win to see if these rules apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it possible to get a scholarship while in college?
Yes! In fact, there are scholarships exclusively meant for college students. These scholarships can help with the cost of undergraduate tuition or help with the costs of graduate school.
How do you find scholarships for college?
To find scholarships while in college, begin with a search of your school’s financial aid office website. Here you may find scholarships specifically meant for students of the college that you’re attended. Other good places to start are organizations related to your field of interest, ethnicity-based organizations, and your employer or your parents’ employers.
Of course, don’t forget to check out the list above or our scholarship database!
Which college scholarships are easy to get?
There are two opposing qualities that make a scholarship “easy” to win:
- There are few application requirements, so you can apply to a ton of them. To begin with this strategy, apply to all of the scholarships on our easy scholarships list.
- There are a lot of application requirements, so not that many people can apply. If your college offers a scholarship specifically meant for first-generation college students, the applicant pool is limited to both students attending your college and, out of that group, first-generation students. If you qualify, your chances of winning are way higher than a contest with broad application requirements. While these are a bit harder to find, you can start with our list of best merit scholarships.
Do college transfer students get scholarships?
Yes, transfer students qualify for scholarships! Check out our list of the top scholarships for college transfer students for scholarships still accepting applications.
Expired, but returning next year:
Delete Cyberbullying Scholarship
- Eligibility: High school seniors, college students, community college students, or graduate students who write an essay about cyberbullying
- Amount: $1,000
- Deadline: June 30
El Cafe Del Futuro Scholarship
- Eligibility: Current undergraduate and graduate students of Latino descent
- Amount: $5,000
- Deadline: July 6
Little People of America Scholarship Program
- Eligibility: Scholarships are open to prospective and current students attending college or vocational school in the United States who have a medically diagnosed form of dwarfism, or are immediate family members of someone with dwarfism.
- Amount: $250 – $1,000
- Deadline: May 31
