essay junior college

• Top Courses
• Online Degrees
• Find your New Career
• Join for Free

What Are Junior Colleges and Why Should I Attend One?

Junior colleges offer an excellent alternative to a traditional university. Explore what junior colleges are and their benefits to see if it’s a good option for you.

After graduating from high school or getting your general educational development (GED), you have several options for pursuing postsecondary education. While some people choose a four-year university, many others decide to attend a junior college or community college. According to the Community College Research Center (CCRC), 8.9 million students attended junior colleges during the 2020 to 2021 school year. That makes up about 41 percent of all undergraduates in the United States [ 1 ].

You'll discover many advantages of attending a junior college, ranging from easier admission requirements to more flexible schedules. The benefits make this an enticing opportunity for anyone who wants to continue their education but needs more time or is still deciding if they want to make a commitment to a university. Keep reading to learn more, including what junior colleges are like, the pros and cons of attending one, and how you can apply to start as soon as possible.   

What are junior colleges? 

Sometimes called a community college, a junior college is a school that provides postsecondary education. Students who attend them can earn two-year associate degrees, earn certificates, take courses with plans to transfer to a university to earn a bachelor's degree, and take vocational and technical classes. Attending a community college can prepare you to transfer to a four-year school or get you ready to go straight into a career. As of 2023, there were 1,038 community colleges in the United States, the majority of which are public institutions [ 2 ]. 

How do you get into a junior college?  

The requirements for getting into a junior college are more relaxed than they might be for a four-year university, which is one reason this is a popular option for students who may not have the grades or standardized test scores to get into the university of their choice. Admissions requirements will vary from school to school, but junior colleges typically have an open admissions policy, which means they accept almost anyone who applies. Once you submit your application, you may need to take placement tests to determine what level of coursework you should take in subject areas like math. You may also find that you need to meet specific requirements for more popular programs or to gain acceptance into certain degree or certificate programs. 

Who attends junior college?  

Almost anyone who has a high school diploma or GED and wants to continue their education can attend a junior college. Still, the advantages often appeal to particular types of students. They might include:  

Students who wish to earn an associate degree or certificate 

Students who want to eventually transfer to a four-year university 

Students who didn't have the grades to get into a four-year university 

Students who aren't sure about their majors or career choices

Students who can't afford a four-year university 

Students who are looking for educational options closer to home 

Students who are raising a family or working full time and need a flexible schedule

Students from other countries who want to understand life in the US or learn English

Students seeking technical or vocational training that is not available at a four-year school

Students who are already in the workforce and would like to change careers

Students pursuing specialized training for career advancement  

Reasons to attend junior college 

You'll discover numerous reasons you might want to attend a junior college instead of a four-year university. In the past, many learners viewed junior college as a backup plan or a way to prepare for university. Today, however, junior colleges provide a wide range of opportunities for students who want to prepare for or advance their careers. 

According to EducationUSA, "Community colleges often lead the United States in educating students in cutting-edge fields such as biomedical technology, biotechnology, robotics, laser optics, internet and computer technologies, and geographic information systems” [ 3 ].

Lower tuition costs 

One reason why many students choose junior college is affordability. According to Mount Wachusett Community College, the average price of community college is about one-third of the cost of attending a four-year university [ 4 ]. Of course, the actual price varies based on factors like the geographic location of the school, whether it’s a public or private school, and your status as an in-state or out-of-state learner. Not only is tuition cheaper, but you also won’t have to worry about overhead costs that may drive up your fees, like meal plans or on-campus housing. It's also possible to receive financial aid while attending a two-year school. 

Less competitive admissions requirements 

Another advantage of attending junior college is that you'll face less competitive admissions requirements. To get into a university, you typically need to meet a minimum high school GPA, a minimum score on a standardized test like the ACT or SAT, well-written essays, letters of recommendation, and proof of participation in extracurricular activities. To get into many junior colleges, you typically only need a high school diploma or GED, though these schools may have specific requirements for certain programs. This means that students who need to build their credentials to get into a university can often attend junior college instead.  

Geographical proximity to your home  

With over 1,000 community colleges located throughout the US, it's highly likely that you can find one close to home [ 2 ]. It also means these institutions offer accessibility for students who don't want to move away to attend a university. Perhaps you want to stay at home with your parents to save money, or maybe you're an older learner with a full-time job in a particular city, and you can't afford to quit or don't want to find another job. Junior colleges are typically accessible for students and offer an excellent option for those who wish to commute rather than live on campus.   

Flexibility  

While four-year universities have fairly rigid schedules, a junior college typically offers more flexibility. You can often attend courses at night, online, full-time, part-time, or when it's convenient for you. This is ideal for students who also work full-time jobs, have dependent children, or have other commitments that could interfere with their college schedule. For many programs, you can work at your own pace. 

Credits transfer to a university 

Attending a junior college can be an excellent start to your education, even if you still want to attend a four-year university. For many high school graduates, the lifestyle changes associated with attending a university can be overwhelming. The smaller class sizes and proximity to home that come with a junior college can help you transition into your adult life a little easier. You can also use this time to improve your academic performance to eventually enter a university that will accept your junior college credits. 

Get into the workforce sooner

In some cases, you may want a job that doesn't require a bachelor's degree. Other careers, including paralegals, ultrasound technicians, medical assistants, preschool teachers, air traffic controllers, and HVAC technicians, may only require you to have an associate degree. If you're eager to get to work and start earning money in your chosen field, attending a junior college may make sense for you. Many junior college programs focus more on technical and career training compared to academic programs at universities.  

Are there any cons of attending a junior college? 

While you may find numerous reasons why you may want to attend a junior college, you'll also find a few disadvantages to making this choice. Some of these include: 

Lack of extracurricular activities, like sports teams and clubs

Less likely to have a meal plan or on-campus housing if that is necessary for you

Junior colleges typically have fewer resources for financial aid 

You won't get to experience campus life

Junior colleges may offer fewer courses and programs

Academic advising may be less accessible

Some job prospects may prefer a four-year degree or university experience

Getting started with Coursera

One way to prepare for a postsecondary education, whether you attend a junior college or a university, is to take college preparatory courses online. You'll find numerous options on Coursera. For example, you might consider courses like Academic Listening and Note-Taking , offered by the University of California, Irvine; U101: Understanding College and College Life , offered by the University of Washington; and Applying to US Universities from the University of Pennsylvania.

Article sources

Community College Research Center. " Community College FAQs , https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/community-college-faqs.html." Accessed March 24, 2024. 

Statista. " Number of community colleges in the United States in 2023, by type , https://www.statista.com/statistics/421266/community-colleges-in-the-us/." Accessed March 24, 2024.  

EducationUSA. " Community College: The first step to studying in the United States is researching your options to find a college or university that best fits your needs , https://educationusa.state.gov/your-5-steps-us-study/research-your-options/community-college." Accessed March 24, 2024. 

Mount Wachusett Community College. " Community College: How It Works , https://mwcc.edu/blog/how-community-college-works/." Accessed March 24, 2024. 

Keep reading

Coursera staff.

Editorial Team

Coursera’s editorial team is comprised of highly experienced professional editors, writers, and fact...

This content has been made available for informational purposes only. Learners are advised to conduct additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals.

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, the best college essay length: how long should it be.

College Essays

Figuring out your college essay can be one of the most difficult parts of applying to college. Even once you've read the prompt and picked a topic, you might wonder: if you write too much or too little, will you blow your chance of admission? How long should a college essay be?

Whether you're a terse writer or a loquacious one, we can advise you on college essay length. In this guide, we'll cover what the standard college essay length is, how much word limits matter, and what to do if you aren't sure how long a specific essay should be.

How Long Is a College Essay? First, Check the Word Limit

You might be used to turning in your writing assignments on a page-limit basis (for example, a 10-page paper). While some colleges provide page limits for their college essays, most use a word limit instead. This makes sure there's a standard length for all the essays that a college receives, regardless of formatting or font.

In the simplest terms, your college essay should be pretty close to, but not exceeding, the word limit in length. Think within 50 words as the lower bound, with the word limit as the upper bound. So for a 500-word limit essay, try to get somewhere between 450-500 words. If they give you a range, stay within that range.

College essay prompts usually provide the word limit right in the prompt or in the instructions.

For example, the University of Illinois says :

"You'll answer two to three prompts as part of your application. The questions you'll answer will depend on whether you're applying to a major or to our undeclared program , and if you've selected a second choice . Each response should be approximately 150 words."

As exemplified by the University of Illinois, the shortest word limits for college essays are usually around 150 words (less than half a single-spaced page). Rarely will you see a word limit higher than around 650 words (over one single-spaced page). College essays are usually pretty short: between 150 and 650 words. Admissions officers have to read a lot of them, after all!

Weigh your words carefully, because they are limited!

How Flexible Is the Word Limit?

But how flexible is the word limit? What if your poignant anecdote is just 10 words too long—or 100 too short?

Can I Go Over the Word Limit?

If you are attaching a document and you need one or two extra words, you can probably get away with exceeding the word limit by such a small amount. Some colleges will actually tell you that exceeding the word limit by 1-2 words is fine. However, I advise against exceeding the word limit unless it's explicitly allowed for a few reasons:

First, you might not be able to. If you have to copy-paste it into a text box, your essay might get cut off and you'll have to trim it down anyway.

If you exceed the word limit in a noticeable way, the admissions counselor may just stop reading your essay past that point. This is not good for you.

Following directions is actually a very important part of the college application process. You need to follow directions to get your letters of recommendation, upload your essays, send supplemental materials, get your test scores sent, and so on and so forth. So it's just a good general rule to follow whatever instructions you've been given by the institution. Better safe than sorry!

Can I Go Under the Word Limit?

If you can truly get your point across well beneath the word limit, it's probably fine. Brevity is not necessarily a bad thing in writing just so long as you are clear, cogent, and communicate what you want to.

However, most college essays have pretty tight word limits anyways. So if you're writing 300 words for an essay with a 500-word limit, ask yourself: is there anything more you could say to elaborate on or support your points? Consult with a parent, friend, or teacher on where you could elaborate with more detail or expand your points.

Also, if the college gives you a word range, you absolutely need to at least hit the bottom end of the range. So if you get a range from the institution, like 400-500 words, you need to write at least 400 words. If you write less, it will come across like you have nothing to say, which is not an impression you want to give.

What If There Is No Word Limit?

Some colleges don't give you a word limit for one or more of your essay prompts. This can be a little stressful, but the prompts generally fall into a few categories:

Writing Sample

Some colleges don't provide a hard-and-fast word limit because they want a writing sample from one of your classes. In this case, a word limit would be very limiting to you in terms of which assignments you could select from.

For an example of this kind of prompt, check out essay Option B at Amherst :

"Submit a graded paper from your junior or senior year that best represents your writing skills and analytical abilities. We are particularly interested in your ability to construct a tightly reasoned, persuasive argument that calls upon literary, sociological or historical evidence. You should NOT submit a laboratory report, journal entry, creative writing sample or in-class essay."

