QuestBridge National College Match
Free college-application program for high-achieving high school seniors from low-income backgrounds. Finalists are matched with full four-year scholarships to one of 50+ partner colleges (including Stanford, MIT, Princeton, Yale). Application due September 30 of senior year.
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The Concord Review
Quarterly academic journal that publishes the best high school history research papers in the world (4,000-6,000 word essays). Rolling submissions across four issue deadlines: August 1 (Winter), November 1 (Spring), February 1 (Summer), May 1 (Fall). Acceptance is highly selective.
Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship
$20,000 college scholarship for graduating high school seniors based on leadership, service, and impact. 150 Coke Scholars chosen annually from a national applicant pool. Application opens August 1 and closes September 30 of senior year.
John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest
An annual essay contest from the JFK Library Foundation asking U.S. high schoolers to research and analyze an act of political courage by an elected official who served in or after 1917, with a $10,000 top prize.
ASME INSPIRE / Charles W.E. Clarke Scholarship
ASME's INSPIRE program awards twenty-five $2,000 Charles W.E. Clarke scholarships to graduating high school seniors with financial need who plan to enroll in an ABET-accredited mechanical engineering program.
Bennington Young Writers Awards
Prestigious competition from Bennington College with categories in poetry, fiction, and nonfiction; winners/finalists often receive big scholarships if they attend Bennington.
International High School Writing Contest
Global analytical and creative writing competition with categories like short story, flash fiction, poetry, critical essay, and dramatic script; no entry fees.