How to answer “Why do you deserve this scholarship?” essay prompt (with examples!)

When you’re applying for scholarships, you’ll see tons of different essay prompts. Two of the most common are “Why do you deserve this scholarship?” or its variant “Why are you applying for this scholarship?” While these might seem like intimidating questions, don’t overthink them! These are straightforward questions that you can easily answer. Here’s how.

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Top 10 scholarship essay prompts and how to answer them (with infographic)

Checking each scholarship application’s questions and essays can be time-consuming. But what if you could find out what the most common essay topics were–and then reuse those same scholarship essays across multiple applications? Well, Going Merry can help you do just that. We took a random sample of about 700…

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6 Awesome Scholarship Essays That Worked

When it comes to paying for college, scholarships are the best form of financial aid, since they offer students free money that never needs to be repaid. But let’s face it: completing scholarship applications, especially the essays, can feel overwhelming. The scholarship essay is arguably the most important part…

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What’s the right scholarship essay format and structure?

Many scholarships require you to submit at least one essay–and maybe you’ve already got that covered. But now you’re wondering: how should your essay be formatted? Should it be double-spaced or single-spaced? Should you include a title? Should you include the prompt? What does a typical scholarship essay format…

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9 Tips for Writing an Essay About Yourself

You know yourself better than anyone else, but writing about yourself can still be tough! When applying for scholarships or to college, essay prompts  can feel so general (and yet so specific!) that they leave us stumped.  So we’ll show you 8 tips to write an essay about yourself,…

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Winner Spotlight: John Flowers Jr. on writing his scholarship essay on personal growth

A scholarship success story takes an experience, a family history, and redefining limits to inspire students like John Flowers Jr. to write a winning scholarship essay. He earned himself an awesome $500 through The Ferrell Lee Scholarship. The scholarship application required an essay answering the following prompt: “Discuss an…

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What’s a winning scholarship essay look like? Check out this Going Merry success story with Gabby DeMott

A scholarship success story takes a defining moment, an experience, sometimes even studying abroad, to inspire students like Gabby DeMott to write a winning scholarship essay. She earned herself a whopping $10,000 through The Bill Browning Scholarship for Ann Arbor Public Schools. The scholarship application required an essay answering…

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How to write a winning scholarship essay about your academic goals

Have you ever opened up a scholarship application only to find that you have to write yet ANOTHER scholarship essay, this time about your academic goals? We get it. There’s a lot of writing involved when you’re applying! Well, we’re here to guide you through your academic goals essay, with…

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A guide to writing the best personal statement for your college application (with template and examples!)

Why is boasting about a best friend SO much easier than writing about yourself? Unfortunately, writing about yourself is exactly what a personal statement essay requires you to do–whether it’s for your college admissions application, or for a scholarship application to pay for college. Here’s our guide, to…

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How to Write an Awesome Essay About Your Career Goals

Before you begin, ask yourself a few key questions like: What are my short-term and long-term career goals? Where do I see myself in ten years? What events in my life have led me to have these goals? What major will help…

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13 Tips to Bring Your Scholarship Essay to the Next Level

Applying for scholarships would be a piece of cake if it wasn’t for the essay, which often forces us to reflect on ourselves, who we are as people, and what we’ve accomplished so far in life. While it can be the most difficult part of the…

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