While there is usually no word limit per se, colleges sometimes provide a general page guideline for writing samples. In the FAQ for Option B , Amherst clarifies, "There is no hard-and-fast rule for official page limit. Typically, we anticipate a paper of 4-5 pages will provide adequate length to demonstrate your analytical abilities. Somewhat longer papers can also be submitted, but in most cases should not exceed 8-10 pages."

So even though there's no word limit, they'd like somewhere in the 4-10 pages range. High school students are not usually writing papers that are longer than 10 pages anyways, so that isn't very limiting.

Implicit Length Guideline

Sometimes, while there's no word (or even page) limit, there's still an implicit length guideline. What do I mean by this?

See, for example, this Western Washington University prompt :

“Describe one or more activities you have been involved in that have been particularly meaningful. What does your involvement say about the communities, identities or causes that are important to you?”

While there’s no page or word limit listed here, further down on page the ‘essay tips’ section explains that “ most essay responses are about 500 words, ” though “this is only a recommendation, not a firm limit.” This gives you an idea of what’s reasonable. A little longer or shorter than 500 words would be appropriate here. That’s what I mean by an “implicit” word limit—there is a reasonable length you could go to within the boundaries of the prompt.

But what's the proper coffee-to-paragraph ratio?

Treasure Hunt

There is also the classic "treasure hunt" prompt. No, it's not a prompt about a treasure hunt. It's a prompt where there are no length guidelines given, but if you hunt around on the rest of the website you can find length guidelines.

For example, the University of Chicago provides seven "Extended Essay" prompts . You must write an essay in response to one prompt of your choosing, but nowhere on the page is there any guidance about word count or page limit.

However, many colleges provide additional details about their expectations for application materials, including essays, on FAQ pages, which is true of the University of Chicago. On the school’s admissions Frequently Asked Questions page , they provide the following length guidelines for the supplemental essays: 

“We suggest that you note any word limits for Coalition or Common Application essays; however, there are no strict word limits on the UChicago Supplement essays. For the extended essay (where you choose one of several prompts), we suggest that you aim for around 650 words. While we won't, as a rule, stop reading after 650 words, we're only human and cannot promise that an overly wordy essay will hold our attention indefinitely. For the “Why UChicago?” essay, we suggest about 250-500 words. The ideas in your writing matter more than the exact number of words you use!”

So there you go! You want to be (loosely) in the realm of 650 for the extended essay, and 250-500 words for the “Why UChicago?” essay.

Help! There Really Is No Guidance on Length

If you really can't find any length guidelines anywhere on the admissions website and you're at a loss, I advise calling the admissions office. They may not be able to give you an exact number (in fact, they probably won't), but they will probably at least be able to tell you how long most of the essays they see are. (And keep you from writing a panicked, 20-page dissertation about your relationship with your dog).

In general, 500 words or so is pretty safe for a college essay. It's a fairly standard word limit length, in fact. (And if you're wondering, that's about a page and a half double-spaced.) 500 words is long enough to develop a basic idea while still getting a point across quickly—important when admissions counselors have thousands of essays to read!

"See? It says 500 words right there in tiny font!"

The Final Word: How Long Should a College Essay Be?

The best college essay length is usually pretty straightforward: you want to be right under or at the provided word limit. If you go substantially past the word limit, you risk having your essay cut off by an online application form or having the admissions officer just not finish it. And if you're too far under the word limit, you may not be elaborating enough.

What if there is no word limit? Then how long should a college essay be? In general, around 500 words is a pretty safe approximate word amount for a college essay—it's one of the most common word limits, after all!

Here's guidance for special cases and hunting down word limits:

If it's a writing sample of your graded academic work, the length either doesn't matter or there should be some loose page guidelines.

There also may be implicit length guidelines. For example, if a prompt says to write three paragraphs, you'll know that writing six sentences is definitely too short, and two single-spaced pages is definitely too long.

You might not be able to find length guidelines in the prompt, but you could still hunt them up elsewhere on the website. Try checking FAQs or googling your chosen school name with "admissions essay word limit."

If there really is no word limit, you can call the school to try to get some guidance.

With this advice, you can be sure you've got the right college essay length on lockdown!

Hey, writing about yourself can even be fun!

What's Next?

Need to ask a teacher or friend for help with your essay? See our do's and dont's to getting college essay advice .

If you're lacking in essay inspiration, see our guide to brainstorming college essay ideas . And here's our guide to starting out your essay perfectly!

Looking for college essay examples? See 11 places to find college essay examples and 145 essay examples with analysis !

Ellen has extensive education mentorship experience and is deeply committed to helping students succeed in all areas of life. She received a BA from Harvard in Folklore and Mythology and is currently pursuing graduate studies at Columbia University.

Student and Parent Forum

Our new student and parent forum, at ExpertHub.PrepScholar.com , allow you to interact with your peers and the PrepScholar staff. See how other students and parents are navigating high school, college, and the college admissions process. Ask questions; get answers.

Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!

Improve With Our Famous Guides

• For All Students

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points

How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 800 on Each SAT Section:

Score 800 on SAT Math

Score 800 on SAT Reading

Score 800 on SAT Writing

Series: How to Get to 600 on Each SAT Section:

Score 600 on SAT Math

Score 600 on SAT Reading

Score 600 on SAT Writing

Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests

What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For?

15 Strategies to Improve Your SAT Essay

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points

How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 36 on Each ACT Section:

36 on ACT English

36 on ACT Math

36 on ACT Reading

36 on ACT Science

Series: How to Get to 24 on Each ACT Section:

24 on ACT English

24 on ACT Math

24 on ACT Reading

24 on ACT Science

What ACT target score should you be aiming for?

ACT Vocabulary You Must Know

ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score

How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League

How to Get a Perfect 4.0 GPA

How to Write an Amazing College Essay

What Exactly Are Colleges Looking For?

Is the ACT easier than the SAT? A Comprehensive Guide

Should you retake your SAT or ACT?

When should you take the SAT or ACT?

Stay Informed

Get the latest articles and test prep tips!

Looking for Graduate School Test Prep?

Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here:

GRE Online Prep Blog

GMAT Online Prep Blog

TOEFL Online Prep Blog

Holly R. "I am absolutely overjoyed and cannot thank you enough for helping me!”

Ultimate Guide to Writing Your College Essay

Tips for writing an effective college essay.

College admissions essays are an important part of your college application and gives you the chance to show colleges and universities your character and experiences. This guide will give you tips to write an effective college essay.

Want free help with your college essay?

UPchieve connects you with knowledgeable and friendly college advisors—online, 24/7, and completely free. Get 1:1 help brainstorming topics, outlining your essay, revising a draft, or editing grammar.

Writing a strong college admissions essay

Learn about the elements of a solid admissions essay.

Avoiding common admissions essay mistakes

Learn some of the most common mistakes made on college essays

Brainstorming tips for your college essay

Stuck on what to write your college essay about? Here are some exercises to help you get started.

How formal should the tone of your college essay be?

Learn how formal your college essay should be and get tips on how to bring out your natural voice.

Taking your college essay to the next level

Hear an admissions expert discuss the appropriate level of depth necessary in your college essay.

Student Stories

Student Story: Admissions essay about a formative experience

Get the perspective of a current college student on how he approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about personal identity

Get the perspective of a current college student on how she approached the admissions essay.

Student Story: Admissions essay about community impact

Student story: admissions essay about a past mistake, how to write a college application essay, tips for writing an effective application essay, sample college essay 1 with feedback, sample college essay 2 with feedback.

This content is licensed by Khan Academy and is available for free at www.khanacademy.org.

Login or sign up to be automatically entered into our next $10,000 scholarship giveaway

Get Searching

• College Search
• College Search Map
• Graduate Programs
• Featured Colleges
• Scholarship Search
• Lists & Rankings

Articles & Advice

• Ask the Experts
• Campus Visits
• Catholic Colleges and Universities
• Christian Colleges and Universities
• College Admission
• College Athletics
• College Diversity
• Counselors and Consultants
• Education and Teaching
• Financial Aid
• Graduate School
• Health and Medicine
• International Students
• Internships and Careers
• Majors and Academics
• Performing and Visual Arts
• Public Colleges and Universities
• Science and Engineering
• Student Life
• Transfer Students
• Why CollegeXpress
• $10,000 Scholarship
• CollegeXpress Store
• Corporate Website
• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• CA and EU Privacy Policy

Articles & Advice > College Admission > Blog

Top 6 Things Juniors Can Do Right Now to Prepare for College Admission

Junior year of high school is when students should really start preparing for college admission. Here are six things you can do now to get ready!

by Lindsey Conger College Counselor and Tutor, Moon Prep

Last Updated: Jan 18, 2024

Originally Posted: Feb 13, 2023

For high school juniors, college admission season is right around the corner and will be here before you know it. College applications that stand out from the pool of other applicants aren't built in just a few weeks or months—you need to start planning as early as possible. Here are a few things juniors should do now to create a successful college application in the not-so-distant future.

1. Review your testing plan

Standardized test scores are something that most colleges will review—unless you’re planning to apply to test-optional or test-blind schools. While many schools remain test-optional, selective schools like Georgetown University , University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , and Georgia Institute of Technology all require applicants to submit scores. Especially for very selective schools, your standardized test scores will matter. You may have to take the SAT or ACT multiple times to get the scores you want, so it’s best to start preparing now.

2. Concentrate on your academics

Admission officers will look at what classes you’re taking vs. what’s available to you at your high school. Did you challenge yourself? You don't have to take every AP course available, but you should take at least a few honors and/or AP courses each year. You want to showcase to admission officers that you can handle the  added rigor of college-level courses . Colleges will especially be looking at your grades from this year, so it’s important to put your full effort into your academics. Find a balance between your extracurriculars and academics for a well-rounded application.

Related: High School Classes to Make You a Competitive College Applicant

3. Plan your summer wisely

The summer before senior year is one of your last chances to build your résumé. Attending competitive summer programs and getting hands-on experience can help students prove their interest in a certain field of study. You could also consider volunteering, job shadowing, or working on a passion project to enhance your résumé further. Remember, there’s no need to do every activity available to you. It’s better to build on your interests and add layers to your activities than join five new clubs this summer.

4. Get recommendation letters lined up

Before school ends for the summer, you should identify who you want to ask for a letter of recommendation in the fall. Most colleges require two teacher recommendations, so you'll want to determine who will give you the best and most personalized letters. Teachers receive a lot of recommendation requests each year, and they might not be able to say yes to everyone, so it’s a good idea to get on their radar now and let them know you’d like them to write on your behalf.

