4 tips to write a strong scholarship, job, or grant application

I’ve gotten $70k+ in scholarships, $10k in business grants, and sat on a few award admission committees. Here’s what I’ve learned about writing a strong application so far. I've also used these approaches to win 20+ leadership and business awards. As you read this, consider how these tips can help you beyond scholarships.

Read the application criteria and tailor your submission to it. 

Try to show how your experiences connect to an application’s goals, and how being a recipient will help you in your journey. If you're applying for a leadership development award that offers money, don't just focus on how you need the money. Talk about how the leadership development opportunities will support your goals too for example. Showing you did your research into an organization and what it will offer you goes a long way (I even used this tactic for rubrics as a student, and it helped me consistently get As on essays for example. That is another story.).

Tell a story with your application.

It’s great to have accomplishments to speak to, but it’s also important to connect them to why you would make for a great recipient.

Write to be understood. 

We often write to express a message, but do not take the same time to consider how it’ll be received. If someone is reading an application for the first time, I try to make my sentences clear and concise. That way, they may have less difficulty understanding why you'd make a great recipient. And that may just make the difference. I use two tricks. One trick I use is reading my sentences out loud. I usually don’t include what would sound funky in a conversation (like the word hencetoforth). The second is one I learned in grade 5. My teacher told me to write complicated things in ways that aliens from Mars would understand. That was a way of reminding me to write things in ways that no one with no background knowledge would understand.

People may never truly understand your path. For that reason, write simply to be understood.

Try and try again.

For every success story I’ve posted, there have been multiple rejections that I’ve learned to gradually brush off. Let it motivate you to get the next one.

If you found this useful, please explore my website! You can learn more about the personal, career, and entrepreneurial resources on this website, and the workshops I offer for organizations/groups. I also have a scholarship directory available when you add your email to my newsletter on the landing page.

I also have content on the way about how you can use AI to advance your personal, career, and entrepreneurial development. Check out my blog page to see previous blogs on this topic.

 Take care!