1. BigFuture Scholarship Search — College Board

BigFuture currently lists more than 24,000 scholarships representing over $1.5 billion in scholarship dollars annually. It also matches scholarships to students based on their background, achievements and plans.

BigFuture

Especially useful for:

  • High-school juniors
  • High-school seniors
  • First-generation students
  • Students looking for major-specific scholarships
  • Students looking for scholarships based on background, activities or achievements

2. Fastweb

Fastweb is one of the longest-established scholarship search platforms. It has been operating since 1995, and says its database contains approximately 1.5 million scholarship opportunities. Fastweb also says its scholarship research team vets scholarships in its database.

Fastweb

Especially useful for:

  • High-school students
  • College students
  • Merit scholarships
  • Local scholarships
  • Major/career-specific scholarships
  • Scholarships based on hobbies, activities and interests

3. Scholarships.com

A long-established general scholarship database that allows students to search scholarships according to different eligibility criteria.

Especially useful for: building a large scholarship list and finding opportunities that might not appear in a student’s first few searches.

4. Going Merry

Going Merry is particularly useful because many scholarships can be applied for directly through the platform, rather than sending students all over the internet.

Especially useful for:

  • High-school seniors
  • Students who want a streamlined application process
  • Finding multiple scholarships in one place

5. Scholarship America

This is one I would put on a student’s high-priority list.

Scholarship America works with companies, foundations and organizations to administer scholarship programs. That makes it different from simply being a database of random scholarship listings.

Especially useful for: established corporate and foundation scholarship programs.

6. CareerOneStop Scholarship Finder

This is especially important because CareerOneStop is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The federal government specifically recommends the Department of Labor’s free scholarship search tool as a scholarship resource.

Student Aid

I would absolutely include this one in a student’s scholarship-search routine.

7. Niche Scholarships

Niche combines college research with scholarship opportunities.

Especially useful for:

  • College-specific opportunities
  • No-essay scholarships
  • Local scholarships
  • Students already using Niche to research colleges

8. Unigo

Unigo provides scholarship searches along with college information and financial-aid resources.

Especially useful for: students who want another database to cross-check against Fastweb, BigFuture and Scholarships.com.

9. Appily

Appily combines college matching, college planning and scholarship searching.

This can be particularly helpful for students who are still deciding where they want to attend college.

10. Bold.org

Bold.org has a large collection of scholarships created by individual donors and organizations.

Especially useful for: students who want to search for scholarships based on specific characteristics, interests, career goals or circumstances.

11. Sallie Mae Scholarship Search

Sallie Mae provides a free scholarship search tool and is another good database to use for cross-checking opportunities.

12. Peterson’s Scholarship Search

Peterson’s has long provided college-planning resources and scholarship information.

Don’t Forget the Most Important Sources

The biggest mistake students make is relying only on scholarship websites.

The U.S. Department of Education recommends looking at local organizations, community foundations, businesses, religious organizations, employers, professional associations and the student’s own school. Student Aid

Use these areas of support as well:

1. The student’s college

Look for:

  • Institutional scholarships
  • Department scholarships
  • Academic scholarships
  • Athletic scholarships
  • Alumni scholarships
  • Major-specific scholarships
  • Honors college scholarships

The college’s own financial-aid office should be one of the first places the student contacts.

2. High-school counselor

Ask the counselor for:

“A list of local, state and regional scholarships available specifically to graduating seniors.”

Local scholarships can sometimes have far fewer applicants than national scholarships. Federal Student Aid specifically points out that local scholarships may improve a student’s chances because the applicant pool can be smaller. Student Aid

3. Employers

Check:

  • Student’s employer
  • Parent’s employer
  • Unions/professional associations where applicable
  • Company foundations
  • Employee scholarship programs

4. Community organizations

Look at:

  • Rotary
  • Kiwanis
  • Lions Club
  • Community foundations
  • Chambers of Commerce
  • Credit unions
  • Banks
  • Local businesses
  • Churches
  • Civic organizations

5. Organizations connected to the student’s identity, interests or career

This can be extremely valuable.

For example:

  • STEM organizations
  • Healthcare organizations
  • Engineering associations
  • Business organizations
  • Education organizations
  • Athletic organizations
  • Arts organizations
  • Cultural organizations
  • Military-family organizations
  • First-generation college organizations
  • Organizations serving specific communities