Related: A Helpful Guide to Planning and Asking for Letters of Recommendation

5. Visit your colleges of interest

Spring and summer breaks are perfect opportunities for juniors to visit colleges. It's a good idea to visit a variety of schools—private and public; big, medium, and small—to see what type of environment you would thrive in. You don't need to visit every school you’re interested in; just focus on a few you’re most interested in or ones that are easiest for you to visit to help you build your college list. If visiting colleges in person isn’t a feasible option, taking a virtual tour is a good alternative.

6. Brainstorm ideas for college essays

The personal statement is the best way to showcase your personality on your college applications. If you start writing it the summer before senior year, you can produce a well-thought-out essay that showcases your personality and have plenty of time for edits and multiple drafts. You should also look at the Common App essay prompts and start thinking of stories you could share to boost your applications. Take your time and make your essay(s) personal!

Related: Our Best Advice for Writing Your College Application Essays

Junior year of high school is a busy time, but next year will more enjoyable and less stressful if you start preparing for college application season now. Outside of in-person college visits, these steps are easy to take whenever you have a free moment, so be sure to take advantage of any chance you have to get a head start on the admission process. Your senior-self will thank you!

If you’re stressing about getting through junior year, check out Our Best Advice for Junior Year of High School for other helpful articles and blogs. 

Like what you’re reading?

Join the CollegeXpress community! Create a free account and we’ll notify you about new articles, scholarship deadlines, and more.

Tags: applying to college college admission college prep high school students junior year standardized tests

← Previous Post

Next Post →

About Lindsey Conger

Lindsey Conger is a college counselor and tutor at Moon Prep .

Join our community of over 5 million students!

CollegeXpress has everything you need to simplify your college search, get connected to schools, and find your perfect fit.

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress helped me find Allegheny College with the super-user-friendly search tool for both schools and scholarships. Using CollegeXpress, I was able to search for programs I was interested in studying and find colleges that offered those programs. Also, once you search for the college, CollegeXpress can get you connected!

Sonny Harris

College Student

For the entire year before college, I spent a lot of time deeply considering what major I wanted to go into and how to fund my higher education. After a lot of research, I came across CollegeXpress, which helped me ultimately find a ton of scholarships for which I could apply—and some of which I received! If it weren’t for CollegeXpress, I may not have found those scholarships as they didn't appear on any other scholarship search forum. Additionally, I learned more about the options I had been considering for my major through CollegeXpress’s resources. In the end, I chose to major in Computer Science, as it seemed best suited to me and the careers in the field seemed enjoyable, and I've never been more excited to move into my future! Ultimately, I want to thank CollegeXpress for offering their services. I received enough financial aid in scholarships to fund my entire freshman year of college and even got some money refunded which I used to purchase a new laptop, and I bought all of the books I needed for the semester!

Elizabeth Stafford

As a UK student moving to California due to my dad's job in the military, when I first signed up for CollegeXpress a few months ago, the college process ahead seemed daunting and incredibly stressful. That all changed after I started to explore what this website had to offer. Not only was I helped by the vast array of resources available to me, but through being a CollegeXpress member, there have been so many more benefits. There have been emails with college tips—all of which I found incredibly helpful—as well as invitations to events and notifications of scholarships that'll make college possible for me. Overall, I'm very grateful to CollegeXpress for all of these things and more. Not only have they helped me grow my understanding of the college process, but they've also helped me to grow as a person, giving me new skills that I can take with me through life.

High School Class of 2023

I’m currently a college freshman attending Towson University. My major is Information Technology, and I plan to minor in Electronic Media & Film to achieve my goal of becoming a production engineer. Upon graduating high school earlier this year, I was awarded a $5,000 scholarship from CollegeXpress, which greatly assisted in paying my tuition. Truthfully, this financial reward was the difference in affording my room and board and tuition, along with other expenses for school. My family and I haven’t stopped celebrating my award since it was bestowed on me. I will never forget this opportunity for allowing me to get my foot into my university financially.

Ana Sophia Garcia-Cubas Assemat

$10,000 Scholarship Winner, 2020

CollegeXpress has been an instrumental resource for my scholarship search and has given me the opportunity to try my best so I can graduate from college debt-free.

Colleges You May Be Interested In

Georgia Southern University

Statesboro, GA

Miami University

Azusa Pacific University

The Ohio State University

Columbus, OH

Cleveland State University

Cleveland, OH

Personalize your experience on CollegeXpress.

With this information, we'll do our best to display content relevant to your interests. By subscribing, you agree to receive CollegeXpress emails and to make your information available to colleges and universities, scholarship programs, and other companies that have relevant/related offers.

Already have an account?

Log in to be directly connected to

Not a CollegeXpress user?

Don't want to register.

Provide your information below to connect with

Search form

• About Faculty Development and Support
• Programs and Funding Opportunities
• Consultations, Observations, and Services
• Strategic Resources & Digital Publications
• Canvas @ Yale Support
• Learning Environments @ Yale
• Teaching Workshops
• Teaching Consultations and Classroom Observations
• Teaching Programs
• Spring Teaching Forum
• Written and Oral Communication Workshops and Panels
• Writing Resources & Tutorials
• About the Graduate Writing Laboratory
• Writing and Public Speaking Consultations
• Writing Workshops and Panels
• Writing Peer-Review Groups
• Writing Retreats and All Writes
• Online Writing Resources for Graduate Students
• About Teaching Development for Graduate and Professional School Students
• Teaching Programs and Grants
• Teaching Forums
• Resources for Graduate Student Teachers
• About Undergraduate Writing and Tutoring
• Academic Strategies Program
• The Writing Center
• STEM Tutoring & Programs
• Humanities & Social Sciences
• Center for Language Study
• Online Course Catalog
• Antiracist Pedagogy
• NECQL 2019: NorthEast Consortium for Quantitative Literacy XXII Meeting
• STEMinar Series
• Teaching in Context: Troubling Times
• Helmsley Postdoctoral Teaching Scholars
• Pedagogical Partners
• Instructional Materials
• Evaluation & Research
• STEM Education Job Opportunities
• Yale Connect
• Online Education Legal Statements

You are here

Junior and senior essays.

The senior essay is often the longest and most complex paper a student will write during a Yale career. While the Writing Center supports all student writers, we’re especially eager to help as you plan, develop, and revise your senior essay.

The expectations for a good essay vary by department, because different fields have different standards for evidence, analysis, and argument. Below we offer some general good advice for developing a senior essay, followed by a list of some of the additional resources available to help you complete your essay.

Tip #1: Write about something you’re curious about or don’t quite understand. Although this advice applies to any writing project, it’s especially crucial for a long essay. If you don’t begin with something you’re curious about - something you really care about figuring out - you’ll have trouble sustaining interest in your essay, either for yourself or for your readers. Papers you’ve written for coursework can be a great source for topics, if there are issues that were just starting to excite you when it was time to turn in the initial paper. Think, too, about unanswered questions you’ve had from the courses in your major; your senior essay can be an opportunity to explore more deeply an issue that you feel has been neglected. Most advisors will want to begin discussions of your topic as far in advance as possible. If yours hasn’t initiated that conversation, take the first step and set up an appointment today.

Tip #2: Use writing to help shape your research - not just to record your results. The most productive change most students need to make in working on their essay is to begin writing sooner. We don’t mean by this just avoiding procrastination. Even if you begin researching and meeting with your advisor early in the year, you may still be tempted to delay writing until you have a strong sense of your direction, or even an outline. But research shows that taking time to write all throughout the process will help you develop a richer, more complex thesis. Here are some occasions to write that you may not have thought of on your own:

Write about your ideas as a way to find and explore your initial topic.

Don’t just underline and take notes on our early research; take ten minutes to write at the beginning and end of each research session about what you’ve learned and the new questions you’ve discovered.

Write before and after meeting with your advisor. Even if you have a draft or chapter to show, take an extra ten minutes to write about your sense of the project - where it’s going well and where you need help.

It’s possible that you won’t incorporate this writing directly into your final essay, but doing it will help you reflect more effectively on the progress of your research, which will lead to fuller and more satisfying results.

Tip #3: Develop a bigger network of readers. Ideally, you will have the opportunity to meet with your advisor several times in both terms while working on your essay. This is the person who can help you the most with questions of general direction, with focusing on the most productive parts of your topic, and with finding the most relevant research sources. But most professional writers get feedback from several readers before publication, and so should you. One obvious source for additional readers is the Writing Center, which offers several different kinds of tutoring. But showing your work to friends, roommates, and classmates can also be immensely helpful. If you haven’t shared your work with other writers before, let us give you some advice about how to make these opportunities productive: don’t expect student readers to offer solutions. Instead, get your readers to raise questions that you can talk and think through more deeply. Or ask them just to say what they understand and where they get stuck, then use your own judgment about whether your advisor will have the same kinds of questions. Until you’ve tried it, you have no idea how valuable it is just to show your work in progress to someone. Even before they say anything back, the meeting will allow you to think about your own writing differently. If they also give you helpful advice, well that’s just a bonus.

Departmental Guidelines Many departments publish guidelines for senior essay writers. We’ve compiled a few of these below. If your department is not listed, ask your DUS if any guidelines exist. The Writing Center Director, Alfred Guy, is available to help departments create and post advice for their senior essay writers.

History Senior Essay

Residential College Writing Tutors Every residential college has a dedicated writing tutor, and they have experience with senior essays from a wide range of departments. Students who work with a tutor write better essays, and the sooner you start, the better. Go to the tutoring section of this Web site and contact your tutor today.

Workshops for Senior Essay Writers Many departments offer a senior essay colloquium—the Writing Center directors are available to lead discussions about any topic related to developing your essay, including: setting a timetable, soliciting and using feedback, and structuring a long essay. In the past few years, we’ve worked with colloquia in American Studies, Sociology, and African Studies, and we’d love to meet with your group. Ask the coordinator of your colloquium to contact us to arrange a meeting.

Other Yale Resources

The Mellon Seminars

Each residential college organizes a Mellon seminar for senior essay writers. During these seminars, you’ll have the chance to talk about your work in progress with other seniors. Check with the Master’s office in your college for more details.

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

Drop-In Writing Partners

Writing Partners are Yale College or graduate school students selected for both their writing skills and their ability to talk about writing. They have a student’s-eye view of the challenges you’ll face in writing papers.

Reserve a Room

The Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning partners with departments and groups on-campus throughout the year to share its space. Please review the reservation form and submit a request.

Writing with Turnitin

The Poorvu Center organizes resources to help students use Turnitin to improve their writing - see patterns of source use and misuse, and learn best practices for the revision process.

Why You Should Start Your College Essay Junior Year

It feels like it’s too early to start. Should you really take time out of your schedule to start writing your college essay? Yes! In a way. We agree that it’s a little early to begin the writing process in earnest, but you can never get enough of a head start on brainstorming how you want to present yourself to admissions. What topic might best showcase your strengths, motivations and/or values in 650 words? If you don’t know (as so many of us don’t offhand!) it is time to start thinking about it. You will thank yourself when you’re getting a good night’s sleep in September and all of your friends are frantically trying to balance school, activities, sports, work, a social life, and college applications. Good ideas take time to rise to the surface and meaningful essays are often best constructed over the course of a few weeks or months — not in a mad dash to the finish line. Just ask Ludacris.     

