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The 2025 Savor Summer Scholarship Winner is…
Could it be you?
Your student?
Was an application sent from your household?
Out of all of the scholarship applications for the 2025 Savor Summer College Scholarshipthere was ONE clear winner.
A big giant CONGRATULATIONS goes out to…
Elijah Badgett
Your entire scholarship application was OUTSTANDING! Be sure to check your mailbox (USPS) for an official letter informing you of your scholarship win and instructions on how to access the funds.
Students, if you applied for the 2025 Savor Summer College Scholarship and were not chosen as a recipient, here is what Elijah did that was so impressive:
- The application was sent in an oversized envelope and arrived in pristine condition
- All of the required materials were included
- The application was signed by both Elijah and one of his parents
- His scholarship resume was one neat, easy-to-read page
- The essay was filled with personal stories that kept the judges engaged and interested while reading it
- The entire scholarship application was presented beautifully and was a joy to read through
- It was extremely obvious to me that Elijah knew exactly what it meant to apply SMART
- All of the scholarship guidelines and directions were followed
For those who applied for the scholarship and were not chosen, here are some of the areas that needed improvement:
- Hand-written applications
- Many applications were missing some of the required documents
- Some resumes were way too long. (6+ pages) They should always be one page only.
- The essays spit back the prompt and did not stand out at all
- A few essays were very short. Less than 50 words. A few were only a few sentences long. (They should be as close to 500 words as possible without going over.)
- Some applications and required materials were stuffed into a normal-sized envelope, creating a wrinkled mess upon opening
- Essays were submitted in one long paragraph without any breaks. This makes them difficult to read and follow.
- There were essays submitted all in bold
- A few students emailed only the essay and no other required documents
- There were quite a few odd and unprofessional email addresses
- Some email addresses were incorrect and my confirmation emails bounced back
- Many students did not proofread their work. This was evident in many ways, especially in the application that began the essay with, “My name is [Your Full Name]…” (Yes, it actually said that.)
- Several applications arrived past the deadline and students tried to convince me to make exceptions for them.
- Applications were sent via email AND regular mail, even though the scholarship guidelines stated to do one or the other
- There were applications that were not signed by the student (required) or a parent (if under 18 years of age)
- A huge amount of emailed applications did not follow the simple subject line directions (“SSCS Application 2025”)
- In many cases, the scholarship guidelines and directions were not followed
- Many essays did not include personal stories and did not hold the attention of the judges
If the 2025 Savor Summer Scholarship winner was not you, don’t lose heart.
There are still numerous scholarships available.
Carefully read through what the 2025 Savor Summer Scholarship winner DID and what the other students DID NOT do when applying.
Learn from the mistakes of others and make sure to avoid them when you apply for your next scholarship.
[You may also like to read: 3 Simple Tips to Avoid Scholarship Application Mistakes]
If you are still looking for scholarships with summer deadlinesbe sure to check out this list of scholarships with August deadlines found right HERE and subscribe to my scholarship email list (it’s free) by going HERE.
My very best piece of advice is to make sure the SMART applying strategies are used for every scholarship application.
Open to High School Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors! APPLY NOW HERE
What does it mean to apply SMART?
Go HERE to learn more.
I also recommend this big green scholarship listing book to find more awards. It is the perfect companion to my How to Win College Scholarships ebooks:
Monica Matthews is the author of How to Win College Scholarships. She helped her own son win over $100,000 in college scholarships and now shares her expertise with other parents and their students. She truly has “been there, done that” in regard to helping parents and students navigate the scholarship process.
Her method of helping students in finding college scholarships, writing unique and compelling scholarship essays, creating amazing scholarship application packets, and more have taught desperate parents to help their own students win thousands of scholarship dollars. She teaches them how to apply S.M.A.R.T. with outstanding results.
Monica’s scholarship tips have been featured on many prominent websites, and she has been dubbed the “Go-To” expert on college scholarships.
