It is never too early to start applying for scholarships! These scholarships for high school students in 9th grade will help you get started.

Freshman year is a year of transitions. Most students will be entering high school from a middle school or elementary school and go from being the oldest students in school to the youngest. Freshman year of high school is also an exciting year of new possibilities and experiences. Notably, your grades, classes, and accomplishments will all start officially counting for the college admissions process.

Use this as motivation to always give your best! Many students may not know that there are a number of fantastic scholarships available for students in ninth grade. This can be a great way to start earning money to pay for college (even if you are still a few years away from college). Our motto is that “it’s never too early to apply for scholarships.”

In this scholarship guide for high school freshman you will learn more about:

• Top Scholarships for high School freshman in 2020
• Scholarship tips for high school freshman
• Looking for other scholarships for high school students?
• Summary of high school freshman scholarships
• Expired scholarships for high school freshman

Top scholarships for high school freshman in 2020:

Scholarships360 No Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: All high school, college, and graduate students are eligible for this scholarship!
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: June 30, 2021

$15,000 Tallo Scholarship

• Applicants must be legal U.S. citizens physically living in the U.S., at least 13 years of age, and attending a post-secondary institution in 2021
• $15,000
• December 31, 2020

$10,000 “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students, including high school, college, and graduate students
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: November 30

$10,000 CollegeXpress Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students must attend one of the nearly 900 CollegeXpress partner colleges
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: May 31, 2021

$10,000 ScholarshipPoints $10,000 Scholarship Program

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: November 30

$2,500 Christian Connector Scholarship

• Eligibility: To be eligible for this scholarship, students must be a current high school freshman, sophomore, or junior interested in attending a Christian university or college
• Amount: $2,500
• Deadline: November 30

$1,000 Cappex Easy College Money Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students ranging from high school students to college and community college students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: November 30

$1,000 CollegeXpress “What Are You Thankful For” Scholarship 

• 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: November 30

$1,000 Tallo “Easy November” Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school and college students who set up a Tallo profile
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: November 30

“Be Bold” No-Essay Community Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students who register to Bold.org and has invited many friends
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: November 19

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

To learn about finding & winning top scholarships, check out our Ultimate Scholarships Guide!

Christophers’ Poster Contest

• Eligibility: High school students in grades 9 through 12 who create a kindness poster
• Amount: $100 to $1,000
• Deadline: February 18

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, but most are December 11

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: May 31, 2021

Engineer Girl Writing Contest 

• Eligibility: The contest is open to individual girls and boys in the following three competition categories: Elementary School Students (grades 3-5), Middle School Students in (grades 6-8), or High School Students (grades 9-12)
• Amount: $250 to $500
• Deadline: February 1, 2021

Evie Irie Misfit Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to high school students who share an essay about why they feel like a misfit and how being a misfit shaped their dreams
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: May 1, 2021

FieldLevel Athletic Recruiting No-Essay Scholarship

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

Galactic Fed Young Entrepreneurs Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to high school and college students who are entrepreneurial self-starters 
• Amount: $500   
• Deadline: April 2, 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

Giving Thanks Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to students at all educational levels who submit a picture and a short story, poem, or essay that describes this person they are grateful for
• Amount: $2,000   
• Deadline: November 22

JFK Profile in Courage Essay Contest

• Eligibility: Open to high school students who complete an essay about a U.S. elected historical figure.
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: January 15, 2021

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
• Deadline: March 7, 2021

LeverEdge Better Rates No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all college and graduate students who sign up a LeverEdge Student Loan Negotiation account
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 1

Scholarcash Role Model Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all high school, college, and graduate students who submit any essay about role models
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 1

Selectblinds $1000 Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school, college, or university students with a minimum GPA of 2.5
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: July 15, 2021

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: December 1

Solar Scholarship

• Eligibility: High school seniors, college and graduate students with an interest in solar energy 
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: July 1, 2021

Support Small Businesses Scholarship 

• Open to students at all educational levels who submit an essay about their relationship to the small business community and what they hope to achieve with their business, future business, or parent’s business
• $2,000
• November 21