About Kat Stubing

View all posts by Kat Stubing »

Check out our YouTube Channel!

Written by Kat Stubing

Category: Admissions , advice , Essay Resources , Quick Tips , Starting Early , Tips , Uncategorized

Tags: Admissions , admissions essay , admissions help , brainstorming , class of 2023 , class of 23 , College , college admissions , college admissions 2018-19 , college admissions essay , college application , college application help , college applications 2018-19 , common app essay , common application , common application essay , high school juniors , high school students , how juniors can prep for college , junior year , personal statement , starting early

Want free stuff?

We thought so. Sign up for free instructional videos, guides, worksheets and more!

One-On-One Advising

Common App Essay Prompt Guide

Supplemental Essay Prompt Guide

• YouTube Tutorials
• Our Approach & Team
• Undergraduate Testimonials
• Postgraduate Testimonials
• Where Our Students Get In
• CEA Gives Back
• Undergraduate Admissions
• Graduate Admissions
• Private School Admissions
• International Student Admissions
• Common App Essay Guide
• Supplemental Essay Guides
• Coalition App Guide
• The CEA Podcast
• Admissions Stats
• Notification Trackers
• Deadline Databases
• College Essay Examples
• Academy and Worksheets
• Waitlist Guides
• Get Started

What are your chances of acceptance?

Calculate for all schools, your chance of acceptance.

Your chancing factors

Extracurriculars.

40 College Scholarships for High School Juniors in 2023

What’s covered:, why scholarships matter, college scholarships for high school juniors, tips for applying for scholarships.

Think it’s too early to apply for a scholarship? If you’re a high school junior, think again. There are many college scholarships open to 11th graders and other students who aren’t yet seniors. 

So, what’s available? Here’s your guide to top scholarships for juniors.

Are you applying to schools and want to know your admissions chances? Calculate your chances right now and understand your odds before applying.

Scholarships can help offset the cost of college tuition and other expenses, such as room, board, and textbooks. Unlike loans, you don’t have to pay them back, so they can be enormously helpful to you throughout your education.

Receiving a merit scholarship is also an honor that can help you get into a college. If you receive the award as a junior, you’ll be able to include it on your college application.

It’s a good idea to start early because you’ll save time during your busy senior year. It can also give you peace of mind to know that you have supplemental income to add to your college fund. You may even be able to attend a college you may not have been able to afford otherwise.

1. Alexander Hamilton Awards

Scholarship award: $1,000

Open to: High school juniors

Thirty-five awards are given to underserved students based on academic, personal, service, and entrepreneurial accomplishments. Honorees participate in a five-year empowerment program at no cost to them. They also receive two $500 monetary awards — one at the beginning of the program and one at the end.

2. American Legion Oratorical Contest

Scholarship award: 18,000 (top prize); each state winner receives a $1,500 scholarship, and those who advance past the first round receive an additional $1,500 scholarship

Open to: High school students under age 20

This oratorical contest has a mission of instilling a deeper knowledge of and appreciation for the U.S. Constitution among high school students. Students must speak about some aspect of the Constitution and ways that citizens can serve the nation.

3. Carson Scholars

Open to: Students in grades 4-11

Carson Scholars give back to their communities through community service. They must have a minimum GPA of 3.75 and a demonstrated track record of community service. Only one student per high school may apply.

4. The Coolidge Scholarship

Scholarship award: Full ride, including tuition, room, board, and expenses for four years of undergraduate study

Open to: High school juniors 

Coolidge scholars display academic excellence and a demonstrated interest in and appreciation for public policy and the values of Calvin Coolidge. Award recipients participate in an orientation in Plymouth Notch, Vermont, the summer before their senior year of high school. They return for one week for the next three summers.

Top applicants are designated “Coolidge Senators” and are invited to participate in the Senators Summit in Washington, D.C.

5. Doodle 4 Google

Scholarship award: $30,000 plus $50,000 tech grant for the recipient’s school

Open to: K-12

Open to young artists, Google announces a theme for the competition each January and features the National Winner’s artwork on the Google homepage after the contest closes in March.

6. Gen and Kelly Tanabe Scholarship

Scholarship award: $1,000 (first place)

Open to: Students in grades 9-12

For this scholarship, students submit a personal statement responding to a prompt or topic of their choice. Applicants may reuse an essay used for another purpose, such as a class or other scholarship application.

7. National Merit Scholarship Program

Scholarship award: $2,500

Your PSAT scores qualify you to be considered for this prestigious award. Semifinalists will complete applications through their school, once notified of their status by National Merit. Scores are ranked within states, so students from higher-scoring states are less likely to become semifinalists. Approximately 7,250 students receive scholarship awards. To learn more about the process, read How to Qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program .

8. The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards

Scholarship award: $5,000-$15,000

Open to: Students between the ages of 14-18

This award recognizes students for outstanding service to others at the local, state, and national levels. (Find more community service scholarships here .)

9. Samsung American Legion Scholarship

Scholarship award: $10,000 each (National Scholars, two from each region)

Open to: High school juniors and seniors

In order to qualify for this scholarship, you must have attended one session of The American Legion Boys State or American Legion Auxiliary Girls State program. You must also be a direct descendant of a wartime U.S. military veteran who served on active duty during at least one of the periods of war officially designated as eligibility dates. The scholarship is awarded based on academic record, involvement in school, and community service.

10. United States Senate Youth Program

Scholarship award: $10,000

Open to: Rising high school juniors and seniors

Students apply for this competition by contacting their state selection coordinators. They must display leadership by serving in an elected or appointed position within an organization related to student government, education, public affairs, or community service. Two student leaders from each state, the District of Columbia, and the Department of Defense Education Activity school system, will spend a week in Washington, DC.

11. Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Science Competition

Open to: Students in grades K-12 (separated by age groups)

Students submit projects that show engagement in real-world problem-solving with a strong emphasis on STEM. All entries must include an abstract, description, bibliography, and five sample web pages.

For more STEM scholarships, check out A Guide to STEM Scholarships .

12. Voice of Democracy Youth Scholars

Scholarship award: $35,000 (first place)

Students produce an audio-essay to respond to a theme regarding their democratic and patriotic values.

13. “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship

Scholarship award: $25,000

Open to: All students 

Students at all education levels from high school to graduate school are challenged to create the boldest profile according to these characteristics: earnest, determined, and moving. Carpe diem—preference is given to applicants who apply early. 

14. $1,000 Cappex Easy College Money Scholarship

Open to: High school, community college, and college students 

Truly an easy scholarship to apply for, the short, simple-to-fill-out application asks a few basic questions such as your GPA, the colleges you’re considering applying to, and what you intend to major in. 

15. The Fountainhead Essay Contest

Scholarship award: $5,000 first place, $1,250 second place, and $250 third place 

Open to: 11th and 12th graders 

Perfect for students who love to read, write, and think about books, the Fountainhead Essay contest challenges applicants to write an 800 to 1,600-word essay about Ayn Rand’s novel, The Fountainhead . 

16. SelectBlinds $1,000 Scholarship

Open to: High school and college students 

Show off your innovative spirit and highlight what you’re passionate about for the opportunity to win this $1,000 award. To enter, share a unique way to use window coverings (other than covering windows) or highlight a technology that you think can improve window coverings. Additionally, applicants are asked to submit a 250 to 750-word essay answering one of five prompts. 

17. Unigo Flavor of the Month Scholarship

Scholarship award: $1,500

Open to: Students ages 14+

Ice cream lovers and creative writers rejoice—there’s a scholarship just for you! To enter, submit an essay no longer than 250 words answering the question: “If you were an ice cream flavor, which would you be and why?” 

18. American College Foundation Visionary Scholarship

Scholarship award: $5,000

Open to: High school students in grades 9-12 

Write a 500-word essay on why college is important to you, and submit your most recent high school transcript for a chance to win this robust award. Financial need is not considered when choosing a winner, but punctuation, grammar, ability to follow guidelines, originality, and overall quality are—so be sure to submit your best work.  

19. The Christian Connector Scholarship

Scholarship award : $5,000 

Open to: High school students with interest in attending a Christian college or university

A can’t-miss scholarship opportunity for students thinking about attending a Christian college, university, or Bible college, simply fill out the form on their website to put yourself in the running for this award. Note, the scholarship can only be used at qualifying schools—any school that is a member of the CCCU , NACCAP , or ABHE automatically qualifies.

20. CollegeXpress One Question Scholarship  

Scholarship award: $1,000 or $10,000

Open to: Students ages 13+ 

Applicants must fill out a registration form and answer the following question in one sentence: “What is your favorite college mascot?”

21. Courageous Persuaders Video Scholarship Competition

Scholarship award: $2,000 grand prize 

Open to: High school students

Create a 30-second (or shorter) commercial delivering a message about the dangers of drinking or texting while driving—the grand prize-winning video will be run on television. Looking for ideas? Check out last year’s winning video . 

22. Fleet Reserve Association (FRA) Americanism Essay Contest

Scholarship award: $1,500 grand prize 

Open to: Grades 7-12

The FRA—a group representing the sea Services: U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard—welcomes students to write a 350-word essay promoting the spirit of Americanism and patriotism. Submissions must be made through an FRA member of a local FRA branch. If you’re looking for inspiration, you can find past winning essays on the FRA’s website . 

23. Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes

Open to: Students ages 8 to 18

A scholarship for inspiring, public-spirited young people, the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes rewards students who have positively impacted their community and environment. Past winners of the award have organized and led extraordinary service activities, and demonstrate characteristics such as positivity, courage, generosity, and high moral purpose. 

24. Jane Austen Society of North America (JANSA) Essay Contest

Open to: High school students in grades 9-12

Literature lovers will welcome this opportunity to win an award for college. To compete, write an essay on a work of Jane Austen’s (the topic changes yearly; 2020’s contest is focused on her female villains). In addition to a scholarship, winners also receive a one-year JANSA membership, a set of Norton Critical Editions of Jane Austen’s novels, and their winning essay is published on JANSA’s website.

25. The James Alan Cox Foundation for Student Photojournalists

Open to: High school students, college students, and graduate students 

Tell a story with still photography—think newspaper, not art gallery—to earn a chance at a $2,500 scholarship from the James Alan Cox Foundation for Student Photojournalists. In addition to their photo submission, applicants are asked to include an essay, two letters of recommendation, their transcript, and a portfolio. 

