$2,000 Zombie Apocalypse Scholarship, D: Oct 31, 2025
Video or Essay
Prompt: “Imagine that your high school or college has been overrun with zombies. Your math professor, the cafeteria ladies, and even your best friend have all joined the walking dead. Flesh out a plan to avoid the zombies, including where you’d hide and the top-five things you’d bring to stay alive.” (250 words or less)
Applicants must be 14 years of age or older at time of application. Must be a legal U.S. resident. Must be a resident of one of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. This award is for U.S. students.”
$2,000 Brains or Bust Sweepstakes sponsored by Collegexpress, D: Oct 31, 2025
You must sign up for a free account on Collegexpress and answer the short question, “Do you think you would survive a zombie apocalypse?”
You must be 13 or older and legal resident of the 50 United States or D.C.
Winner selected by random drawing.
I would recommend signing up for this contest with an email you use strictly for scholarships (not your school email address).
How to Get Help In Your Scholarship Pursuits from the TSU Writing Center
The AARC Writing Center at TSU is temporarily located in the TSU Library, 2nd floor, room 229, near the elevator. We hope to be moving back to our original location in Spring 2026, the 3rd floor of the Student Success Center.
We assist students, faculty, staff, and alumni of Tennessee State University.
If you are a TSU student, faculty member, or staff, log into EAB-Navigate and make an appointment to see any of our writing consultants (in person or online) with help with scholarship essays or any other writing project.
If you are having problems, feel free to email Mr. Mike Turner, mjturner@tnstate.edu
If you are alumni at Tennessee State University, email Mr. Turner, mjturner@tnstate.edu, and we can see what we can set up.
A good article to give you some steps to distinguish between legitimate scholarships and scams is found above, “How to Avoid Scholarship Scams” by Cole Claybourn, March 15, 2024.
I highly recommend setting up two accounts for scholarships, one email for scholarship applications that you make on the college’s website or through websites like https://bold.org/.
The second email is for scholarship contests, such as the $15,000 Citizens Scholarship, $40,000 Niche Scholarship, or $10,000 Dr. Pepper Cheez-It Tuition Award.
$10,000 Dr. Pepper Cheez-It Tuition Award, D: Oct 31, 2025
From website: “School is back in session and so is the chance to win a $10,000 tuition award towards education expenses, loans, or even to gift to a student.
Legal Residents of the 50 United States (D.C.) 18 Years and Older.”
You basically sign up and play games. Eventually, there will be a drawing for $10,000 tuition award. You can play games daily.
From website: “For the monthly drawings and annual grand prize winner, high school seniors 18 years and older who will be enrolled in college within one (1) year of winning an award, plus undergrads, grad students and parents or legal guardians of any of those students are eligible to win.”
By reviewing the Official Rules, you can determine if you are eligible for the $2,500 Citizens Building the Workforce of the Future Scholarship, awarded quarterly.
From website: “The $2,000 No-Essay Scholarship Sweepstakes is only open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and any US Territory age 16 or older at the time of entry, and who meet one (1) of the four (4) following eligibility requirements at the time of entry:
a parent who currently has a child enrolled in an accredited college or university located within the United States;
a student who is currently enrolled in an accredited college or university located within the United States;
a parent who currently has a child enrolled as a high school senior or junior located within the United States;
a student who is currently enrolled as a high school senior or junior who intends to enroll in an accredited college or university located with the United States, within a year of graduating high school (“Entrant”).”
$40,000 Niche No Essay Scholarship, D: Oct 15, 2025
From webpage: “All high school and college students, as well as anyone looking to attend college or graduate school in the next year. Please note: Not everyone is eligible for this scholarship. Niche sponsored scholarships and sweepstakes are for people with US citizenship or a valid Visa/US passport only.”
I use several different databases to search for the scholarships I feature on this website.
Scholarroo.com is a database created by Ben Kaplan, author of Scholars & Dollars: How to Get Admitted, Win Scholarships, and Jump-Start Your Feature, who acquired enough scholarships to pay for Harvard University virtually free.
$1,000 Karen Riley Porter Good Works Scholarship, D: Oct 31, 2025
This database premieres scholarships giving a summary, eligibility requirements, key information, and suggestions on “how to ace” the scholarship.
