Posted By Travel Nurse Source on Jun 27, 2017 | 2 comments

There are plenty of nursing scholarships out there, and if you want to get extra funds to pay for nursing school, you’re probably planning to buckle down and apply to as many as you possibly can. While more is typically better, it is important to remember to be practical and intentional in which scholarships you are choosing to apply for. It takes time to apply for each scholarship, so be thoughtful in the process to save yourself some stress and time. Submitting a bunch of applications will be useless if you’re not putting thought behind each application. It’s important to that you provide top quality application essays to increase your chances of landing some. Paying attention to detail is also key – you don’t want to miss an opportunity because you misread the instructions! Hunting  for scholarships can be incredibly stressful and time-consuming. Save yourself some hassle – don’t make these nursing student scholarship mistakes.

7 Common Nursing Student Scholarship Mistakes

Here are the seven most common nursing student scholarship mistakes that students make when applying for nursing scholarships.

1. Not having a plan in place

Scholarship mistakes come in a variety of shapes and sizes. The first and most detrimental for students is not having a plan in place. Just because there is money available, doesn’t mean you should waste your time applying for tons of nursing student scholarship. It might be more efficient to research what local groups are offering scholarships for nursing students. Although these dollar amounts may be smaller, they can add up and your competition is usually less intense. Next, find scholarships that are specific to your major. This can help narrow down the competition, allowing you to focus on writing a stealer application. Being intentional with your applications will keep you from burning out. We get it – it’s a lot of work to apply to scholarships. Pick and choose where you choose to put your effort to save yourself some sanity. Plus, you’re more likely to make mistakes if you apply to every scholarship in sight, because let’s face it – you’re going to get sick of doing it! Focus on scholarships that you think you better chance of earning and then go from there.

2. Having someone else do your work

Another common nursing student scholarship mistake is having someone else do the work for you – whether that be your parents, a friend, or someone you pay off the internet. You want to earn a scholarship the honest way, knowing you put in all the hard work and effort. Almost all scholarships require some kind of essay component that requires you to share some personal reasons for why you deserve the award. It would be pretty difficult for someone to write a compelling essay about you, especially if they have no connection nursing. Instead, it is best to do the entire process on your own. It’s the only sure way to ensure that your application accurately reflects you, your skillset, and your intentions.

3. Reusing essays from old applications

Although it’s easy to copy and paste previous essays and swap out the specific details, this is a terrible idea. It’s better to think of specific and personal essays for each nursing scholarship so that yours stands out. It’s pretty easy for those judging nursing scholarships to tell when someone has put a lot of time and thought into their words versus when they’re being generic. Also, it’s important to understand how nursing scholarships are judged. Plus, every scholarship requirements are different- so it’s important to write a new essay for each scholarship you apply to.

4. Sending the application without proofing it

Don’t send your nursing scholarship application in a hurry. Applying for nursing school scholarships is a tedious task, but no matter how sick and tired you are of working on an application, the worst thing you can do is hurriedly send it in without rereading everything. Stand up, stretch, go for a walk to clear your head, and then reread the application. Don’t send something with grammatical errors, or worse, forget an attachment. This may seem small, but this is one of the most common nursing scholarship mistakes to make!

5. Paying for the scholarship

It’s safe to assume that if you have to spend money to apply for a scholarship, it’s most likely a scam. The phrase, “you have to spend money to make money” does not apply to scholarship applications. Avoid applying to nursing school scholarships that require you to submit a payment.

6. Procrastinating until the last minute

Sure, many of us work well under pressure and if you’re anything like me, you’re really good at finding anything else to do other than what you actually have to do. Yet, when it comes to important things in life, like scholarship money, procrastinating is the worst mistake you can make. The faster someone receives your application, the better! Submitting ahead of the deadline shows you have initiative and that it’s important to you. Not to mention that when you do something in a rush, you’re more likely to miss details or run out of time to complete everything that is required.

7. Not having any professional recommendations

If there’s anyone in your life who can give you a professional recommendation for your nursing student scholarship, ask them to write you one! Having someone else’s words to validate or back up the information you’ve already provided about yourself could be key in earning some money. Recommendations are essential and a great way to stand out from other nursing student scholarship applications!

If you’re on the hunt for a nursing school scholarship, it’s your lucky day! TravelNurseSource.com is awarding two $1,000 nursing scholarships to undergraduate nursing students during the 2022-2023 school year. What are you waiting for? Get down to business and apply (but don’t make any of these nursing school scholarship mistakes)! We are asking applicants to write an essay sharing their personal story. We want to hear what has inspired you to pursue a nursing career, and how this scholarship will help you achieve your goals! Head over to our scholarship page for more information. You wont want to miss this one!

So, there you have it. The 7 most common nursing student scholarship mistakes. Know of others? Let us know in the comments listed below!