Best Personal Essay Writing Scholarships in 2025

We award small artist support grants ($500 – $2,000) to individual feminist women in the arts who are citizens in the U.S and Canada. We welcome applications from women artists and writers who exhibit high quality and originality, use feminism as their central interpretive lens, and validate and express intersectional views.

We want to know…what do you dream about? Whether it's some bizarre dream you had last week, or your hopes for the future, share your dreams with us for a chance to win $1,500 for college. Response should be limited to 250 words or less.

The winner of this award receives $2,000, an invitation to accept the award at our annual awards ceremony, promotion on our website, and a feature of their work in our journal and quarterly newsletter. Candidate must submit a 5-to-10 page story or essay on one of the chosen topics. Candidate must also be entering the sophomore, junior or senior year in the fall at any HBCU in the US.

Arts for Life! annually awards $1,000 scholarships to 25 graduating high school seniors in Florida who demonstrate excellence in creative writing, dance, drama, music or visual art. To apply, students must submit a completed application, a brief essay explaining “how the arts have positively influenced my life,” and a portfolio of work in creative writing, dance, drama, music, or visual art.

Receive up to $15,000 in funding and join a community of more than five hundred alumni now teaching in higher education. Applicants must submit all required materials including personal statements, academic writing samples, and an essay responding to the question: "What is the relationship between liberal education and a free society?”

The Davidson Fellows Scholarship awards $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 scholarships to extraordinary young people, 18 and under, who have completed a significant piece of work. Application categories are Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Literature, Music, Philosophy and Outside the Box. Literature applicants must submit a 60- to 75-page portfolio displaying a number of literary styles and genres.

This scholarship is awarded to daughters of career-commissioned officers in the United States armed services. The selection will be based on both merit and financial need. The application process includes: an essay, a secondary school report, a letter of recommendation from a member of the applicant’s community, and a Student Aid Report (SAR).

Each year we award one $1,000 scholarship to an upperclass student at the University of Oklahoma. Applicants should be enrolled full-time during the current school year in a journalism, communication, advertising or equivalent degree program, with plans to pursue a newspaper career upon graduation. Applicants must attach resumé and describe why you are eligible for this need-based scholarship.

Applicants must demonstrate passion for creative writing, and be a graduating high school senior or graduate of a public or private high school in San Mateo County or Santa Clara County

Thirty ethnic minority students are eligible for TLF undergraduate scholarships in the amount of $2,500 each. Applicants must be majoring in a field of study with an emphasis on advertising, marketing or public relations, and should include a 1-2 page essay outlining their career goals.

Not every gift has to be expensive or extravagant. In fact, sometimes it's the sweet and simple things that make a real difference in our lives. Think back and tell us about something you received as a gift and why it meant so much to you. Response should be limited to 250 words or less.

The Rosa Parks Scholarship Foundation is dedicated to awarding scholarships to Michigan high school seniors who represent Mrs. Parks' ideals while demonstrating academic skills, community involvement and economic need. The Foundation awards approximately forty $2,000 non-renewable scholarships annually. Students must submit a completed application form and essay by March of each year.

At the Better Business Bureau (BBB), we believe it is never too early to introduce and emphasize the importance of ethics. Students will write essays on an ethical issue that they faced and how they handled it. Essays should analyze what ethics has taught the students and themselves. The most engaging essays often reflect on a meaningful experience or lesson learned in one’s life that focuses on an ethical reflection.

HIAS Immigration & Citizenship Scholarships are offered in multiple categories for both undergrad and graduate students. Applicants must identify as Jewish and have a connection to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society of Chicago. Each application involves three essay questions on topics including volunteerism, Jewish community engagement, and your/your family's immigration history.

Life Happens sponsors the annual Life Lessons Scholarship Program for college students and college-bound high school seniors. Qualified entrants who submit essays or videos about how the death of a parent impacted their lives are eligible for scholarship money. The total of scholarships for this year's program is $200,000.