Research to determine what type of scholarship you want to apply for. According to Scholarships.com, the more specific you are in your search, the better your chances of landing scholarship money become, because the pool of applicants gets smaller as your search gets more specialized. Sometimes your college or university will offer scholarships and require nothing more than having good grades or being skilled at a sport. Others are offered outside of your school and may require more work. Check with your school counselor or browse the Internet for scholarship options.
Apply for more than one scholarship. Sometimes applying just means registering to win free scholarship money, like on FreeCollegeScholarships.net. Sometimes your local credit union or bank will enroll you to win free scholarship money as well. Writing essays for scholarship money requires more work, but chances of winning are better.
Make sure you have all required information. Pay attention to detail and read all directions. You don't want to be disqualified after writing an excellent essay because you failed to submit your high school transcript. Determine whether your scholarship application can be submitted online or if you have to mail it, and don't waste any time finding out.