26. Annual DNA Day Essay Contest

Scholarship award: $1,000 for first place and a $1,000 genetics material grant for winner’s school; $600 for second place and a $600 genetics material grant for winner’s school; $400 for third place and a $400 genetics material grant for winner’s school; $100 for ten honorable mentions

The American Society of Human Genetics hosts an annual scholarship competition to support National DNA Day. Students must write an essay that answers a unique question each year that displays an understanding of important concepts in genetics.

27. Teen Entrepreneur Scholarship

Scholarship award: $3,200

Are you a young entrepreneur or interested in starting a business one day? The Teenage Entrepreneur Society is awarding one high school student $3,200 to further your education or business. To apply, you must talk about the support systems in your life that have helped you succeed in entrepreneurship.

28. $500 High School Junior Scholarship

Scholarship award: $500

Are you a high school junior in the Class of 2023? If so, this might be the easiest scholarship you apply for. Visit niche.com , create an account, and you’ll be entered to win $500! If you win, you can use the money to pay for the college search process or apply the funds to your future education expenses.

29. CollegeXpress “Grill & Chill” Scholarship

CollegeXpress’s “Grill and Chill” Scholarship has a quick and easy application process. Simply answer one question—“What’s your favorite summertime food?”–in one sentence for your chance at winning a $1,000 scholarship. 

30. Americans United’s Student Essay Contest

Scholarship award: $1,500 for first place, $1,000 for second place, and $500 for third place

This annual essay contest by Americans United challenges students to write a 750 to 1,000-word essay about why religious freedom and the separation of church and state is important for them and their communities.

31. Speak Up! Scholarship

Scholarship award: $2,000

The National Society of High School Scholars is awarding five students involved in communications classes like Yearbook, Public Speaking, or Visual Design a $2,000 scholarship. Students must answer the following two questions in a 500 to 800-word essay: “What do you think are the most important aspects of clear and effective communication? What have you done to practice and perfect the art of communications?”

32. Claes Nobel Good Earth Sustainability Scholarship

The National Society of High School Scholars is awarding five students with a passion for sustainability, conservation, and preserving the Earth a $2,000 scholarship. Students must answer the following question in a 500 to 800-word essay: “Mr. Claes Nobel said: ‘I hope soon, you shall gain a new world view that fosters global stability and the cultivation of love and virtue.’ What do you think Mr. Nobel meant by this statement, and what does it mean to you personally?”

33. Annual Catholic College Scholarship

Open to: High school freshmen, sophomores, and juniors

The $2,000 Catholic College Scholarship Drawing is open to all high school freshmen, sophomores, and juniors interested in attending a Catholic college or university.

34. Technology Addiction Awareness Scholarship

Open to: High school students, undergraduate students, graduate students

To raise awareness about technology addiction, Digital Responsibility requests students to answer this prompt in 140 characters: “Instead of spending time with technology, I’d rather…” Ten finalists selected will be asked to write a 500 to 1,000-word essay about technology addiction, and the winner will receive the $1,000 scholarship.

35. Minecraft Scholarship

Open to: High school and college students

Do you love playing Minecraft? If so, this annual scholarship awarded by Apex Hosting is the perfect opportunity for you. To enter, students with a 3.0 or higher GPA must write a 500-word essay about how Minecraft can positively influence the future of education and the workforce.

36. UniMovers Working Student Scholarship

Open to: College-bound seniors, college students, and non-traditional students

UniMovers understands the challenges of balancing school and work, so they want to award working students a $1,000 scholarship. To enter, students must write an essay about how they represent one of the core values of UniMovers in both their personal and professional life.

37. Phyliss J. McCarthy Scholarship for Excellence in Writing

Open to: High school juniors or seniors

A scholarship for aspiring writers, the Phyliss J. McCarthy Scholarship by Learncurious is offering one grand-prize winner a scholarship of $1,000 for answering one of three prompts in a 2,000-word essay.

38. Courage to Grow Scholarship

This scholarship that renews each month is simple—students must explain why they believe they should be awarded the scholarship in 250 words or less. Students must be juniors or seniors in high school with at least a 2.5 GPA.

39. NSHSS-DECA ICDC Conference Scholarship

Students who are members of both the National Society of High School Scholars and the Distributive Education Clubs of America can apply for this scholarship. Students must also have at least a 3.5 GPA and an interest in pursuing a career in marketing, finance, hospitality, or business. The scholarship requires one 500-word personal statement that asks students to describe their career plans and explain how DECA and NSHSS have prepared them to succeed.

40. Walgreens Expressions Challenge

Scholarship award: $2,000 (first place)

High school students between the ages of 13 and 18 are invited to create an artistic project about anything that is having an impact on them. Students can enter the contest as individuals or in groups of up to five people in total.

41 (Bonus). CollegeVine Scholarships

Amount: $2,000

Deadline: Quarterly

Eligibility: high school student and US resident

Application Requirements: create a free CollegeVine account or fill out chancing profile if you already have an account. 

CollegeVine provides a quarterly, no-essay scholarship of $2,000. All you have to do is sign up for a free account, which allows you to see your chances of acceptance at 1,600+ schools, get your essays reviewed by a peer, ask questions in our community forum, and more. If you already have an account, just make sure your chancing profile is filled out.

Awards will be paid out directly to students to help them cover any educational costs. Learn more about the CollegeVine scholarships .

Explore your options.

There are many other niche scholarships and resources available. Do your research to find find scholarships that are most applicable to your interests and strengths. The more specific the scholarship, the better your chances of winning. Similarly, local awards are easier to win than big, national competitions.

Know the terminology.

A need-based scholarship is awarded based on demonstrated financial need. A merit-based scholarship is awarded based on academic or extracurricular talents. Most external scholarships, such as the ones listed above, are merit scholarships, though some do take into account a student’s financial need.

The best way to win merit scholarships, however, is not by applying to external scholarships. You’re much more likely to win more scholarship money by applying to lower-ranked schools where your profile is especially strong. 

Read the rules carefully.

An error can lead to your disqualification from a scholarship. Make sure you understand all the rules and submit all the necessary components. Be sure to submit them before the deadline as well!

Want access to expert college guidance? When you create your free CollegeVine account, you will find out your real admissions chances, build a best-fit school list, learn how to improve your profile, and get your questions answered by experts and peers—all for free. Sign up for your CollegeVine account today to get a boost on your college journey.

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

The Admissions Strategist

Junior year & how to beat it: a winner’s guide.

Junior year is an exciting time if you’re a high school student. You’re so close to being a senior, you can almost taste it.

But if you’re college-bound, the junior year marks the start several steps you’ll want to take right away to make sure that you have the best possible chance to get into the college or university you want.

Here’s how to ace your junior year with flying colors!

How important is junior year for college?

Junior year is exceptionally important in preparing for college.

The steps that you take leading up to this point, and throughout junior year itself, are going to play a major role in how your application to your top colleges and universities are seen by prospective admissions offices.

Top tier schools have limited spots available, so they’re very strict in their requirements.

With so many students doing everything they can to excel in every facet of their academic careers, planning ahead can make all the difference.

Fortunately, we’ve created a “junior year road map” to help you before, during, and after this momentous year, so that you can have the best possible chances of getting accepted to the school of your choice.

By the end of this article, you’ll know:

• How to prepare for junior year even if you’re still a freshman or sophomore .
• That’s right, there are steps you can take even if you’re not a junior to make your college prep even easier!
• Exactly what steps to take during the middle of your junior year to give you the best possible chances of getting into the schools you want.
• How to tackle the end of junior year with confidence. Senior year is right at your doorstep, and competition for the best schools is unrivaled. You’ll need the advice outlined in this guide if you want to surge ahead.

These days, good grades are no longer enough. You have to show your chosen colleges and universities that you are driven, focused, and diligent.

Fortunately, by keeping these points in mind as you progress through your junior year, you’ll be better situated not only to demonstrate your commitment and skill to prospective schools, but to demonstrate your stellar scholastic aptitude.

What should I be doing before my junior year?

If you’re a freshman or sophomore wondering how best to prepare for your junior year, it’s a good idea to map out your plans.

• Figure out which classes you’ll need to take in the coming years in order to best align yourself for the requirements of the school(s) you’re aiming to apply to.
• Different schools may have different requirements, but having a well-rounded selection of classes with special emphasis on your proposed area of study will already show admissions offices that you’re serious about making the grade.

Don’t forget the value of volunteer work. Colleges and universities actively look for civic-minded individuals , and your involvement in a summer program or volunteering can make all the difference when competition is fierce.

Click above to watch a video on Junior Year.

Choose a program that aligns with your values so that you can demonstrate that passion in your college entrance essays.

With this in mind, recognize that the next months and even years ahead of you are going to be much busier, so it pays to prioritize accordingly!

Get personalized advice!

What should i work on at the beginning of my junior year.

The beginning of junior year might seem relatively slow as the school season gets underway, but now is the best time to work on your time management skills.

• Continue to study hard and work to achieve the best possible grades in all of your classes. If you’re struggling to manage it all , don’t hesitate to surround yourself with the tools you’ll need, such as a calendar or planner, or ask for help from family and friends.
• Now is the perfect time to prepare for the SAT , ACT and/or SAT2. There are countless guides out there that will give you an idea of what to expect, but nothing beats good, old-fashioned studying and test prep!

If you already know what major area of study you’ll be pursuing, it’s also a good idea to start researching colleges that can best prepare you for this line of work.

Many colleges and universities are proud to share this information with you, and most, if not all, will have details on the percentage of alumni who graduated and got jobs in relevant fields.

What should I work on in the middle of my junior year?

Even by prioritizing your time to focus on the things that are most meaningful to you throughout junior year, you’ll find that time flies!

• In the middle of junior year, you’ll want to take time to visit some college campuses for prospective programs you’re interested in.Meet your department heads, get a course catalog, and get to know the ambience of the area. Is it everything you expected? Do you feel welcomed and encouraged to attend? Can you see yourself spending the next 4+ years here?
• In addition to continuing to keep up with your roster of activities , it’s a smart idea to pursue leadership positions in the activities you truly love and excel at.This may mean having to cut out some of the activities, clubs, or teams you’re not particularly focused on, in favor of the ones you really enjoy. Remember, it’s not about the quantity of activities you’re involved in, but the quality!

Just as with volunteer work , colleges and universities keep a keen eye out for those who don’t hesitate to step up to the plate to take charge and lead an organization.

It may also help to get letters of recommendation from a teacher or individual in charge of the groups you lead. Having a third party expound on your leadership characteristics and your self-discipline will contribute a great deal to your own efforts!

• Also during this time, you’ll likely take the first standardized tests, such as the ACT, SAT , and/or SAT2, depending on the requirements of your prospective college or university.

All of your test preparations, mock exams, and studying come down to this moment, so make it count! Don’t worry, you can take the tests again, but taking them earlier during junior year will give you a better idea of what to expect.

If you’ve been working hard to get top grades, now is also a great time to see what scholarships you may qualify for. When it comes to paying for college, every little bit helps. So, take note of what scholarships may be available to help ease some of the financial bite of student loans.

