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Essays

Below, you will find the following:

General tips for writing your essays
Four required Short Essays
Methods for creating your Four Required Short Essay Answers
Other essays for individual scholarship programs
Submitting your essays

General Tips:

Let your essays tell your story. Donors are looking for reasons why they should choose you for their scholarship award. Show the “unique you” in your essays and use correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Don’t repeat information already included in your application, such as that your greatest accomplishment is your GPA. Focus on something unique about yourself! For all essays, pay attention to the topic and any length requirements.

Four Required Short Essay Answers:

Required Short Essay #1: Explain your career aspirations and your educational plan to meet these goals.
Required Short Essay #2: Describe a challenge or obstacle you faced in the last ten years. What did you learn about yourself from this experience?
Required Short Essay #3: Describe a personal accomplishment and the strengths and skills you used to achieve it.
Required Short Essay #4: Explain how you have helped your family or made your community a better place to live. Please provide specific examples.

Other Required Essays for Individual Scholarship Programs:

Review the eligibility requirements for each scholarships for which you are applying. Some scholarships require an additional essay or other documentation. Click here to learn more.

Methods for Creating Your Four Required Short Essay Answers:

Essay forms in the eApp (online Application):
Use the essay section in the eApp to create your four required Short Essay Answers. You can either type in the text directly or cut and paste it in from a word processing program such as Microsoft Word. If you type it in directly, be sure to save often. If your computer sits idle too long, it will “time out” and you may lose any unsaved information. Make sure you do not exceed the limit of 150 words or 1,000 characters. You can check the word and character count in Microsoft Word, by going to Tools on your menu bar and selecting Word Count. When satisfied, you can then cut/paste or copy the essay into your eApp essay template. The essays will be submitted online along with your application and Activities Chart. If you do not limit your essay, the eApp will truncate your essay and it will not be complete.

Paper Applicants, only. You may create and print your essays using whatever method you are most comfortable with. The four required Short Essay Answers should be printed two to a page (Required Essays #1 and #2 on one page, Required Essays #3 and #4 on a second page). Be sure your essays are easy to read—follow these guidelines:

Essays must be created in a word processing program or typed.
Use white paper; double space your lines; if using word processing software, use 10-12 pt. type size and an easily readable type style (e.g., Times New Roman).
Put your name and last four digits of your SSN in the top right corner of each page.