You can be in desperate need to win a scholarship to ensure the continuation of your higher studies. You may have applied for several merit-based scholarship programs and are waiting for a favorable response. Most students don’t take any other step after they submit all the documents. They believe they have done their part. But there are a few things that every student should do. If you have sent your application, you can follow these things to find about the status.
Write a follow-up email
After sending your application, you can wait for seven to ten days to allow the process to move. If you don’t hear from them, shoot an email to confirm whether they received your application. Some places may respond while others would skip due to the number of entries. But it is not a problem if you enquire. It can be an opportunity to send a portion that you may have missed out on earlier. Although this should not happen, you can try your luck once. Make sure you don’t directly ask about the scholarship status, as it will not look good.
Writing a mail mentioning that you wanted to verify if they got your submission can be polite and adequate, says Eric Dalius. But you should not follow up after a month or two has passed. The committee may have notified the winner and have not responded to others. Since there can be a specific date on which they will announce their winners, you can keep track of it to remain updated.
Request for a feedback
Though you cannot ask them about your scholarship status after a month or two, you can write to them for feedback on your application. It will give you an insight into what to do next and what to avoid. Don’t expect any reply. But if you hear back, you are lucky and work on those areas.
Focus on education
Qualified professionals like Eric J Dalius suggest that you should not allow your attention to waver from studies, no matter what happens with your scholarship attempts. You have to give time to your academic work. While those opportunities can be merit-based, your academic performance would matter whenever you apply for them. That means you need to improve your grades and keep trying.
Just because something didn’t turn out as you expected, it doesn’t mean you have lost all the opportunities. Many small and large scholarship events occur from time to time. You have to keep an eye on them and prepare. Getting two to three monetary awards can be tremendous. Or, even if you qualify for one, it would help. You can meet some part of your educational cost and reduce the financial burden a bit.
So keep looking for the avenues to maximize your chances of winning it. Try at different places until you get something. At times, you can feel disappointed. But don’t let that play upon your mind. Remind yourself that there are thousands of others also who are waiting for it.