From above: “Good Works Scholarship awards only one student $1,000 each year. The program is open to college-bound students as well as undergraduate and graduate students, who possess a minimum GPA of 3.0, interested in social justice, and demonstrate active involvement in their communities. Applicants are required to submit their résumés, letters of recommendation, grade transcripts, and essays, showcasing their dedication to community service projects, along with their applications.”
Ben Kaplan’s book, Scholars & Dollars: How to Get Admitted, Win Scholarships, and Jump-Start Your Feature, is available for 99 cents in its Kindle edition.
$2,500-$30,000 Scarlett Family Foundation Scholarships, opened Sept 15, 2025: D: Dec 15, 2025
From webpage: “
Be a graduating high school senior, an individual who obtained a GED by June 1st, or a college freshmen, sophomore, or junior
Demonstrate financial need via 1040 tax return
Graduate from any high school in Middle Tennessee’s 40 counties
Pursue a Business, Education or STEM degree at a 4-year, non-profit college or university
Receive a minimum score of 21 on the ACT and have a GPA of 2.5 or higher
Enroll full-time next fall”
Many times, students are not clear what the 40 counties are in Middle Tennessee.
If you are from one of the following counties in Middle Tennessee
Bedford
Cannon
Cheatham
Clay
Coffee
Cumberland
Davidson
Dekalb
Dickson
Fentress
Franklin
Giles
Hickman
Houston
Humphreys
Jackson
Lawrence
Lewis
Lincoln
Macon
Marshall
Maury
Montgomery
Moore
Overton
Perry
Pickett
Putnam
Robertson
Rutherford
Smith
Stewart
Sumner
Trousdale
Van Buren
Warren
Wayne
White
Williamson
Wilson,
then check out this scholarship.
The Scarlett Family Foundation has added Education majors, which includes if you are majoring in subject-specific education, such as an English secondary teacher or a math secondary teacher.
Under Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), if your major doesn’t appear on the list but is related to business, education, or science, then ask if your major qualifies: “We recognize this list is not fully exhaustive of all Business, Education and STEM offerings, as universities frequently add new majors that may qualify. If you have a question regarding qualifying majors, please contact us.”
$100,000 Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway, D: Sept 30, 2025
Promotion open to “all U.S. residents, excluding Puerto Rico,” ages 18-24.
Selected criteria from webpage:
Create a Pepper Perks account if you don’t have one.
“Tell us about yourself
Next, you’ll need to provide us with some basic info about yourself, like where you live and where you go to school. You’re one step closer to chasing your dreams. We’ll look things over and reach out to those selected.
Submit a video
Make and submit a video that helps us get to know you. Tell us about your academic goals, professional aspirations, or even personal dreams.
Your video will be judged on the four following criteria: career goals, need for tuition assistance, impact of tuition assistance, and overall presentation quality and delivery. It must be 60 seconds or less and in MP4, MOV, WMV format.
Be passionate, be creative, be you.”
Tuition Prizes:
Three $100,000 Tuition Prizes (One at each SEC, Big Ten, and ACC Game)
Three $20,000 Runner-Up Prizes (One at each SEC, Big Ten, and ACC Game)
One thing often not thought about is when creating a video, do not infringe on the “copyrights, trademarks, or intellectual property of any person or entity.”
In other words, do not have a song running in the background unless it is your composition and you state that in your words, and don’t have clothes with logos or other trademarks, except for “Dr Pepper trademarks, logos, and trade dress which Entrant has a limited license to use for purposes of this Contest.”
$1,000 Courage to Grown Scholarship, D: Sept 30, 2025
“Eligibility: You must be a junior or senior in high school or college student with a minimum GPA of 2.5 or better. U.S. citizens only please”
Answer the scholarship question of why you deserve this scholarship in 250 words or less.
Helpful suggestions:
Check the website for information on what the Courage to Grow Scholarship is about and how the organization awards the scholarship. I am guessing if you are a freshman in your first semester of college, then consider your GPA from your last semester in high school. (You could even contact the scholarship organizers to ask them this question.)
Since you are writing about yourself, you most likely won’t use the word you (2nd person), but use I and me (1st person) or when talking about others, their names or identities and third person pronouns (for example, father, mother, Mom, Dad, he, she, his, her, etc).
