As a senior, there is a lot to think about during your final year of high school. At the top of that list should be how you are going to pay for college. One of the best ways to do that is by applying for scholarships.
As scholarships become available throughout the year, they will be listed here with due dates and a short summary of their requirements. This list of scholarships is mostly local scholarships so take the time to research other scholarships available through your college of interest and national scholarships.
Helpful tips to get you started
Start researching scholarships the summer before your senior year.
You most likely will not be able to apply for them at this time but you can create a list with each scholarship you are interested in applying for with the release date of the application, due date, and the website. If you wait until spring, you will miss out on many scholarships.
Most college scholarship deadlines are in the fall.
Be sure when you visit colleges to ask when their scholarship applications are due. You can also find this on their school website.
Write down all sports, activities, and community service.
Write down all sports, activities, and community service you have done including the number of years you have participated in each. Having this list compiled ahead of time helps make applying for the scholarships go quicker.
You will need letters of recommendation for some scholarships.
Start asking for these as soon as possible. Teachers and coaches are busy and need time to write them. It also helps to give them a description of what specific information the scholarship is asking for.
Not sure if you qualify? Apply anyway.
It never hurts to apply for the scholarship and you could be the one that the scholarship committee picks.
Many students avoid scholarships with essays.
This makes your chances better at receiving them because fewer people apply. Keep a copy of your essay so that you can use it when writing others. A lot of essays questions are similar on scholarship applications.
Get started with ICAN’s Scholarship Database
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Scholarships & Grants
| Name & Link | Details (eligibility guidelines, qualifications) |
| Daughters of the American Revolution | Daughters of the American Revolution are now accepting applications for a list of scholarship opportunities. Each scholarship opportunity has its own individual criteria and may require specific documents to be uploaded into your application. The scholarships opportunities range from nursing, medicine, occupational or physical therapy, law, business administration, English, science, math, chemistry, music (voice and piano), history, government, American Studies, horticulture, and elementary and secondary education. Applicants must plan on attending an accredited technical school, college, or university. See the website below for more information on specific scholarships. |
| Iowa State University Scholarships | Iowa State University uses OneApp for most of their scholarship opportunities. Deadlines vary depending upon the scholarship, so ISU encourages students to log in to OneApp early and often to ensure deadlines are met. |
| Iowa Tuition Grant |
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| Kibbie Grant (Iowa Skilled Workforce Shortage Tuition Grant) |
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| Iowa Vocational-Technical Tuition Grant |
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| Future Ready Iowa Last-Dollar Scholarship |
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| Iowa National Guard Service Scholarship |
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| All Iowa Opportunity Scholarship |
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| Governor Terry E. Branstad Iowa State Fair Scholarship |
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| Hagan Scholarship | The Hagan Scholarship will help pay the unmet financial need of the eligible recipient, up to $6,000 each semester for up to 8 consecutive semesters (Up to $48,000 over four year). Eligibility requirements:
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| College Board | College Board ( a reputable scholarship source) will be randomly selecting 200 students to receive a $1,000 scholarship. Drawings are held October through February. More details on their site. The requirements are:
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| Catherine McAuley Scholarship (Mount Mercy University) | The Catherine McAuley Scholarship provides free tuition to Iowa students whose family income is $50,000 or less annually. These scholarships are renewable for up to four years and students are automatically considered upon admittance to Mounty Mercy. To be eligible, students simply need to:
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| National FFA Scholarship | This scholarship is open to seniors enrolled as a full-time student in college with plans to pursue a degree or certification in specific areas of agriculture and eligible majors (listed on their website). Application deadline is January 14, 2021. Requirements are:
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| ClaimAid Star Student Scholarship of Iowa | This $2,000 one-time grant award is for a graduating special education senior who is planning to attend college. Application deadline is January 15, 2021. |
| ClaimAid Special Education Teacher Scholarship of Iowa | This one-time grant opportunity of $2,000 will be awarded to one graduating senior who is planning to study Education, specifically Special Education. Application deadline is January 15, 2021. |
| Des Moines Women’s Club Scholarships | The Des Moines Women’s Club is offering 17 scholarships for the 2021-22 school year. Application deadline is January 15, 2021.
