Scholarships are often awarded based on academic achievement. Academic merit implies future success, so many scholarships are based on academic achievement, and there is strong competition for them.

Federal education grants for individual students are provided according to financial need with the goal of helping more students get to college, who might not otherwise have the opportunity. A Pell Grant is “need-based” financial aid. The academic competitiveness grant, SMART grant and the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant are awarded also depending on financial needs, etc.

The Department of Education still provides need-based grants for college, but thousands of foundations, organizations, corporations, trade associations, and schools offer need-based scholarships, merit-based scholarships, and a broad array of scholarships that combine financial need with merit award. In addition to the familiar scholarships for athletes, there are scholarships for musicians, for minorities, for students in specific fields of study, for first-generation college students, for adult learners returning to school after years in the workforce, for single mothers, for students willing to go into challenging or high-demand professions, and for workers laid off from businesses that have closed.

It may not be possible to find scholarships that pay for all 4 years of college, but many students are able to finance their college educations with several different scholarships, as well as their federal college grants. As long as you know which education grants are meant for states and communities, and which are meant for individual students, the difference between scholarships and grants need not matter. All that is required is that you meet the eligibility criteria, which may include economic need, ability to pay, student status and academic requirements.

Grants are often not exclusively based on your family’s income.

By: Anthony Barton

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