What should I work on toward the end of junior year?

This is it! The final stretch of junior year. But your work still isn’t done. Now, more than ever, is when you should be kicking your college prep responsibilities into high gear.

• Study for your AP exams. If you successfully pass your AP exams, you can get college credit for certain classes while still in high school. This not only helps you save time, but you save money as well.

Take relevant standardized tests. If you’ve been following the steps in this guide, you’ll already know what the tests are like, so this should be your final push to truly nab those top scores.

• Ask teachers for recommendations. Recommendations from your teachers in terms of your character, scholastic aptitude, leadership skills, and volunteer work (if applicable) can add another facet of worth to your college essays and demonstrate that not only do you personally possess all of these qualities, but others see them as well.
• Seek out scholarships . Scholarships aren’t just based on good grades. Check with organizations that you volunteered with, clubs that you were part of, and other local activities to see if they offer scholarships to help with some of the costs of college. You may be surprised at what you find.

And remember that even if the amount seems small, the costs of college add up quickly and every little bit can help!

• Continue to visit college campuses. Depending on where you live, your school of choice may be closer or farther away.

Set aside some time near the end of junior year, before the summer, to keep visiting campuses and get a better feel for what to expect.

Should I start my college essays during my junior year?

Yes, you’ll want to start your college essays in late winter, around February, since this is when the Common App prompts are released.

Common App prompts are designed to inspire and motivate you to expand on your personal story and make a powerful and meaningful impression with college admissions offices.

It’s important to remember that when dealing with Common App Prompts, the prompt isn’t nearly as important as the story you want to tell. You’ve got approximately 650 words or one single-spaced page, so make it count!

What should I do after junior year is done?

Congratulations on completing your junior year! You may be tempted to rest on your laurels, but there’s still work to be done!

• Continue visiting college campuses. It’s getting closer to the fall and closer to having to make a decision about which colleges you want to apply to. Now’s the time to finalize your list and start on those application packets.
• Add on a summer program or volunteer work . Every little bit counts when it comes to making a brilliant impression on college admissions teams.
• Keep in mind, they see hundreds if not thousands of transcripts and essays just like yours over the course of a summer.

Adding volunteer work or a summer program shows that you have the skills to handle both work, study, and volunteer work with a calm, level head and a helpful, encouraging personality.

• Don’t forget supplemental essays. Some colleges and universities may ask for them, and you don’t want to be left empty-handed!
• It’s best to start on these in August so that you can formally submit your application in plenty of time before the fall semester starts.

Conclusion: The Junior-Year Roadmap

The bottom line whether you haven’t started junior year yet, or you’re in the thick of it, is that this is your chance to shine.

Remember, you aren’t taking all of these steps to impress someone at an admissions office somewhere. You’re taking these steps to better prepare yourself for your college future and beyond.

This is your opportunity to truly share your skills and unique approach with the world, so get out there and show them what you’ve got!

Learn how we can help you with college and career guidance! Check out our YouTube channel!

Click Here to Schedule a Free Consult!

Stay on track and ease your anxiety with our second-to-none college application assistance.

• Ethics & Honesty
• Privacy Policy
• Join Our Team

(732) 339-3835

[email protected]

• Search All Scholarships
• Exclusive Scholarships
• Easy Scholarships to Apply For
• No Essay Scholarships
• Scholarships for HS Juniors
• Scholarships for HS Seniors
• Scholarships for College Students
• Scholarships for Grad Students
• Scholarships for Women
• Scholarships for Black Students
• Scholarships
• Student Loans
• College Admissions
• Financial Aid
• Scholarship Winners
• Scholarship Providers

Student-centric advice and objective recommendations

Higher education has never been more confusing or expensive. Our goal is to help you navigate the very big decisions related to higher ed with objective information and expert advice. Each piece of content on the site is original, based on extensive research, and reviewed by multiple editors, including a subject matter expert. This ensures that all of our content is up-to-date, useful, accurate, and thorough.

Our reviews and recommendations are based on extensive research, testing, and feedback. We may receive commission from links on our website, but that doesn’t affect our editors’ opinions. Our marketing partners don’t review, approve or endorse our editorial content. It’s accurate to the best of our knowledge when posted. You can find a complete list of our partners here .

Top 1,875 Scholarships for College Juniors in April 2024

Will Geiger is the co-founder of Scholarships360 and has a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. He is a former Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at Kenyon College where he personally reviewed 10,000 admissions applications and essays. Will also managed the Kenyon College merit scholarship program and served on the financial aid appeals committee. He has also worked as an Associate Director of College Counseling at a high school in New Haven, Connecticut. Will earned his master’s in education from the University of Pennsylvania and received his undergraduate degree in history from Wake Forest University.

Learn about our editorial policies

Scholarships for college juniors can help current college students finance their education and reduce the amount of debt they graduate with. As a junior, you have probably already picked your major and begun to specialize in your field of study. This opens up a whole new world of scholarship opportunities.

We’ve gone through all the scholarship opportunities we could find and picked only the best of the best scholarships for college juniors. Every opportunity you see here is vetted by our team and geared towards students in their third year of college. Let’s get into it!

Why choose Scholarships360

We helped over 4 million students find scholarships in 2023

We've spent over 4,000 hours reviewing 3,000 scholarship programs

13+ years of experience helping students make smart education decisions

The Scholarships360 Research Team reviews all scholarships individually and strives to exclude any scholarship where any of the below applies:

• The scholarship requires a fee to apply
• The scholarship provider’s privacy policy allows for the misuse of student data
• The scholarship requires paid membership in an organization (with certain exceptions for reputable trade organizations and others)
• Student are required to sign up for a site or service to apply*
• The scholarship seems primarily used for lead generation** or idea harvesting purposes***
• The scholarship website has many grammatical errors and/or advertisements
• The scholarship or scholarship providing organization seem untrustworthy
• There is no evidence the scholarship was previously awarded
• The scholarship has not been awarded in the past 12 months
• There is no available contact information

If you believe a scholarship has been published in error, please reach out to [email protected] and we’ll take a look!

* There are certain exceptions to this, for example if the sponsoring organization is a major corporation or nonprofit with its own scholarship application system. ** Lead generation scholarships will require students to sign up for an app or website and require minimal (if any) application requirements. ***Idea harvesting scholarships will require students to submit blog posts or other materials that companies may use for marketing purposes.

Scholarships360 is recommended by

RECENT SCHOLARSHIPS360 WINNERS

Danielle Emretane

Winner of the Scholarships360 $10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship

Fiorella Ruiz

Winner of the "Commencing at Community College" Scholarship

Jack Furman

Winner of the “Tuition Solution” STEM Scholarship

Morgan Breitschuh

Winner of the “Follow Your Own Path” Scholarship

Connor Godoy

Winner of the “Commencing at Community College Scholarship”

Kyamani Atterbury

Winner of the “Outstanding Undergraduate” Scholarship

$10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Scholarships360

The Scholarships360 $10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship is open to all students who want some extra help paying for their education. Whether you are a high… Show More

The Scholarships360 $10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship is open to all students who want some extra help paying for their education. Whether you are a high school student who hopes to go to college, a graduate student who’s in a master’s program, or an adult learner who wants to return to school, you are eligible for our no essay scholarship. This scholarship will be awarded to students who get the most out of Scholarships360 scholarships and content. You will be a strong applicant if you apply to scholarships with the Scholarships360 platform. Finalists for this scholarship will be interviewed about their process for funding their education. Show Less

$2,000 Sallie Mae Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Sallie Mae

Sallie Mae will award $2,000 each month to eligible entrants. No essay or account sign-ups, just a simple scholarship for those seeking help paying for…

Sallie Mae will award $2,000 each month to eligible entrants. No essay or account sign-ups, just a simple scholarship for those seeking help paying for school.

“Get Inspired” TikTok Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Online platforms like TikTok have given people all around the world the opportunity to create and share content. But sometimes with so many people constantly… Show More

Online platforms like TikTok have given people all around the world the opportunity to create and share content. But sometimes with so many people constantly posting and sharing, it’s hard to break out of all the noise. That’s why Scholarships360 is asking what or even who inspires you to create, to share, and to connect with others. To enter this scholarship, all you have to do is follow our Scholarships360 TikTok account, like the “Get Inspired” post pinned to our profile, and comment on what inspires you. For extra consideration, tag some friends who inspire you as well! Show Less

Niche $25,000 “No Essay” Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Niche

Easy scholarship open to all high school and college students, as well as anyone looking to attend college or graduate school in the next year!

TikTok Diploma Frame Giveaway This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Scholarships360 and Church Hill Classics

Have you thought about how you will display that diploma that you're working so hard to earn? We are happy to share that we have… Show More

Have you thought about how you will display that diploma that you're working so hard to earn? We are happy to share that we have the answer! Scholarships360 is excited to announce our new TikTok Diploma Frame Giveaway! In partnership with Church Hill Classics, we are giving away custom diploma frames (in the form of $250 gift certificates) to two lucky students! To apply to win a diploma frame, simply follow these steps: Follow the Diploma Frame TikTok account Follow the Scholarships360 TikTok account Like Scholarships360's pinned "Diploma Frame TikTok Giveaway" post and comment how you will make the most of your high school, career/technical, or college degree! We look forward to reading your comments! Show Less

$25k “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Bold.org

Open to high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students.

Foster Greatness Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Foster Greatness

The Foster Greatness Scholarship is offered to one college or graduate student in the state of California who has been part of the foster care… Show More

The Foster Greatness Scholarship is offered to one college or graduate student in the state of California who has been part of the foster care system in their life. To apply for this $500 scholarship, students must create a short video (one minute or less) introducing themselves and sharing what they would like to see in a community created for people with lived experience in foster care. To be eligible for this scholarship, applicants must also create a free Foster Greatness account where they will be able to access a variety of digital tools and resources around work, education, and more. This scholarship will be awarded to students based on both the quality of their video response and the manner in which they engage with the Foster Greatness platform. Students who get the most out of the Foster Greatness platform by engaging with the tools and content will be given higher consideration. Finalists will be interviewed about how the Foster Greatness community can positively impact their lives. Apply by May 15th to be considered for this scholarship! Show Less

“Jump for Joy” InstaScholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

When you’re not searching for scholarships, what do you like to do for fun? Do you dance? Play sports? Watch movies? Here at Scholarships360, we… Show More

When you’re not searching for scholarships, what do you like to do for fun? Do you dance? Play sports? Watch movies? Here at Scholarships360, we know how important it is to enjoy life. That’s why we’re offering a $500 scholarship to one student who tells us what makes them jump for joy! Whether it’s spending time with your friends, playing with your dog, or jamming out to music, we want to know what brings a smile to your face. To apply for this scholarship, simply follow us on Instagram, go to the “Jump for Joy” InstaScholarship post at the top of our grid, like the post, and drop a comment about something you love to do for fun. Extra consideration will be given to students who mention at least one friend in their comment! Show Less

$2,500 ScholarshipPoints Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by ScholarshipPoints

Easy $2,500 scholarship from ScholarshipPoints open to all students.