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| Grand Iowa Masonic Scholarships | The Grand Lodge of Iowa will be awarding up to sixty scholarships to high school seniors who will graduate this academic year from a public high school within the state of Iowa. Applicants do not need to have a Masonic connection. Scholarship amount will vary. Application must be postmarked no later than February 1, 2021. |
| Iowa National Guard Officers Auxiliary Scholarship | This scholarship is open to dependents of an Iowa National Guard Member (current or retired). Student Applicants need to be a graduating senior or incoming freshman, and pursuing a 2 or 4 year degree or a certificate program. Application deadline is February 1, 2021. |
| Army ROTC Scholarships | This scholarship is for high school students planning on attending a four-year college program. Application deadline is February 4, 2021. Requirements:
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| Conservation Districts of Iowa Scholarship | CDI is partnering with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) to foster the higher education endeavors of Iowa students interested in conservation and agriculture by offering scholarships. Iowa High School Class of 2021 students pursuing programs of study in any field of conservation or agriculture qualifies for the Conservation Scholarship. While this is a wide field and many studies qualify, preference will be given to students pursuing programs of study in conservation. Application deadline is Friday, February 12, 2021. |
| Jasper County Arts Connection Scholarship | This scholarship is available for students who are planning to pursue a lifelong career, hobby, or interest in the arts. We are looking for students who have been involved in the arts (choir, band, visual arts, drama…) in high school, and plan to be involved throughout college. We do ask the students to turn in 5-10 pieces of visual art, or 1-3 recordings (no more than 10 minutes combined). We do prefer solo recordings, but group performances will also be accepted. We understand not all students are comfortable doing solo performances, or will be doing solos as adults. Click on the link to the left for the application and instructions. Application deadline is February 17, 2021. |
| Iowa Financial Know-How Challenge Scholarship | Enter to win one of 30 scholarships of $2,000. High school seniors should register online with a personal email address. Registered students will receive an email containing instructions and links to the required elements. To qualify, students will be required to:
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| Iowa Farm Bureau Scholarship | The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation will award 27 graduating high school seniors from Iowa (three from each of IFBF’s nine districts) a $2,500 scholarship, renewable for four years (up to $10,000). Eligibility requirements:
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| Grand Lodge Technical Scholarship | The Grand Lodge of Iowa is offering the “Mark Earl and Esther Ruth Spencer Technical Scholarship”. Scholarships will be awarded to a number of graduating Iowa high school seniors who plan to enroll in a mechanical or trade course of study at an accredited Iowa Community College. Application must be postmarked no later than March 1, 2021. |
| Amvets Scholarships (for children or grandchildren of Veterans/Active Duty) |
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| Christina Hixson Opportunity Award | This scholarship is currently available to high school seniors graduating in 2020 who will be entering as a first-year student at Iowa State University in Fall 2020. This program will provide 100 undergraduates with half-tuition scholarships (estimated value of more than $17,000 over eight semesters). Application deadline is December 15. Eligibility requirements:
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| Pearl Hull Falk Scholarship | The Pearl Hull Falk Scholarship awards a $5,000 scholarship. Application deadline is May 3, 2021. Eligibility requirements:
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| PB & J Scholarship | The PB&J scholarship awards $500-$1000 to students who have experienced personal challenges that may not have allowed them to perform well academically (High GPA is not needed to qualify.) Examples of personal challenges are medical issues, peer issues, and family issues. Application deadline is May 31, 2021. Priority deadline is December 31, 2020.
Eligibility requirements:
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| Charlie Burkart Scholarship (Iowa PGA Section Foundation) | The Iowa PGA Section annually awards a college scholarship in memory of Iowa Golf Hall of Famer, Charlie Burkart, PGA member for 49 years and head professional at the Elmcrest Country Club in Cedar Rapids for 42 years. The purpose of this scholarship is to assist students in furthering their education. At least one high school graduate will be the 2021 recipient of $1500 per year for four years. Deadline of June 18,2021. Scholarship winners are based on:
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