Complete the application thoroughly

Many of our scholarships have restrictions on eligibility. They may require interest in a specific career field or industry, a certain hometown, or other characteristics. Leaving sections blank just insures that you are not considered for those scholarships.

Answer the essay questions

Sometimes students submit beautiful essays that do not answer any of the essay questions of reason for pursuing their major and their career goals. This information is necessary to determine scholarship eligibility, and failure to answer often leads to point deduction and decreased consideration.

Proofread & edit

Your essay is your first writing sample. Spelling and grammar errors undermine your brilliance and claims of being detailed orient. In the College of Journalism and Communications, your writing skills are highly valued. We want to see evidence of great potential for you to become a professional communicator. Show us your talent!

Get a resumé critique

Make sure your resume highlights your skills, talents, and experiences as a student in the journalism and communications field. Student organization involvement, volunteering, and internship efforts should be clearly displayed. A critique will help to give you guidance on displaying your best attributes in an easy to read and organized manner.

Be honest

Scholarship eligibility and applications are reviewed thoroughly. GPAs, need, and other items are verified prior to scholarship disbursement. Lying about skills, experiences, or goals can lead to unattainable expectations and disappointment. Any of these items can severely ruin your reputation and your personal brand. That type of stigma will rob you of far greater opportunities in the future.

Complete a FAFSA

You may apply for federal student financial aid at FAFSA.ed.gov. This information is needed to see if you qualify for need based scholarships. Even if you do not qualify for federal grants, you may be eligible for one of the many need based scholarships available in the Knight Division. However, if you do not have a signed need statement or FAFSA on file, you will not be considered for any need based scholarships at all.

Submit a letter of recommendation

Letters of recommendation are optional, but submitting a strong recommendation can only help. Make sure your recommender is a strong writer that knows you well and can attest to your personal/professional strengths. It’s ok to let your letter writer know what you would like them to share. Letters should be from a supervisor, mentor, professor, or advisor. Letters from peers are not weighed as strongly.

Beat the deadline

Not only does late submission run the risk of your application being dismissed, in the most flexible of situations it can leave the impression that you are disorganized or that the scholarship is not a priority to you. Both decrease your likelihood of selection.