Private scholarships are generally much easier to win if the competition pool is small. That’s why I often advise students to search out local scholarships—they automatically have a smaller group of eligible applicants than do national scholarship competitions.

However, another way to narrow down your odds is to find quirky scholarships. Most scholarship search sites (like FinAid.org, where I found a few of the scholarships listed below) will have some listings for unusual scholarships, but you can just as easily do some research on your own.

For example, if you’re a baker, search out baking scholarships. It’s even better if you can find an even more specific category within your category: for baking, search out Apple Pie Scholarships or Sweet Bread Scholarships. Use the internet, your school counseling office, and even leadership in local clubs or associations in which you’re involved. It’s amazing what you can find if you keep at it!

Here are just a few of the unusual scholarships I found by poking around the web a little bit. I bet you can compile a great list if you devote some time to it!

• Michigan Lottery Losers Scholarship Drawing
  Michigan lottery players can send in losing lottery tickets for a chance to win four-year Michigan Education Trust contracts, meant to help pay for four years of schooling!
• Duct Tape “Stuck at Prom” Scholarship
• Student Athlete Milk Mustache Scholarship
• Klingon Scholarship
• Star Trek Starfleet Academy Scholarships
• University of Maryland Chess Scholarships
• Patrick Kerr Skateboard Scholarship
• ISA Surfing Scholarship (done for this year, but check back for next year’s award!)
• ASU Benjamin Wong Fie Scholarship for Painting
• Vegetarian Resource Group Scholarship
• American Jersey Cattle Association Scholarship
• American Association of Candy Technologists (check back next year!)

All the best,
Deborah Fox

Deborah Fox is the founder of Fox College Funding, a nationwide company that helps families find creative ways to reduce their college costs.

Photo: Surf Inside by yunes_surf

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