College is some of the greatest years of your life. Those wonderful memories likely end the moment you realize how much crippling debt you're in. Whether you're about to be a college freshman or you already have those years under your belt, you can definitely benefit from this list (especially when your school raises the tuition every year).
1. Zombie Apocalypse Scholarship
I'm sure we all have some survivor plan just in case that experimental drug the government is secretly working on turns out to be the catalyst for the end of the world. You might as well get paid for your incredible plan. This scholarship just asks you to imagine that your high school or college is being taken over by zombies. Everyone you know has turned. Create a plan to avoid the zombies, including where you would hide the top five things you would need to survive.
The essay can't exceed 250 words and you know, should be written with proper spelling, grammar and all that jazz. The criteria is fairly simple. Just be over the age of 13 and legally live in the United States. For the information you've really been waiting for. Well... drum roll...this scholarship grants $2,000. Pretty nice for a creative essay on zombies.
You can see all the information at this website.
2. Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarship
Maybe life isn't like "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World" where you can be vegetarian and have superpowers, but you can win a scholarship for being one. The deadline is February 2017. An application here, an essay there, and you're on your way to an award of $10,000 or $5,000 dollars. Need I say more?
3. Debt.com Scholarship
Is this scholarship fun? Probably not. But, if you're applying for tons of scholarships and aren't getting any, then this may be your answer. Show proof of your application to other scholarships and answer why you're applying to this scholarship is the most work you have to do. Come up with a nice sob story about your dreams of being great and after working so hard, your college raised tuition. You can't get a raise at the job you've been working for two years. I'm not saying lie to them but...this scholarship pays $500 and the deadline is December 1.
4. Gamers In Real Life
...or (G.I.R.L.). Sorry bros, this $10,000 scholarship is just for the lady gamers in the U.S. This scholarship is one of the hardest on this list, but I'm sure it's worth it if you win. You have to submit two original pieces of concept art based on H1Z1®, PlanetSide 2®, or EverQuest® II, a paragraph caption describing the piece and a 500 word essay answering some questions. That being said, you have until June 3, 2017. I imagine it won't be much help this school year, so sorry any seniors out there who were trying to lower that debt before graduating.
5. Play! Pokemon Scholarship
With the re-kindled Pokemon hype, why not bring be the trading card game? The Pokemon company grants scholarships to the top finishers at their Pokémon TCG U.S. National Championships and the Pokémon World Championships. Imagine all the years you could have been playing Pokemon and winning tons of scholarship money. This scholarship varies in both deadline and amount based on the dates of the events, but a scholarship this hard to win has to be amazing, right? Go be the best that no one ever was.
