20 Potential Scholarships for the Top 10 Academic Majors (2023)

FAQs

What is the highest academic scholarship you can get? ›

The National Merit Scholarship is one of the most coveted awards a high school student can earn. Students may take the PSAT during their freshman, sophomore or junior year of high school. The top 50,000 highest scorers are recognized as National Merit Scholars.

Minimum requirements range from around 2.0 on the lower end to 3.75 or higher for competitive academic scholarships. Generally speaking, a 3.0 GPA or higher will give you a decent shot at qualifying for a variety of scholarships.

You will increase your chances of winning a scholarship by taking your time to fill out each application thoroughly. Forgo the urge to copy and paste, even if two scholarship essay questions seem identical. Don't skip optional questions either, since they are a wonderful way to share more about yourself and your goals.

How hard is it to get a full ride scholarship? Less than 1 percent of students get full ride scholarships, showing just how difficult it is to earn one. However, with the right background, proper planning and by knowing where to look, your chances of landing a full ride scholarship can increase.

The Gates Millennium Scholars Program is another Gates minority scholarship. The program grants an average of $12,785 to 1,000 annually-selected scholars.

It could be 25% of your one-year's tuition fee or $5,000-$10,000. You might get a $50,000+ scholarship and should consider yourself lucky if you get any amount above $15,000. The better and more robust your student profile, the larger amount you will get.

Recipients are chosen on the basis of financial need and academic merit. Scholarship applicants must have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.33 or higher. See important information about enrollment status for Special Students in Enrollment Considerations.

A 4.0 Grade Point Average is not only a high GPA, it's an impressive GPA that's sure to catch the eyes of many scholarship providers. Since the minimum GPA for a full-ride scholarship is usually set at 3.5, a 4.0 is sure to always be above and beyond what's required.

The average high school GPA of admitted students at Harvard is around 4.2. 73% of students had a GPA of at least 4.0, indicating that admitted students typically mostly earned A grades in high school. If you're studying the IB, this translates to scoring mostly 7s and achieving a minimum score of at least 42.

Down in the nitty gritty, judges will compare GPAs, test scores, experiences, essays, in order to see which candidate is most suited for their scholarship award. After this step, they'll pick their winner—or winners, depending—and send out notifications to the lucky and deserving student.

How rare is it to win a scholarship? ›

7% of students are likely to receive a scholarship. Only 1.5% of students will receive a full scholarship. $8.8 billion was awarded in need-based scholarships. White students have a 14.2% chance of getting a scholarship, while minority students have 11.2%.

The list, compiled using offer information from Rivals, lists Stanford as the hardest scholarship offer to get, as David Shaw and his staff offered just 69 prospects. The top five is rounded out by Washington (80), Oklahoma State (91), Northwestern (102) and Miami (117).

Too Many Scholarships Affect Financial Aid

You're required to report any sort of outside scholarships or financial aid to your college, so your institutional aid can be adjusted accordingly. Basically, the more outside scholarship money you get, the less money the school itself will give you.

Why is searching for scholarships so hard? Many scholarships target a specific group of students. For example, a certain scholarship may only be available to biology majors. Another scholarship may only allow low-income students to apply.

To turn your passion into action.

Scholars develop and produce a project that makes a positive difference in their communities. We supply the resources and support, including $1,000 in funding, which projects can re-apply for annually.

The Oprah Winfrey Endowed Scholars Program provides financial support, leadership development experiences, and service opportunities for students with demonstrated financial need, strong academic potential, and interest in and commitment to community service.

The Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship

150 Coca-Cola Scholars are selected each year to receive this $20,000 scholarship. The 2024 application will be available August 1-October 2, 2023, for students who will graduate during the 2023-2024 academic year.

The average institutional scholarship award is $6,335. About four in 10 scholarship recipients received funds from their state, with an average award of over $2,362.

Scholarship Winner Application Averages

For those that want solid numbers, on average, many of the students I work with are applying for anywhere between 3-7+ scholarships, each, per week. Some weeks those numbers are much higher, and other weeks students are preparing or taking the week off to recharge mentally.

Does fafsa affect merit scholarships? ›

The short answer is yes, you can get scholarships without the FAFSA. But, not filing the FAFSA may limit your scholarship opportunities.

You should also have a 4.18 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score. For a school as selective as Harvard, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application.

Average GPA: 4.18

(Most schools use a weighted GPA out of 4.0, though some report an unweighted GPA. With a GPA of 4.18, Harvard requires you to be at the top of your class. You'll need nearly straight A's in all your classes to compete with other applicants.

The average high school GPA in the US is 3.0, which also accounts for roughly 35% of students who don't end up applying for college. However, for college applicants, the average GPA is more likely between 3.5 and 4.0.

To be academically eligible for a DI scholarship your student-athlete needs to have at least a 2.3 GPA on a 4.0 scale. However, it's not quite as simple as looking at their transcript and checking the overall GPA.

