Let’s face it, there are tons and tons of scholarships out there for students to apply for. In fact, there’s so many that sometimes it can feel pretty overwhelming. If you’re at the point in your scholarship search where you’ve applied for lots of local opportunities but have yet to branch out to those bigger name scholarships, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, I am going to highlight some of the greatest scholarships to watch out for and apply for in 2021.
You may be thinking, “some of these scholarships are so popular, why should I even bother applying?”
To answer your question, these scholarships are all awesome opportunities. Despite the fact that some of them may be pretty well-known, not all of them are, and additionally, if you are eligible for a scholarship and you think you are a strong candidate, there is never any harm in applying. You never know what might happen if you apply, whereas if you don’t apply, you’ll never know!
So, without further ado, here is my list of scholarships you should apply for in the new year.
Amount: $25,000 per year
Deadline: February 3
Eligibility:
- You’re a legal U.S. resident
- You’re a high school senior
- You’re younger than 21 years old
- You carry a minimum 2.8 GPA
- You have at least one parent of Hispanic heritage
Amount: $1,000 – $50,000
Deadline: December 15
Eligibility: Must currently be in high school
Create a Greeting Card Scholarship
Amount: $10,000
Deadline: March 9
Eligibility:
- Age Eligibility: Must be 14 years or older at time of entry
- Must be enrolled in High School, College, University, or Homeschool.
Amount: full tuition!
Deadline: October 18
Eligibility:
- Aged between 18 and 24 years old
Elks Most Valuable Student Scholarship
Amount: $4,000 – $50,000
Deadline: November 15
Eligibility:
- Must be a U.S. citizen pursuing a 4-year degree full-time at an accredited, degree-granting U.S. college or university
- Must currently be in high school
Amount: $20,000
Deadline: October 31
Eligibility:
- A current high school or homeschooled student attending a school in the US (or select DoD schools)
- A US Citizen, US National, US Permanent Resident, Refugee, Asylee, Cuban-Haitian Entrant, or Humanitarian Parolee
- Receiving a high school diploma during the academic year
- Planning to pursue a degree at an accredited US post-secondary institution
Amount: Varies
Deadline: Varies
Eligibility:
- Must be 25 years old or younger and be a citizen of the US or Canada
Amount: $500 – $10,000
Deadline: June 8
Eligibility:
- Contest is open to residents of the United States and Canada
- Must be 14 years or older
- Must attend a high school, home school association, or other school-sanctioned prom during the calendar year
- Must be a legal resident of the United States and the District of Columbia (excluding residents of Maryland, Vermont, and Colorado) or a legal resident of Canada (excluding the Province of Quebec)
Amount: full tuition!
Deadline: September 15
Eligibility:
- A high school senior
- From at least one of the following ethnicities: African-American, American Indian/Alaska Native*, Asian & Pacific Islander American, and/or Hispanic American
- Pell-eligible
- A US citizen, national, or permanent resident
- In good academic standing with a minimum cumulative weighted GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (or equivalent)
GE Reagan Foundation Scholarship
Amount: $10,000 (renewable, up to $40,000)
Deadline: January 5
Eligibility:
- Demonstrate at school, at the workplace, and within the community the attributes of leadership, drive, integrity, and citizenship;
- Demonstrate strong academic performance (minimum 3.0 grade point average/4.0 scale or equivalent);
- Be citizens of the United States of America;
- Be current high school seniors attending high school in the United States (students living on U.S. Armed Forces base and homeschooled students are also eligible); and
- Plan to enroll in a full-time undergraduate course of study toward a bachelor’s degree at an accredited four-year college or university in the United States for the entire upcoming academic year.
Amount: $500 – $5,000
Deadline: April 1
Eligibility:
- Any legal U.S. resident who will be a full-time student at a U.S. college or university in the 2021–2022 academic year is eligible
Voice of Democracy Scholarship
Amount: $1,000 – $30,000
Deadline: October 31
Eligibility:
- Aged between 14 and 19 years old
- Must currently be in high school
Amount: $1,000
Deadline: Monthly
Eligibility:
- Available for all U.S. students who are ages 16 and older and are high school or college students
Amount: $20,000
Deadline: December 1
Eligibility:
- Participate in a program-approved college readiness program in grades 11 and 12
- Be on track to graduate from an accredited high school in the current academic year
- Demonstrate a need for financial assistance
- Be eligible to receive a federal Pell Grant in the first year of college
- Plan to enroll full time at an accredited higher education institution in the pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in the fall directly following high school graduation
- Earn a minimum of a 2.4 GPA
Amount: up to $40,000 per year
Deadline: October 30
Eligibility:
- 3.5 Minimum GPA
- Must currently be in high school
- Demonstrate unmet financial need
Taco Bell Live Mas Scholarship
Amount: $25,000
Deadline: January 20
Eligibility:
- Aged between 16 and 24 years old
Amount: $2,000
Deadline: Rolling monthly
Eligibility:
- Must be attending a 2-year or 4-year college or university or trade/technical school
Scholarship Points $10,000 Scholarship
Amount: $10,000
Deadline: Quarterly
Eligibility:
- Must be a student – that’s it!
Amount: full tuition!
Deadline: October 4
Eligibility:
- Be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) by time of application;
- Be an Arizona resident for two full years immediately preceding entry to the university.
- Attain at least a 3.5 grade-point average (unweighted);
- Rank in the top 5 percent of their graduating class (if the school reports class rank);
- Participate and demonstrate leadership in a variety of extracurricular activities
Amount: Varies
Deadline: Varies
Eligibility:
- Must be a U.S. citizen
- Must be at least 17 years of age
- Must have at least a 2.5 GPA (3.0 for Air Force ROTC)
- Must meet minimum SAT and/or ACT requirements
- Must have a high school diploma
- Must meet prescribed physical fitness standards
Don’t Text and Drive Scholarship
Amount: $1,000
Deadline: September 30
Eligibility:
- You must be a high school freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior or a current or entering college or graduate school student of any level.
- Homeschooled students are also eligible.
- There is no age limit.
Amount: $25,000
Deadline: Rolling
Eligibility:
- Students at any education level, school, field of study, and GPA will be considered.