It’s every student’s dream: getting all the money you need to cover school expenses for a year—in one scholarship! It’s rare, but this could be you if you’re lucky enough to get a full-ride scholarship.
It’s a financial award, like any other scholarship, but with a difference—it covers all your college expenses. And not just tuition—a full-ride scholarship also covers your housing, meals, books, lab fees, and sometimes even living costs. In money terms, it can be worth anywhere from $20,000 to more than $50,000, depending on your school’s costs. And more than just money, in some cases it can also include participation in special leadership programs, internships, and peer mentoring at your college.
Note: There’s a similar-sounding award—a full-tuition scholarship. Like the name says, this will pay for your tuition but not your other expenses. Not too shabby, but the full ride is the real golden ticket.
Not surprisingly, a full-ride scholarship is very competitive. It can focus on academic standing, athletic skill, leadership, or merit; financial need isn’t necessarily a requirement. The important thing is to start out with an honest self-evaluation. What are your biggest strengths? What makes you really shine and stand apart from others in your class?
It’s hard to generalize, but you can increase your chances by making yourself stand out in one or more areas, and the earlier you can start to develop these unique qualities, the better:
These scholarships are most often awarded by a school or a private organization. Universities award these scholarships to sweeten the deal when they’re trying to attract a certain type of student to their campus.
Organizations or companies may offer them for a specific field of study, like STEM, or even for a certain affiliation.
To find other scholarships, check out Scholly Scholarships—your go-to for finding and applying for free money opportunities for school. Best part? You don’t have to register—and you can use filters to narrow down your search based on your background, major, the state you live in, and more.
Just like with any scholarship, you need to make sure you know the application date, details, and the backup materials you need. Read over the scholarship’s rules several times to make sure you don’t miss anything. Extra materials you’ll need can include the following:
And be sure to speak with your counselor—those rules can get pretty specific and sometimes require an experienced professional to make sure you’re not missing something.
To be honest, they’re pretty unusual. Wondering what percentage of students get one? One estimate is about 0.1%.1
On the other hand, someone has to be awarded the full-ride scholarships so why not you? And you can’t get one if you don’t apply! It’s also smart to have a backup financial plan for college, just in case. Always fill out the FAFSA® so you’re eligible for federal financial aid and apply for all the scholarships you can. Several smaller scholarships can add up to full tuition or more.
Who knows? You could be in the 0.1% that gets the golden ticket to college!