Survey Junkie Brand Influencer No-Essay Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all students who join Survey Junkie to share opinions on products and services
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: December 1

Taylor Price Financial Literacy for the Future Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to high school and college students who submit an essay.  Applicants from minority groups underrepresented in the financial world and those with non-profit or volunteering experience will be preferred
• Amount: $500
• Deadline: April 14, 2021

Technology Addiction Awareness Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to high school freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior or a current or entering college or graduate school students
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: January 20, 2021

Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarships

• Eligibility: Open to high school students who are vegetarians or vegans
• Amount: $10,000
• Deadline: February 21, 2021

Unigo Flavor of the Month Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students who are currently enrolled or will be enrolled in college by 2026 who write a short essay.
• Amount: $1,500
• Deadline: July 31, 2021

Scholarship tips for high school freshman

1. Your scholarship search should start now! Every dollar you earn now will be less money that you have to pay or take out in student loan debt!
2. One of the best ways to win college-specific merit scholarships is through a strong academic record. Keep up your grades and take the most challenging classes you can!
3. There are many scholarships for students who have talents or interests in a particular area! Ninth grade is a great time to start developing your interests through activities, volunteering, and hobbies!

Looking for other scholarships for high school students?

If you are looking for other high school scholarships, we have you covered:

• Scholarships for High School Seniors
• Scholarships for High School Juniors
• Scholarships for High School Sophomores
• Scholarships for High School Freshman

Summary of high school freshman scholarships

1. Scholarships360 No Essay Scholarship
2. $15,000 Tallo Scholarship
3. $10,000 “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship
4. $10,000 CollegeXpress Scholarship
5. $10,000 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship Program
6. $2,500 Christian Connector Scholarship
7. $1,000 Cappex Easy College Money Scholarship
8. $1,000 CollegeXpress “What Are You Thankful For” Scholarship 
9. $1,000 Tallo “Easy November” Scholarship
10. “Be Bold” No-Essay Community Scholarship
11. Breanden Beneschott Fire Memes Scholarship
12. Christophers’ Poster Contest
13. Denny’s Hungry for Education Scholarships
14. Elevate Mental Health Awareness Scholarship
15. Engineer Girl Writing Contest
16. Evie Irie Misfit Scholarship
17. FieldLevel Athletic Recruiting No-Essay Scholarship
18. Galactic Fed Young Entrepreneurs Scholarship
19. Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship
20. Giving Thanks Scholarship
21. JFK Profile in Courage Essay Contest
22. Kaplun Essay Contest
23. LeverEdge Better Rates No-Essay Scholarship
24. Scholarcash Role Model Scholarship
25. Selectblinds $1000 Scholarship
26. Share Your Dream Job No-Essay Scholarship
27. Solar Scholarship
28. Support Small Businesses Scholarship 
29. Survey Junkie Brand Influencer No-Essay Scholarship
30. Taylor Price Financial Literacy for the Future Scholarship
31. Technology Addiction Awareness Scholarship
32. The Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarships
33. Unigo Flavor of the Month Scholarship

Expired scholarships for high school freshman

High School Social Leaders Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students must be committed to making the world a better place and write an essay
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: March 28th

I Have a Dream Scholarship

• Eligibility: Students who are currently enrolled or will be enrolled in college by 2026 who write a short essay
• Amount: $1,500
• Deadline: January 31st

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 15

One Move Ahead Chess Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to chess players of all ages
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: March 23

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
• Deadline: January 31 (opens in November)

Recent Immigrant Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students who immigrated to the United States on or after January 1, 2010.
• Amount: $1,000
• Deadline: March 31

Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest

• Eligibility: High school students who create prom outfits with duck tape
• Amount: $500 to $10,000
• Deadline: July 21

Taco Bell Live Más Scholarship

• Eligibility: Open to all high school students who submit a video entry about their life’s passion
• Amount: $5,000 to $25,000 per year
• Deadline: January 23