You Will Qualify for At Least One
If someone says that they were unable to get a scholarship because they did not qualify for any, they are not being truthful to you (or to themselves, most likely). The same goes for applications. “There aren't any scholarships that I qualify to even apply for,” is about as true as saying, “I don't have anything to wear.” Neither of these statements is true. There is always something to wear; you just do not want to wear what you have. In the same way, there are always scholarships you qualify for; you just need to be willing to do the work.
Don't Rule Out School Programs
All colleges are different, and their scholarship programs are just as different from one school to the next. One institution might offer only a handful of scholarships to its best-qualified applicants, while another institution may have the funds to offer several hundred separate scholarships. A student might get a full-tuition scholarship at one college and not be awarded as much as a dime at another. If you haven't made a final decision yet on which college or university to attend, don't rule out the idea of checking with the financial aid departments of several schools. See what kind of scholarships they offer and whether they fit you. Just because you're not eligible for any scholarships at one school doesn't mean you won't find the perfect fit at the next.
Don't Give Up
It is not enough to do one simple Internet search before you decide to give up. If you have trouble finding enough possible scholarships after one search, modify your search terms and try again.
Beware of scholarship scams! Scholarships should not cost you any money whatsoever. Nor should you be expected at any time to provide information such as your credit card number or bank account number in order for a donor to put a “hold” on your scholarship so that it is not awarded to someone else.
Scholarship opportunities are available to students from a variety of sources—the federal government, colleges to which a student is applying, private scholarship donors, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and philanthropic foundations. Some of the Greek social organizations (fraternities and sororities) and honor societies offer scholarships. Investigate possible opportunities in these areas if you are a member. Check out both local and national scholarship possibilities. Be sure you understand that at this point, these are nothing more than opportunities. Scholarships do not just come to you, and application is not a guarantee of an award.