“Scholar Dollars” Essay Scholarship for Black Students This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

In offering the “Scholar Dollars” Essay Scholarship for Black Students, we want to help offset the cost of attending college for Black students. Open to… Show More

In offering the “Scholar Dollars” Essay Scholarship for Black Students, we want to help offset the cost of attending college for Black students. Open to high school juniors and seniors (graduating class of 2024 and 2025) and undergraduate and graduate students enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year, this scholarship aims to lighten your financial worry and allow you to take fewer loans. Remember, scholarships are essentially “free money” that need not be paid back. This scholarship, specifically, aims to help out a Black student who is passionate about their higher education journey and actively looking for ways to fund it. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application, and wish you much success on your academic journey!  Show Less

“Making Waves” Scholarship for Women This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Are you a woman in high school, college, or graduate school enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year? If so, let us help you! Our $500… Show More

Are you a woman in high school, college, or graduate school enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year? If so, let us help you! Our $500 “Making Waves” Scholarship for Women aims to help women cover the costs of pursuing their dreams. Whether that dream is starting a business, learning a foreign language, or attending college on the path to fulfilling your dream, the scholarship will cover those costs and make your journey a little easier. No matter your goals, we want to help out a woman who is passionate about their higher education journey and actively looking for ways to fund it. In order to apply, simply write an essay about how the $500 “Making Waves” Scholarship for Women will help you fulfill your dreams. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We encourage you to apply and look forward to reading your essay. Good luck! Show Less

$2,000 Niche “No Essay” College Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Easy scholarship from Niche open to all high school, college, and graduate students.

“Tuition Solution” Scholarship for STEM Students This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Do you like figuring out solutions to difficult problems? Well, if you’re a current or aspiring STEM major, we have one for you! Our $500… Show More

Do you like figuring out solutions to difficult problems? Well, if you’re a current or aspiring STEM major, we have one for you! Our $500 “Tuition Solution” Scholarship is meant for high school juniors and seniors (graduating class of 2024 or 2025), as well as undergraduate and graduate students enrolled during the 2023-24 academic year who are looking for ways to fund their postsecondary education in STEM. In order to apply, you must write an essay about how your passion for STEM started and how the scholarship will help you fulfill your dreams. No matter which STEM field ignites your interest, we look forward to reading your essays. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. Apply today - it’s time to cell-e-brate you! Show Less

“A Helping Hand” Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

At Scholarships360, we know how hard it can be to pay off the hefty costs of a college tuition. Oftentimes, this is even more difficult… Show More

At Scholarships360, we know how hard it can be to pay off the hefty costs of a college tuition. Oftentimes, this is even more difficult for students coming from low-income backgrounds or for those who demonstrate financial need. This is where our “A Helping Hand” Scholarship comes in! We're offering a $500 scholarship to help out a low-income student who is passionate about their higher education journey and is actively looking for ways to fund it. This award is open to high school juniors and seniors (graduating class of 2024 and 2025), as well as undergraduate and graduate students enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year. In order to apply, students should submit an essay detailing how winning the scholarship would help you fulfill your dreams. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application! Show Less

ScholarshipOwl $50,000 No Essay Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by ScholarshipOwl

Easy scholarship open to all US-based high school, college, and graduate students. Each month, 4 winners will be selected to earn $1,000 each. In December… Show More

Easy scholarship open to all US-based high school, college, and graduate students. Each month, 4 winners will be selected to earn $1,000 each. In December 2023, there will be 2 additional winners earning $1,000 each. Applicant must be a resident of any of the 50 United States, District of Columbia or US Territories except for Rhode Island and Michigan. Applicant also must be 16 years of age or older and either be enrolled now, or will be enrolled within three months of registration in the Scholarship Sweepstakes, in a qualified high school, college or university within the United States. Show Less

“Follow Your Own Path” Essay Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

At Scholarships360, our mission is to help students find and fund their postsecondary education. We know that students have a variety of educational and career… Show More

At Scholarships360, our mission is to help students find and fund their postsecondary education. We know that students have a variety of educational and career interests and aspirations. That is why we are offering the “Follow Your Own Path” Essay Scholarship. This scholarship aims to support all current postsecondary students, regardless of the type of education they are pursuing. Thus, no matter your own unique educational path, we hope you apply for this $500 scholarship. In order to apply for the “Follow Your Own Path” Essay Scholarship, students must submit an essay about their career ambitions. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application! Show Less

“Outstanding Undergraduate” Essay Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

The U.S. is home to over 2,000 four-year universities offering bachelor’s degrees. However, attending such universities can sometimes come with hefty costs that can deter… Show More

The U.S. is home to over 2,000 four-year universities offering bachelor’s degrees. However, attending such universities can sometimes come with hefty costs that can deter students from attending. If you’re in a situation similar to this, we may just have the perfect scholarship opportunity for you: the “Outstanding Undergraduate” Essay Scholarship! With this scholarship, we aim to help out a lucky undergraduate student (enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year) who is passionate about their higher education journey and actively looking for ways to fund it. The scholarship is open to any U.S. citizen who is enrolled as an undergraduate at a four-year university in the U.S. during the 2023-24 academic year. In order to apply, submit an essay explaining how earning your bachelor’s degree will help you achieve your educational and career goals. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application! Show Less

Sharing is Caring Scholarship This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Did you know you can win a $1,000 scholarship just by sharing Scholarships360 with your friends? The Sharing is Caring Scholarship is open to all… Show More

Did you know you can win a $1,000 scholarship just by sharing Scholarships360 with your friends? The Sharing is Caring Scholarship is open to all Scholarships360 users who refer their friends to Scholarships360. The more people you refer, the higher your chances of winning! To apply, just send your personal referral link to your friends. For every person who creates a Scholarships360 account using your personal referral link, you’ll gain an entry to the Sharing is Caring Scholarship. Get started by visiting the Scholarships360 Referral Center! Show Less

“Mom to Scholar” Scholarship for Mothers This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

Offered by Maria Geiger

The “Mom to Scholar'' Scholarship for Mothers is open to mothers who want to begin or resume their journey towards earning a technical or college… Show More

The “Mom to Scholar'' Scholarship for Mothers is open to mothers who want to begin or resume their journey towards earning a technical or college degree. This scholarship is funded by Scholarships360’s own Maria Geiger, who started her journey toward a B.A. at the same time that her oldest son Will started college. Maria knows firsthand how challenging it is to raise a family, have a job outside the home, and attend college, but would not change the way she did things for the world. Mothers who have a desire to earn their college degree bring unique perspectives that greatly enhance their learning experiences; for some, motherhood is a vocation that enlightens like no other. If you are a mother over the age of 35 who feels that the time is right to begin your academic or career journey, please apply! Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application! Show Less

“Moving Mountains” Scholarship for Hispanic Students This scholarship has been verified by the scholarship providing organization.

This scholarship is open to Hispanic/Latino high school juniors and seniors, college, and graduate students who have moved mountains in their life. To move mountains… Show More

This scholarship is open to Hispanic/Latino high school juniors and seniors, college, and graduate students who have moved mountains in their life. To move mountains means to achieve something incredibly difficult. It means overcoming obstacles, persevering in the face of adversity, and achieving success against all the odds. Whether it’s passing a difficult class, completing a rigorous project, or excelling in sports, we all have our own way of moving mountains. We want to know about yours. See the “Application Information” section below for details regarding the essay prompt. Please note that applicants will be reviewed based on both the quality of their essay and quantity of scholarships applied for on the Scholarships360 platform. Scholarships360 users who are more active on the platform will be given higher consideration. We look forward to reading your application! Show Less

Top 5 scholarships for college juniors overall

We went through all our scholarships for college juniors and hand-selected the opportunities below based on three criteria:

• The scholarship is from a well-known organization that has been offering the opportunity for several years
• The award amount is substantial
• The eligibility information is not too narrow, so many students can apply

Here are our picks for the overall top 10 scholarships for current college juniors:

• Ayn Rand Institute Novel Essay Contest (Atlas Shrugged) – For students who submit an essay about the novel Atlas Shrugged. Worth $25,000
• Elie Wiesel Foundation Prize In Ethics – For college upperclassmen who write an essay about ethics. Worth $10,000
• Stokes Scholarship Programs – For students pursuing fields relevant to work in the CIA. Worth $25,000
• NSHSS James W. Lewis Collegiate Global Leader Scholarship  – For college students who show leadership skills and a commitment to diversity. Worth $5,000
• Generation Google Scholarship  – For HS seniors, college, and grad students who plan to study computer science or engineering. Worth $10,000. Preference given to women and ethnic minorities

Top 3 scholarships for Black college juniors

• Regions Riding Forward Scholarship Contest  – For Black high school seniors or college students, worth $8,000
• Scholar Dollars Essay Scholarship for Black Students  – For Black high school upperclassmen, college students, and graduate students. Worth $500

Top 3 STEM scholarships for college juniors

• Barry Goldwater Scholarship – For college students pursuing a research career in STEM. Worth $7,500
• Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers Scholarships  – For high school seniors and above who are Hispanic and pursuing a STEM degree. Worth $25,000

How to win scholarships for college juniors

Now that you’ve got a list of opportunities, it’s time to focus on how to craft a successful scholarship application. Luckily, we can help. We’ve got a wide array of resources to help you stand out from the crowd in your applications. Here are a few that you’ll find especially helpful:

• How to start a scholarship essay (with examples)
• “Show, Don’t Tell” essay primer
• How to write a 250 word essay
• How to write a 500 word essay
• Writing an essay about yourself
• How to win local scholarships
• How to write a scholarship resume

Tips for college juniors

As a junior, you’re halfway through your time at college. Can you believe it? Senior year and graduation will be here before you know it, which means making the most of your time has never been so important.

Junior year is a great time to start looking for internships within your major. You can use our internship guide to get started with that process! And for those internships that require a little more, take a look at our article for how to write an internship cover letter.  

Or perhaps instead of internships, studying abroad is on your horizon. If so, checkout some reasons why studying abroad is beneficial and the scholarships that can help fund your study abroad experience ! 

Frequently asked questions

Is junior year of college too late to apply for scholarships, will outside scholarships reduce my financial aid if i am already in college, explore these other scholarship categories.

• Top scholarships for college students
• Top scholarships for women
• Easy scholarships to apply for
• Top writing and essay scholarships
• Top scholarships for Black students

Join for exclusive scholarships, personalized matching, and application tracking. 0% Spam, 100% Free.

3 reasons to join scholarships360

• Automatic entry to our $10,000 No-Essay Scholarship
• Personalized matching to thousands of vetted scholarships
• Quick apply for scholarships exclusive to our platform

By the way...Scholarships360 is 100% free!

