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.

In this guide we will be covering:

• Top scholarships for college students in 2021
• College scholarships by grade-level
• How to win scholarships as a college student
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Summary of Scholarships
• Upcoming Scholarships

Whether you are a college freshman interested in chemistry or a student interested in criminal justice, there is a scholarship for you! Keep on reading to learn more!

Top scholarships for college students in 2021:

Ascent 50 Days of No Essay Scholarships

• Eligibility: Open to students enrolled in a degree program or bootcamp (including rising college freshman, 18 years and older)
• Amount: $1,000 (50 scholarships will be awarded)
• Deadline: Rolling (a new scholarship opens up every day until August 20th). Students can apply every day to increase their chances!

Student Loan Hero Smart Money Giveway

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students.
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: August 31, 2021

$2,000 Nitro College Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school, college, community and graduate students
• Amount: $2,000
• Deadline: August 31, 2021

Tallo’s $1,000 Go for the Gold Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school and college students who set up a Tallo profile
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: August 31, 2021

$10,000 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship Program

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: August 31, 2021

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

First-Generation College Students Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school seniors or current undergraduate students who are the first in their family to attend college or university
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: August 2, 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, 2021

WiseGeek Recent Immigrants Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students in any field of study who immigrated to the United States on or after January 1, 2010 and plans to live & work here
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: September 1, 2021

Breanden Beneschott Fire Memes Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students who submit their favorite memes. Bonus points for originality!
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: October 1, 2021

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

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, 2021

Tortuga Study Abroad Scholarship

• Eligibility: College students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: April 15 and November 15 each year

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 19, 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: Open to all students at every level of education who write a short essay about mental health
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: December 1, 2021

Ted Rollins Eco Scholarship 

• Eligibility: Open to undergraduate students and high school seniors planning on earning a business or sustainability degree
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 1, 2021

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: December 31, 2021

Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship

• Eligibility: 9th-12th grade high school, college, or graduate students, including adult students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 31, 2021

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, 2021

Rover Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school seniors and college student who write an essay about the impact of technology on their lives 
• Amount: $2,500
• Deadline: May 1, 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: $850 (goes up as donors contribute!)
• Deadline: June 14, 2022

Probo Medical Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school, college, and graduate students with a 3.0 or above GPA who submit an essay about medical technology and the future
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: January 15 and June 15 of each year

Big Sun Scholarship

• Eligibility: Student athletes who are high school seniors or in college
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: June 19, 2022

Solar Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school seniors, college and graduate students with an interest in solar energy 
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: July 1, 2022

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

College scholarships by grade-level

Whether you are a college freshman or a transfer student, we have specific guides to help you find and apply for scholarships:

• Scholarships for College Freshmen
• Scholarships for College Sophomores
• Scholarships for College Juniors
• Scholarships for College Seniors
• Scholarships for Community College Students
• Scholarships for Transfer Students

How to win scholarships as a college student

Here are a few tips for finding and winning scholarships and financial aid as a current college student.

Apply for need-based financial aid

Don’t forget about need-based financial aid, which includes Pell Grants, Federal SEOG Grants, and work study. To apply for need-based financial aid from the government or from your college, you will need to apply for financial aid.

The two major financial aid applications that students will come across are the FAFSA and the CSS Profile. Both of these applications have specific deadlines, so make sure that you get everything in on time!

Additionally, financial aid is only offered on an annual basis, so you will need to reapply for financial aid in subsequent college years.

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:

1. 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.
2. 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.

Summary of Scholarships

1. Ascent 50 Days of $1,000 Scholarships
2. Student Loan Hero Smart Money Giveaway
3. $2,000 Nitro College Scholarship
4.  Tallo’s $1,000 Go for the Gold Scholarship
5. $10,000 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship Program
6. HireAHelper Skilled Trade & Technology Scholarships
7. First-Generation College Students Scholarship
8. WayUp Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship
9. WiseGeek Recent Immigrants Scholarship
10. Breanden Beneschott Fire Memes Scholarship
11. Lounge Lizard Web Design Scholarship
12. Future Designer Scholarship
13. Tortuga Study Abroad Scholarship
14. Markforged Distinguished Women Engineers Grant
15. Better Food, Better World Scholarship
16. Elevate Mental Health Awareness Scholarship
17. Ted Rollins Eco Scholarship
18. Delete Cyberbullying Scholarship
19. Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
20. Zippia’s Teacher Dream Job Scholarship       
21. Rover Scholarship
22. Ethel Hayes Destigmatization of Mental Health Scholarship
23. Probo Medical Scholarship
24. Big Sun Scholarship
25. Solar Scholarship
26. Denny’s Hungry for Education Scholarships

Upcoming scholarships for college students

$20,000 JuJu Foundation Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to current high school and undergraduate students studying in the US who face financial challenges in paying for their education
• Amount: $20,000 (four scholarships are awarded!)

Amplify Green Innovation Scholarship

• Eligibility: The scholarship is open to undergraduate and graduate school students in any field of study who are dedicated to preserving our planet through green innovation and science.
• Amount: $1,000

Austin Kramer Music Scholarship 

• Eligibility: Open to students at all levels who share an inspiring song, curate a 10-20 track playlist, and then submit a paragraph (under 100 words) explaining your playlist.
• Amount: $500

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

Bubba Wallace Live to Be Different Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to high school and undergraduate students who share about a time when they encountered adversity and what they did to overcome it
• Amount: $10,000

El Cafe Del Futuro Scholarship

• Eligibility: Current undergraduate and graduate students of Latino descent
• Amount: $5,000

Future Leaders in Technology Scholarship – College Award

• Eligibility: The scholarship is open to undergraduate college and university students pursuing a degree in computer science, electrical engineering or data science. You must also be a member of an underrepresented group, including: Black or African American, Hispanic or Latinx, American Indian or Native American, LGBTQA+, and Women
• Amount: $2,500

Great Outdoors Wilderness Education Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to undergraduate and graduate students who have incorporated the outdoors into their education, worldviews, and career goals in some meaningful way
• Amount: $1,000  

Grow the Game Volleyball Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students at all educational levels who demonstrate passion, achievement, and leadership efforts in growing the game of volleyball
• Amount: $2,500   

Little Bundle Superdad Scholarship — College Award

• Eligibility: Undergraduate or graduate level students who are either single fathers or are the children of single fathers are eligible to apply
• Amount: $2,000

Little Bundle Supermom Scholarship — College Award

• Eligibility: Open to undergraduate or graduate level single moms, children of single moms, or people whose lives have been impacted in positive ways by single moms 
• Amount: $2,000

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

Nikhil Desai “Perspective” Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students at all levels of education who submit an essay about a moment that changed their perspective on life. Preference given to first generation students
• Amount: $1,000

One Move Ahead Chess Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students at every level who submits an essay about how the game of chess has influenced their life
• Amount: $1,000  

Reputation Rhino Protection and Preservation of Wildlife and Nature Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to undergraduate college students with a demonstrated interest and career plan in the conservation of endangered species. Essay required. 
• Amount: $500

Selectblinds $1,000 Scholarship

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

Taco Bell Live Más Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students between the ages of 16 and 26 who submit a video entry about their life’s passion
• Amount: $5,000 to $25,000 per year

Traveling Artist Scholarship

• Eligibility: Undergraduate students who submit an essay on how they plan to use travel to develop themselves as people and as artists
• Amount: $1,000