Prospective college students who are hard pressed for funds have several options, including grants, essay scholarships and no essay scholarships. These scholarships are scholarship competitions that do not require candidates to write essays. Rather, these scholarships judge the applicant based on other criteria, such as academic excellence or extra curricular participation. On the other hand, essay scholarships are scholarship competitions that require the applicant to spend their own time to organize and complete an essay of various topics. Due to the mental strain that it takes to write an essay, students tend to favor these types of scholarships because of their ease of application. This article will serve to list several examples of scholarships that don’t require essays to win, and explain the parameters surrounding them.

What Are No Essay Scholarships?

Firstly, a scholarship is an amount of money given to a prospective student so that they may have an easier time paying for their education, be it private school, college, or graduate school. The student will then use this money to pay tuition at the institution they attend. A ‘no essay’ scholarship is just that: scholarship awards that do not require essays to win money.

Frequently, a no essay scholarship will work on a sweepstakes drawing system, where applicants can enter their name into a pool of other applicants and then leave their fate to chance as their number is called. The application process to enter into this pool of applicants will usually weed out the number of people who apply by providing specific criteria for application. This means that certain scholarships are only available to certain people. For example, a scholarship for single mothers will only be available to single mothers, or a scholarship for basketball players will only be available to, well, basketball players. It still happens, however, that some applicants will try to skirt the line and apply for scholarships even if they do not fit the demographic. The advantage of these kinds of scholarships is that everyone has a generally equal chance in receiving a scholarship. The downside however, is that applicants who are more qualified or in greater need of money will not necessarily get the money they deserve.

Other times, scholarships without essays will work on a merit based competition. These competitions will rely on the credentials of the applicant to justify their claim for money. As with the sweepstakes scholarships, application tends to be limited to a certain group of individuals such as academic achievers, athletes, or musicians who demonstrate excellence in their field. Only the most talented, skilled and intelligent students are awarded the money that comes with the prize. The advantage to this system is that students that deserve money for their talents will be awarded fairly. The downside to this system is that only a certain select group of elite individuals will even have a chance at the money.

As can be seen, the different types of scholarships that don’t require essays can range across several categories.

Examples of No Essay Scholarship Opportunities

• $10k for School Scholarship – This scholarship is brought to you by 10kforschool.com. Every month they have a drawing for a $10,000 scholarship. You can, in essence, apply for this scholarship every month. What’s the catch? There is none, surprisingly. Be sure to check out the date of the scholarship drawing every month, as it changes. Thousands have won, and used the money to pay for college expenses. This is perhaps the easiest scholarship money you can win.
• The free military scholarships are available to students who are enlisted in the military. This type of scholarship is a drawing that relies on luck. The criteria for this scholarship are that the student is in the military, jrotc program, or any other military educational position. Applications can be entered in on the main page, clearly visible upon entry. With this scholarship, there is not necessarily anyway to give you an advantage over other students, as with these sweepstakes scholarships, there is only chance to rely on. The deadline for application is April 16, 2012.
• Scholarships for working adults are available to students of adult age that are currently employed. This type of scholarship is a drawing that relies on luck. The criteria for this scholarship are that the student is currently employed, and of adult age. Applications can be entered in on the main page, clearly visible upon entry. With this scholarship, there is not necessarily anyway to give you an advantage over other students, as with these sweepstakes scholarships, there is only chance to rely on. The deadline for application is April 16, 2012.
• Scholarships for moms are available to female students that have children. This type of scholarship is a drawing that relies on luck. The criteria for this scholarship are that the student is female, and with a child. Applications can be entered in on the main page, clearly visible upon entry. With this scholarship, there is not necessarily anyway to give you an advantage over other students, as with these sweepstakes scholarships, there is only chance to rely on. The deadline for application is April 16, 2012.

As can be seen, no essay scholarships reduce the strain of having to write an essay, but introduce other stresses as well. It is up to the student then, to decide how they will obtain money to pay for their education.