Every year I am amazed with the insanely large number of scholarships that go unclaimed. But I always enjoy finding unusual scholarships that would be fun to pursue.
For example, if you’re adept at using duct tape, high school students might qualify for a $10,000 Stuck at Prom Scholarship. Yes, that’s an actual scholarship.
Even crazier is the search for the best plan for survival of the zombie apocalypse. Let me know if you apply and win the Zombie Apocalypse Scholarship ($2,000).
Most scholarship applications are far more boring than these–and likely far easier to win.
More than $100 million in college scholarships went unclaimed last year, and Pell Grants not claimed totaled $3.75 billion in 2021, according to Investopedia.
As a reviewer of scholarship applications in the public relations and advertising at DePaul, I am surprised each year by how few students apply for merit scholarships that pay for at least one full course. And as someone who has endowed scholarships at my alma mater, DePaul and PRSA, I also am amazed by how few students apply for the free money. (No, I don’t make decisions on who wins the scholarships so don’t send me your requests for consideration).
The PRSA Foundation currently offers more than 30 scholarships, so check them out and consider applying before the April 30 deadline.
You can find loads more scholarships via a simple Google search, perhaps beginning with this helpful guide on How to Find Scholarships.