What are the odds of actually winning a scholarship sponsored online?
We all apply to scholarships online, and yet, it always seems as if we never win them. I've applied to more scholarships than I can count, and I haven't won a single one.
What does the community think?
Hey, all! 👋 I'm Tim, Product Manager for Scholarships at CollegeVine. Love the conversation so far - it's super helpful to know how you all feel about this. I have a couple of questions for you:
1.) Did you know you get your full Karma bid back? Did you see that everyone that enters our scholarships gets a 1 Karma bonus for entering?
2.) Does that alleviate some of your "this is a waste of time" feeling, or no? Is there something that would?
3.) Would seeing photos or videos of the winners increase legitimacy to you?
Our thought was that at least if you didn't win the prize, your continued participation would leave you with Karma in your wallet. That Karma could be used for other helpful college-prep services on the platform. Was that apparent?
If CV Scholarships end up being popular, we will most likely have more (and higher) prizes. Any feedback you can share about what we've built so far would be much appreciated!
I don't think this website is a waste of time (I wouldn't be on here if so). CollegeVine.com is way better than Cappex.com, Bold.org, CollegeSimply.com, and Nice.com. I love the authenticity of the site and the reliability when it comes to calculating admission. I know we get our karma back if we lose a scholarship, but to me, it's like I could have 1,000,000 karma points and still not win a scholarship if you know what I mean. I didn't mean to spark any negativity, I promise! I was just stating a common point, which I'm sure others agree with.
Hey there! I'm just going to provide some insight specifically pertaining to CollegeVine's sweepstake scholarship. I just figured out I won the sophomore scholarship (around 30 mins ago!), and I've been entering for the last 4 weeks! I only had 248 karma (from reviewing essays + receiving 5-star ratings) by the time I applied last week, but I've found that the merit multiplier really increases your chances of getting selected. I'd advise you to enter the scholarship as SOON as it opens so that your merit multiplier will multiply the amount of bids each day leading up to the drawing. By Thursday, I think I had around 3944 bids, even with only 248 karma, and I didn't have to do anything! So, scholarship entries open every Friday (I think), and I've just entered the raffle twenty minutes ago. To increase your chances, you should do the same. Good luck and I hope this helps!
3944! Wow, what's your secret! :)
Thank you for the helpful information, @oliviaj
I think scholarships that are no essay or sweepstakes are very hard to win since there's such a large pool (low effort, high competition). Normally I'd check social media pages to see if the organization announced winner(s); that way you know someone actually did win!
I think what gets me the most is when you put your heart into an essay-required scholarship... and you don't win. The fact that this happens numerous times makes me not want to apply for these types of scholarships and apply for the ones given by the college.
Yeah, for sure - especially when telling your whole story. Applying for ones given by the college are definitely a viable option as well, but I think now that you have the essay written hopefully it'll be easier to apply to other scholarships!
No Essay scholarships are like playing the lottery, you could win but you are much better off investing your time in scholarships that actually assess your application.
Exactly! I apply for a scholarship online and end up forgetting about it because I know I (most likely) didn't win it. For example, on ScholarshipPoints.com, I had over 1,000 points and spent it all on one scholarship. Did I win? No. It's frustrating, but understandable.
@Donovan_Little03, I would love to know your input on my comment above. Does the fact that we give all of your Karma back with extra change this for you? If not, please feel free to share your thoughts!
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