Undergraduate qualifications

If your graduate course at Oxford requires a 'first-class undergraduate degree with honours' in the UK system, you will usually need a bachelor's degree with an overall grade of Class 1, 'A' or 80%, or a GPA of 3.7 out of 4.0.

In truth, you need close to a 4.0 unweighted GPA to get into Yale. That means nearly straight As in every class.

There is no minimum required GPA, but competitive applicants generally have a GPA of 3.5 or above, and mostly A's in mathematics and science courses. Testing must be completed by the October test date for spring (February) entry and by the March test date for fall (September) entry.

What not to do in scholarship essays? ›

Don't use words like “finally”, “in sum” or “in conclusion”. Don't repeat or sum up in any way. Don't start too many sentences with the word “I”. Don't tell the reader explicitly, “I am a unique and interesting person.” Instead, let the reader glean this from your unique and interesting essay.

Odds of Winning a Scholarship

Only about 1 in 8 college students wins a scholarship, and the average amount used to pay for college is about $4,200 a year. Very few students win $25,000 or more in scholarships each year (only about 0.1%). Among the students who win scholarships, 97% win $2,500 or less.

Reputable scholarship providers generally require basic information such as your name, year in school and email address, but students should never give personal or financial data such as their Social Security number, driver's license number, banking information or credit-card number.

Some colleges, especially private schools, automatically consider each applicant for a merit-based scholarship, which is awarded during the acceptance process. These types of scholarships are often the easiest to obtain, since they do not require a separate application.

One of the largest scholarships, the Coca Cola Scholars Foundation program, is an achievement-based scholarship. The three areas evaluated are leadership, academics and service. Scholarships are awarded to graduating high school seniors planning to pursue a degree at an accredited US college or university.

Fellowships generally offer more money than scholarships.

Students use all sorts of financial aid to pay for college, including grants, scholarships, loans, and fellowships.

What happens to leftover scholarship money. If you earned scholarships and grants that add up to more than your total cost of attendance, your school may send you a refund of the leftover scholarship money. Keep in mind, you may have to pay taxes on that amount.

Can I spend my scholarship money on anything? ›

Unfortunately, turning scholarship money into cash is not allowed. Despite being considered free money, scholarship funds are financial aid awarded for an intended purpose. That specific purpose is to pay educational expenses like college tuition, student fees, and other college costs.

How scholarship review processes work. Scholarship providers usually only start reviewing applications once the deadline passes. They then usually choose a winner within 3 months of the deadline. If you've won, they'll contact you by phone or email, and explain to you how you'll receive your scholarship prize money.

Scholarship applications are rejected for several reasons. It could be that the essays submitted weren't as high in quality as those submitted by other candidates, poor GPA, low amounts of extracurricular activities, neglecting to submit all required materials, etc.

Yes, students can technically reuse scholarship essays when they're applying for multiple awards. In the vast majority of cases, there aren't any rules barring the practice.

Scholarships & Grants

Because Harvard is committed to affordability, our scholarships are designed to cover 100% of your demonstrated financial need. Here is our process: First we determine your award by establishing your parent contribution.

A scholarship that offers $25,000 to $49,999 is still worth the student's time and effort. Even a scholarship worth $500 deserves an application, since every dollar won is a dollar less borrowed. There are many more scholarships at these award levels, but here are a dozen of the most famous scholarships.

What are the three most common types of scholarships? Common types of scholarships for college are merit-based scholarships, need-based scholarships, and athletic scholarships.

A 4.0 Grade Point Average is not only a high GPA, it's an impressive GPA that's sure to catch the eyes of many scholarship providers. Since the minimum GPA for a full-ride scholarship is usually set at 3.5, a 4.0 is sure to always be above and beyond what's required.

What is the 5 strong scholarship? ›

The mission of the 5 Strong Scholarship Foundation is to increase the retention and graduation rates at partnering Historically Black Colleges and Universities by assisting in the enrollment and success of academically promising student leaders until graduation.

Harvard does not offer any merit-based aid and no full-ride scholarships. However, they do meet 100% of students' demonstrated financial needs. Almost half of the batch at Harvard University avails need-based scholarships or financial aid every year.

Unfortunately, the reality is that many students who more than meet all of the requirements for a full scholarship will not get it. In fact, only 0.1% of students get a full-ride per year.

If you earned scholarships and grants that add up to more than your total cost of attendance, your school may send you a refund of the leftover scholarship money. Keep in mind, you may have to pay taxes on that amount.

Talk to your high school counselor. Use the Department of Labor's scholarship search tool to sort more than 8,000 opportunities for student aid. Inquire at the financial aid office at your college of choice. See if your employer or your parents' employers offer assistance.

When do I apply for scholarships? That depends on each scholarship's deadline. Some deadlines are as early as a year before college starts, so if you're in high school now, you should be researching and applying for scholarships during the summer between your junior and senior years.

Applicant must demonstrate academic performance and financial need; applicants must also submit FAFSA to federal processor and Cal Grant GPA Verification Form to California Student Aid Commission.