$1,000 Building Bridges Scholarship, D: Sept 30, 2025
Selected criteria from web page:
“Each year NPVA offers merit-based scholarships for students who are committed to volunteering and making a difference in their communities. Our scholarships are open to students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees.
Eligibility Criteria
Applicants must:
Be currently enrolled or plan to be enrolled part-time or full-time in an accredited U.S. college or university. Vocational/technical, two-year, four-year, or graduate institutions are eligible.
Be a high school junior or senior, undergraduate student, or graduate student
Have a grade point average of 2.5 or above on a 4.0 system
Recipients must provide an official transcript confirming their reported GPA and proof of enrollment. No transcript or proof of enrollment is required until after students are selected as winners.
Please write an essay of 150 words or fewer describing how you are involved in your community. You may describe any community of which you are a part including school, neighborhood, ethnic, or other.”
$2,000 Stephen LeCornu Routh Memorial Scholarship, D: Oct 7, 2025
High school senior or undergraduate student in Tennessee majoring in Engineering
Selected criteria from webpage:
” In honor of Stephen’s life, his career, and the difference he made in the lives of everyone he came in contact with, this scholarship aims to continue his legacy by helping students achieve their dreams of becoming engineers.
The scholarship seeks to provide funding to high school and undergraduate students in Tennessee who are studying to become engineers.
Any high school senior or undergraduate student in Tennessee who wants to become an engineer may apply for this scholarship.
Students who demonstrate financial need, academic achievement, leadership qualities, a strong work ethic, and a commitment to service are encouraged to apply.
To apply, tell us about yourself and how you hope to make the world a better place through your career in engineering.
Essay Topic: Tell us about yourself and how you hope to make the world a better place through your career in engineering. (400–600 words)”
Please write an essay of 150 words or fewer describing why education is important to you. Be specific with an example or anecdote from your own life about the importance of education instead of writing generally about education.”
Scholarships and Internships for the Future
The following are some scholarships I will write up soon, but you can explore them now and see if they apply to you.
From webpage: “Must be 14 years of age or older at time of application. Must be a legal U.S. resident. Must be a resident of one of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. This award is for U.S. students.
250 Word Essay or Video
“OMG… finding and applying for scholarships is serious business, but it’s time to lighten things up a little. We don’t want to know why you deserve $1,500 or how great your grades are, we simply want to LOL. Describe an incident in your life, funny or embarrassing (fact or fiction), and make us laugh!” (250 words or less)
$1,000 Delete Cyberbullying Beyond School Walls Scholarship, D: Oct 31, 2025
From webpage: “To apply, you must be a high school student (9th-12th grader), college student or graduate student attending or planning to enter an accredited U.S. college or university.
Answer ONE of the following questions in one paragraph. Option 1: “Why is it important to work to delete cyberbullying?” Option 2: “How has cyberbullying personally affected you?”
Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest, D: April 1, 2026; First prize: $2,000 plus a two-year gift certificate from Duotrope; Second prize: $500; Third prize: $250
Honorable Mention: 10 Awards of $100 each
No fee to enter.
From webpage: “This is a contest for humor poems, not serious poems. Serious poems will not be judged. The poem you submit should be in English.”
Two Scholarships and Other Resources You Might Want to Explore
Here are two scholarships and one scholarship search engine.
Explore the scholarships if the criteria applies to you.
Everyone can the University Network Scholarship search engine.
$1,000 Storyteller Scholarship (twenty outstanding students), D: Nov 30, 2025
Ages 14-24 across the U.S.
Selected criteria from webpage: “Storyteller Scholarship, a simple no-essay, long form conversation-based scholarship. This program allows students to discuss how their experiences have shaped them via a video interview, conducted in-person at our office (or virtually) and shared across our social media platforms.
Be sure to bring a legal guardian with you if you are under 18!”
In exploring for scholarships, I discover some scholarships with very close deadlines.
In order to list a number of these, I won’t be giving you all the details. You will need to click on the link to see if the scholarship is a right fit for you.
$4,000 Baby OG: Next Gen Female Visionary Scholarship, D: Aug 30, 2025
From website: “Any female BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) undergraduate, or graduate student, who is from an underserved community may apply for this scholarship opportunity if they are majoring in STEM or innovation and if they have at least a 3.5 GPA.”
