The Twelve Coolest College Scholarships
Do you feel sick to your stomach when you think about college tuition costs? Not to worry - higher education might not be as inaccessible as you think. Dozens of scholarships are available out there for uniquely qualified students. Read on for a list of some of the best and most interesting college scholarships around.
The Best College Scholarships
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. The J.D. Salinger Award The Carnegie Mellon Bagpipe Scholarship The Michigan Llama Association Scholarship The National Gay Pilot's Association Scholarship Coven of the Sacred Waters Scholarships The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest The National Beef Ambassador Scholarships The Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarship The Zolp Scholarship The National Make it Yourself with Wool Competition The Kae Sumner Einfeldt Scholarship The Kor Memorial Scholarship
Of course, 'best' can mean many different things. Some people might think - with justification - that Harvard University's offer to pay full tuition for any student from a low-income family is the best deal around. But it's the interesting scholarships that sometimes draw the most attention. Here are the details on the twelve best - or maybe just weirdest - scholarships out there.
The J.D. Salinger Award
This scholarship is offered to 'oddball geniuses' in creative writing by Ursinus College outside Philadelphia. Best known as the author of the classic teen-angst novel Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger attended Ursinus for only one semester in the fall of 1938 before dropping out. Still, the school is proud of its link to the author, and each year it awards a $25,000 scholarship to a student displaying unusual talent in writing. The best part? Winners get to live in Salinger's dorm room.
The Carnegie Mellon Bagpipe Scholarship
Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University, proud of its Scottish heritage, offers four-year scholarships of $7000 per year, plus discounted kilts, to students who agree to study the bagpipes with the university's worldrenowned instructor. Currently, however, there is only one recipient of the scholarship, an undergraduate who admits that he's not popular with students trying to nap around campus. But, hey, how many people can say they're learning the bagpipes? Plus, he gets to wear kilts.
The Michigan Llama Association Scholarship
Yes, you read that right. If your parents are members of the Michigan Llama Association, a group that sounds like a Monty Python joke but actually exists, you're eligible to apply for a $500 scholarship that can be renewed as many as three times. You don't have to major in anything llama-related, but you do have to write an essay about 'your involvement with llamas or your family's involvement with llamas.' Sounds exciting!
The National Gay Pilot's Association Scholarship
This is exactly what it sounds like - a scholarship for, well, gay pilots. If you qualify, you can earn a one-year scholarship of between $2000 to $3000 to be applied to an aviation training program at a college or flight school. Applicants need to have been active in the GLBT community. They also need to be pilots, of course.
Coven of the Sacred Waters Scholarships
Do you practice witchcraft? Don't worry - this isn't an interrogation, and we're not in 17th-century Massachusetts. The Coven of the Sacred Waters, a community-minded group of modern pagans, just wants to give you some money. The coven offers the Karma Award to qualified followers of neo-witchcraft traditions. The award consists of a $500 scholarship for first place and a $250 award for one runner-up. There's also a Community Service Award, which is available to anyone, witch or not, who can prove his or her involvement in community enterprises. Winners receive $400 or $200.
The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest
If you can call ducks and you're short on cash for college, a change of holiday travel plans might be in order. Each Thanksgiving, the town of Stuttgart, Arkansas, invites talented high school seniors to join the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial competition, where one-time scholarship prizes of $1500, $500, $300 and $200 are awarded to the best callers. Fortunately, the award can be used for any field of study - after all, there aren't any majors in duck calling.
The National Beef Ambassador Scholarships
Ah, beef...does it really need advertising? Apparently so, because the American National CattleWomen, an advocacy group, awards annual scholarships of $1000, $750 and $500 to well-qualified young people who show promise as future spokespeople for the beef business. Applicants are required to make a short presentation about cattle and must be involved in some way with the industry.
The Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarship
On the opposite side of the coin, let's say you're not involved with beef at all, don't eat beef, and in fact want others to understand that eating beef is bad. Well, you're in luck, because there's another scholarship just for you. The Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarship is for meat-eschewing high school seniors who have worked to develop awareness of vegetarianism in their communities. The group awards $5000 one-time gifts to two lucky, vegetable-munching students each year.
The Zolp Scholarship
Even though it reads like a sound effect in the old Batman television series ('Bam! Smark! Zolp! Watch out, Robin!'), this is actually a highly valuable scholarship for a well-regarded Chicago school, Loyola University. Students who have the last name Zolp on their birth and confirmation certificates are eligible for a four-year, full-tuition scholarship upon acceptance to the university. Students must also be practicing Catholics. Hey, everything's got a price.
The National Make it Yourself with Wool Scholarship
Some of these scholarships are pretty self-explanatory, aren't they? People who've knitted garments from at least 60% wool can submit photographs of their creations and join the running for scholarship awards that range from $2000 for junior and senior-grade winners to $1000 for best mohair piece. Sponsors include the Mohair Council of America and the American Sheep Industry Women.
The Kae Sumner Einfeldt Scholarship
Do you find yourself scrunched into schoolroom desks that seem far too small for someone of your stature? If so, the Kae Sumner Einfeldt Scholarship might be sized just right for you. Women over 5'10' and men over 6'2' who are younger than 21 can apply through a local branch of the Tall Clubs International. Applicants
must write an essay about - no joke - what tallness means to them. The one-time awards are for up to $1000.
The Kor Memorial Scholarship
Kaplah! If you're a language buff looking for a little extra research funding, the Klingon Language Institute offers a yearly, one-time scholarship of $500 to students pursuing degrees in a language-related field. Fortunately, you don't actually have to know Klingon, because, well, Klingon isn't actually a real language. Unsurprisingly, however, a high level of 'creativity' is looked upon with favor.
Sources: www.ursinus.edu www.cmu.edu www.thetartan.org www.michiganllama.org www.ngpa.org www.sacredwaters.netfirms.com www.stuttgartarkansas.org www.nationalbeefambassador.org www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm www.luc.edu www.sheepusa.org www.tall.org www.kli.org