The national merit scholarship programme lasts for 18 months or 2 years. It’s meant for students who can bring academic recognition to the school, or those applying for a college scholarship. If you’re interested in running for this educational grant, here are a few tips to help you. Use this guide to increase your chances of winning a scholarship. 

Prepare in Advance 

Get ready for the Global FUTURE READY Merit Scholarship as early as you can. If you’re only putting together the application portfolio a month or so before the scholarship, that might not provide you with as much time needed to prepare. The best time to get ready is a year ahead or even two. That should give you all the time you need to fix your portfolio as well as work on your strengths and weaknesses. 

Know the Prizes

What will the winners of the scholarship get? Be clear about those rewards. That helps you pinpoint which educational programmes offer the incentives and advantages you need. If you’re looking for a grant that offers significant and long-term financial aid, this one’s worth a place on your shortlist. 

Try for More Than One 

It would be ideal if you could only focus on just one scholarship and ignore the rest. But that’s not how you’ll increase your chances of getting a grant. If you want to get a scholarship, you need to try more than once. The more applications you send out, the higher your chances are of bagging a scholarship sooner or later. 

Take on Only What You Can Handle

That doesn’t mean you should keep applying to international schools without any idea what the programme is about. Blindly sending your portfolio to programmes isn’t the way to do this. You’ll only decrease your chances of getting a grant. It’s all right to take on more than one scholarship. But pick up only what you have the time and energy to work on. You’ll need to give undivided time and attention to each application. Don’t spread yourself too thin that you’ll lose your chance to stand out with every application you send out. 

Create the Timeline 

Come up with a calendar of events. This must contain all the deadlines involved in the application process. Since you have more than one scholarship to worry about, you’ll need to find a way to keep track of all the important dates. A calendar that contains all the information you need and has the details essential to all the grants you’re applying for will be ideal. That way, you’ll never miss a deadline. 

Check the Requirements 

Before you go much further, make sure one of the first things you check with every application are the eligibility requirements. Meaning, do you qualify for the programmes? If you’re getting ready in advance, taking a look at the requirements also helps you organize your application. You can determine which requirements will take the most time to process. For instance, some grants ask you to request for a recommendation from a teacher, boss at your part-time work, or mentor. That might take a bit of time, so you’ll need to factor that into your schedule. You’ll have to work on getting those files processed first. 

Give Them More Time 

When you do request a recommendation, don’t spring it on your mentor, teacher, or boss suddenly, leaving them with little to no time to write your application. It’s in bad form to rush them. Nor is guilting them into getting that letter done as soon as possible so you won’t miss the deadline. Remember, you already knew when the deadline was. You should have planned for that in advance by giving them more than ample time for the recommendation letter. At least anywhere from two weeks to a month is good. Keep in mind that whenever you ask for someone to write you a recommendation letter, they’re taking time out of their own schedule to attend to what you need. Respect them for that. 

Work on a Standout Essay

Many scholarship applications include a personal statement essay. This is your chance to appeal to the panel or screening committee. Describe yourself in a way that they’d want to learn and hear more of and from you. Provide the context. Tell them who you are but lead with what makes you unique. For instance, what hurdles or roadblocks did you overcome to get to school? Are you a working student? Describe yourself in a way that they can’t imagine anyone else getting the grant. 

Polish and Revise

Before you hit send, let that application alone for a day or two. Come back to it with fresh eyes and comb over every inch to make sure there aren’t any mistakes. Ask someone you trust to proofread it for you, too. Remember to submit it on time.