$2,500 Dr. Monique Dupree Scholarship for BIPOC Students, D: Aug 31, 2025
From website: “Any BIPOC undergraduate student who is pursuing higher education and a career in physical therapy may apply for this scholarship opportunity.”
Up to $5,000 2025-2026 James J. and Margaret M. Kerrigan Endowed Scholarship, D: Sept 4, 2025
From webpage: “The James J. and Margaret M. Kerrigan Scholarship will provide the opportunity for financial support to U.S. Citizens, Permanent Residents, and students who have an official DACA status.
Eligible applicants must be full-time college juniors or seniors at any accredited U.S. based Historically Black College or University. There is a preference for students who are majoring in K-12 Education or Fine/Performing Arts during the 2025-26 Academic year.”
Other requirements: cumulative GPA of 2.5; complete FAFSA from; demonstrated, unmet financial need as verified by college or university
Find above the PDF handout for the workshop given on August 21, 2025, with more than $30,000 in scholarships.
This handout includes some of the following:
Adopt the Scholarship Mindset
TSU Foundation Scholarships and How to Make Your Application Stand Out
$8,000 Regions Riding Forward Scholarship, D: Sept 30, 2025; Dec 31, 2025
Thurgood Marshall College Funds Open Scholarships, various deadlines
Robert N. Murrell Oratorical Scholarship Contest, D: Oct 3, 2025; First place: $700, Second place: $500, Third place: $300; Scholarships awarded for two categories: Freshman and Upperclassmen (30 or more completed hours)
$2,500-$30,000 Scarlett Family Foundation Scholarships, opens Sept 15, 2025: D: Dec 15, 2025
$2,500 Ancestry’s HistoryMakers Scholarship, D: Oct 23, 2025
$25,000 Chick-fil-A Community Scholars, D: Oct 28, 2025
Three Scholarship Databases to find More Scholarships
Scholarship America has a database of scholarships that can be searched. The link above takes you to 4 scholarships that are currently open.
Below you will find brief information. Click on the link above to find more information about each scholarship.
1. $10,000 to $20,000 New York Life Financial Empowerment Scholarship Program, D: Aug 25, 2025
Open to “a high school graduate in the class of 2025 or 2026, who is a legal resident of the 50 United States of the District of Columbia.”
Complete the number of levels in a financial empowerment scholarship game.
Twelve $10,000 scholarships awarded to students who complete at least 25 modules in the game.
Eight $20,000 scholarships awarded to students who complete at least 50 different modules in the game.
Plan to enroll in full-time undergraduate study at an accredited two- or four-year college/university or vocational-technical or trade school for the entire upcoming academic year (or following year for juniors).”
There are many more requirements, including an essay.
2. $3,200 United Health Foundation Health Care Scholars United Scholarship, D: Sept 12, 2025
If you are a “current or former health professional interested in advancing clinical credentials” and plan to enroll as a student in January 2026, you might want to check out this scholarship.
Pay for four-year university, community or technical college, or graduate school.
3. Full Tuition SMART Scholarship Program, D: Dec 5, 2025
Good for four-year university or graduate school
From web page: “SMART offers merit-based, full-tuition STEM scholarships for undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students pursuing degrees in one of the SMART STEM disciplines.
SMART offers merit-based, full-tuition STEM scholarships for undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students pursuing degrees in one of the SMART STEM disciplines.
“SMART Scholarship applicants must:
Be a citizen of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or United Kingdom
Have and maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
Be currently pursuing, or intend to pursue in fall 2026, a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree in a SMART STEM discipline*
Planning to attend, or enrolled in, a regionally accredited U.S. college or university
Able to obtain and maintain a security clearance**
Be requesting between 1-5 years of degree funding. Degree funding will start in August 2026
Complete summer internships for awards greater than 1.5 years
Accept a one-for-one post-graduation service commitment as a civilian employee of the Department of Defense
*High school seniors and incoming college freshmen who will be pursuing a bachelor’s degree in fall 2026 are eligible to apply.
**Security clearances are initiated by a scholar’s Sponsoring Facility after award.”
4. Scholarship America Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund, D: Dec 31, 2030
Helps pay for four-year university scholarships or community or technical college scholarships
This fund was established to honor families who have lost loved ones or were severely affected by the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and the rescue mission.
Scholarship Tigers--Students Helping Each Other Find Money for College 