Full-tuition scholarships are the holy grail of college scholarships, one-off prizes that will cover the majority of your college costs over the course of four years. These scholarship awards can cover anything from just your tuition to all of your living expenses, depending on the terms set out by the provider. While these scholarship opportunities are rarer than others and tend to involve tougher competition, they are definitely out there.
Universities, states, and even several cities offer full-tuition scholarships based on varying criteria. The most common of these are merit-based academic scholarships, awarded based, community service experience, or other criteria by a college, university, or state higher education agency. Local scholarships, funded publicly or privately and offered to students from a certain geographic area, are also gaining popularity. Many such scholarships require students to attend a specific college university or one of several colleges in a state or other geographic area.
Additionally, several corporate scholarships and foundation scholarship awards cover a student’s full tuition for anywhere from one to four years. Corporate and foundation scholarships typically give students more freedom to attend college where they choose, including private colleges or out-of-state schools while still receiving scholarship money to cover most, if not all, of their tuition expenses. These awards tend to have strong merit or need requirements, or sometimes both. A number of scholarships for minorities fall into this category, as well.
While there might not be a full-tuition scholarship opportunity for everybody, it’s still worth taking the time to look. You can find full-tuition scholarships and other large dollar amount scholarships when you conduct a free college scholarship search on the Internet. And remember, even if you don’t find one full-tuition scholarship that solves all your financial woes, you should still apply for scholarships! Take note that every dollar you receive in scholarships is a dollar you won’t have to pay back in student loans.