College Essay for Students and Children

500+ words essay on college .

Educational institutions are the true place of learning. The students, who are really anxious to learn, can develop a bright career , sense of responsibility and healthy habits only in the college. In a college, we are taught how to move in society, how to behave with others and how to progress in life. Therefore let us get some facts about college.

What is a College?

A college is an academic institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding educational institution . So, college is meant not only to provide education in the country but also a strong base of youth power.

College is the place where one can get higher education for achieving his or her career goal. College is indeed necessary for each and every one. Thus for a successful career, the student needs knowledge, confidence, academic and technical skills, career opportunities and social skills.

Importance of College:

One can determine the importance of college education by the role it plays in one’s life. But before that, it’s really important that students must know the college very well. Also, they should know why they are joining a college, what will be the end results? The final results after college education are to do a job or business.

A good-paying job in reputed position in government and private sector is the goal of many people. Some of them achieve these goals who understand the importance of college education. But not many achieve these career goals. And there are various reasons for that but let’s talk about the positive points. A college education always increases the confidence level in students.

The sense of duty and responsibility is the way of human development . Because when someone responsible for their own works and duties, it will help a nation to build a social and economic development environment. Definitely, it starts with a college education. Thus college education gives a strong platform for the growth of the great nation.

This is the reason why college makes the student responsible for learning. Also, they provide the freedom to choose an interesting career path. Therefore one can say that college provides the masters and experts of various professions.

Also in the college student does the analysis of good and bad companies. They can analyze which company will benefit them in the long run. Also, they can find education’s impact on their self-respect and acceptance of their parents.

Improvement in communication skill is also another impact factor of a college education. Hence, the college environment is something in which one can get a versatile experience which is not avoidable for a successful life.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Some points about college:

• A strong belief about college is that with college degrees one can earn more than average.
• College can help to expand the social network.
• New skills from college will definitely help the student’s career.
• A college education can prepare you to transition to a new field.
• it’s a proven fact that college degree is correlated to lower unemployment rates.
• Improvement in Confidence and awareness is another milestone possible due to college
• The college inculcates the sense of responsibility in nature and habit of the student.

Conclusion:

We can say that a college is not only an educational institution but also a place to provide exposure to the student for upcoming real life. The senses of duty and responsibility are the way of human development. When someone responsible for their works and duties it will help a nation to build a social and economic development environment. Thus college is a must for a strong country with truly responsible countrymen.

Customize your course in 30 seconds

Which class are you in.

• Travelling Essay
• Picnic Essay
• Our Country Essay
• My Parents Essay
• Essay on Favourite Personality
• Essay on Memorable Day of My Life
• Essay on Knowledge is Power
• Essay on Gurpurab
• Essay on My Favourite Season
• Essay on Types of Sports

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Download the App

Georgia Tech Admission Blog

Three messages about college admissions for juniors.

Don’t apply to a college you would not actually attend. Seniors did this. I know, right? They basically walked into a store looking for jeans and went to the section three sizes up from theirs and were like- “Yea, I’ll put those in my cart just to have a few extra.” Does that sound dumb? It is. Think about it this way- there are 2000+ four-year colleges in America, not to mention the thousands of other post-secondary options around our country and abroad. I’m guessing if someone lined up that many pairs of jeans you could easily find 7 or 9 or 11 that you could afford, fit well, and you would be excited about/proud to wear. Many application fees are $50 or more. Need suggestions for better uses of that money? Donate to a local non-profit, take your mom out to lunch, Venmo me, basically do anything with it except what the seniors just did. Want more details and insight? Check out this podcast with Rachelle Hernandez, vice provost for student affairs at Johns Hopkins University. Not a podcast listener? Ok. Then hear this: Don’t apply to a college you would not actually attend!

Look. As a talented student and a relatively good person, an annoyingly large number of people are going to have opinions about where and why you should visit, apply, or attend certain schools. Oh… and they’re going to tell you whether you like it or not. At the end of the day, we live in a noisy, busy world. My hope is that you will consistently pull away for a few hours to listen and be honest with yourself. The truth is that these decisions just keep getting bigger- where to apply becomes where to attend. Where to attend becomes what to major in. What to major in becomes job, city, community, family. Oh, yea. I can draw a throughline from today to one far in the distant future based on how you approach this. But hey- you are a junior and we are just on #2, so let’s start with and commit to this. Don’t do what they seniors did! Don’t begin by searching Google with criteria someone else told them was important. Don’t start by looking at rankings or lists of colleges that a marketer developed to sell ads and peddle clicks. The college admission search is internal.

Nothing happens to you in college admission. Read that carefully. I did not say “nothing happens.” Just that nothing happens to you . Now, to be fair to the seniors, this has been a tumultuous and unprecedented year, particularly in light of the FUBAR FAFSA situation, the first cycle following a landmark SCOTUS case, and noise and variance in testing policies around the country.

Still, there was way too much why did this happen to me mentality and not enough why did this happen for me ? inquiry. Here’s the truth- next year there will also be change, unexpected events, personal and macro challenges, and general unpredictability. This spring, as admission and scholarship information has come out, a lot of seniors (and their parents) have effectively said: “What did I do wrong?” or “What else could I have done?” or (directly or indirectly) “This whole thing is broken and unfair.” Well, in the spirit of “messages you might not like to hear,” that’s college admission, that’s college, and really that’s life.

As a junior, however, you have a choice. When things don’t go exactly as you hope/plan, i.e. you get deferred, denied, waitlisted, or you don’t receive the amount of money you need to attend a particular school, you can cry/wallow/point fingers/ take your ball and go home OR you can re-frame from why is this happening to me? to why is this happening for me?

Ok. I got deferred. “Why is this happening for me?” Now, I get to decide if I’m still really interested in this school. If so, I get to send my fall grades and submit updated information.

I didn’t get admitted. Or I didn’t get into the honors program. Or that scholarship amount is just not enough to make it affordable… why is this happening for me? Now, I get to pivot. I get to figure out another way or explore a different option. I get to show up somewhere else committed to succeeding, building a network, maximizing my opportunities. Nothing happens to you in college admission.

What messages do we like to hear? I can help you control this. I can make this easier for you. You are special and amazing and it’s all going to work out. I get it. I’m human. That all sounds good to me too. But it is not true (well, you’re kind of special and amazing). And you best believe you can find (often for $$) lots of people who will guarantee you things in college admission. If you see an ad online or have someone approach you claiming to have the magic formula, the secret sauce (or some other noun preceded by a descriptor), RUN!

So, I will not make any guarantees, but I will make you a promise. If you will only apply to places you really want to go and would be excited to attend; if you will begin with asking yourself big and tough questions; and if you will adopt the mindset that the year ahead, while absolutely not predictable or fully in your control, will be one of formation, transformation, growth, discovery, and opportunity; then on the Ides of April 2025, you will have been truly successful in your college admission experience.

Author: Rick Clark

Rick Clark is the Executive Director of Strategic Student Access at Georgia Tech. He has served on a number of national advisory and governing boards at the state, regional, and national level. Rick travels annually to U.S. embassies through the Department of State to discuss the admission process and landscape of higher education. He is the co-author of the book The Truth about College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together, and a companion workbook published under the same title. A native of Atlanta, he earned a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a M.Ed. from Georgia State University. Prior to coming to Tech, Rick was on the admissions staff at Georgia State, The McCallie School and Wake Forest University. @clark2college View all posts by Rick Clark

2024 Ethics Essay Contest winners announced

Claire Martino , a junior from New Berlin, Wis., majoring in applied mathematics and data science, is the winner of the 2024 Ethics Essay Contest for the essay "Artificial Intelligence Could Probably Write This Essay Better than Me."

The second place entry was from Morgan J. Janes , a junior from Rock Island, Ill., majoring in biology, for the essay "The Relevant History and Medical and Ethical Future Viability of Xenotransplantation."

Third place went to Alyssa Scudder , a senior from Lee, Ill., majoring in biology, for the essay "The Ethicality of Gene Alteration in Human Embryos."

Dr. Dan Lee announced the winners on behalf of the board of directors of the Augustana Center for the Study of Ethics, sponsor of the contest. The winner will receive an award of $100, the second-place winner an award of $50, and the third-place winner an award of $25.

Honorable mentions went to Grace Palmer , a senior art and accounting double major from Galesburg, Ill., for the essay "The Ethiopian Coffee Trade: Is Positive Change Brewing?" and Sarah Marrs , a sophomore from Carpentersville, Ill., majoring in political science and women, gender and sexuality studies, for the essay "Dating Apps as an Outlet to Promote Sexual Autonomy among Disabled Individuals: an Intersectional Approach to Change."

The winning essays will be published in Augustana Digital Commons .

The Augustana Center for the Study of Ethics was established to enrich the teaching-learning experiences for students by providing greater opportunities for them to meet and interact with community leaders and to encourage discussions of issues of ethical significance through campus programs and community outreach.

Dr. Lee, whose teaching responsibilities since joining the Augustana faculty in 1974 have included courses in ethics, serves as the center's director.

If you have news, send it to [email protected] ! We love hearing about the achievements of our alumni, students and faculty.

• Bahasa Indonesia
• Eastern Europe
• Moscow Oblast

Elektrostal

Elektrostal Localisation : Country Russia , Oblast Moscow Oblast . Available Information : Geographical coordinates , Population, Area, Altitude, Weather and Hotel . Nearby cities and villages : Noginsk , Pavlovsky Posad and Staraya Kupavna .

Information

Find all the information of Elektrostal or click on the section of your choice in the left menu.

• Update data

Elektrostal Demography

Information on the people and the population of Elektrostal.

Elektrostal Geography

Geographic Information regarding City of Elektrostal .

Elektrostal Distance

Distance (in kilometers) between Elektrostal and the biggest cities of Russia.

Elektrostal Map

Locate simply the city of Elektrostal through the card, map and satellite image of the city.

Elektrostal Nearby cities and villages

Elektrostal weather.

Weather forecast for the next coming days and current time of Elektrostal.

Elektrostal Sunrise and sunset

Find below the times of sunrise and sunset calculated 7 days to Elektrostal.

Elektrostal Hotel

Our team has selected for you a list of hotel in Elektrostal classified by value for money. Book your hotel room at the best price.

Elektrostal Nearby

Below is a list of activities and point of interest in Elektrostal and its surroundings.

Elektrostal Page

• Information /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#info
• Demography /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#demo
• Geography /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#geo
• Distance /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#dist1
• Map /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#map
• Nearby cities and villages /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#dist2
• Weather /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#weather
• Sunrise and sunset /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#sun
• Hotel /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#hotel
• Nearby /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#around
• Page /Russian-Federation--Moscow-Oblast--Elektrostal#page
• Terms of Use
• Copyright © 2024 DB-City - All rights reserved
• Change Ad Consent Do not sell my data