Getting a college education can be very costly. Many students can’t afford to finance their own college education as tuition and other school fees have increased over the years. If you can’t afford to pay your college education from your own pocket, you can avail of student loans or you can apply for scholarships.

Scholarships are essentially financial aid award to enable a student to further his education. It is the donor who usually determines the criteria for a certain scholarship. The purpose and the values of the donor can be mirrored in the scholarship criteria. Scholarships also have certain requirements for one to qualify for and maintain it.

Scholarships can differ from to the other. The most common kinds include merit based and need based scholarships. Merit based scholarships are awarded based on the academic, athletic, artistic, and other abilities of the student.

Meanwhile, need based scholarships take into prime consideration the financial capacity and financial record of the applicant’s family. There are also local scholarships that are locality specific. Since it is limited to a particular locality, the eligible population is typically smaller.

Scholarships can also be student specific and career specific. Career specific scholarships are those that are awarded to students who plan of pursuing a certain field of study. This kind of scholarship is usually given to those who want to pursue a career in high need professions. Meanwhile, student specific scholarships are those which a student should qualify by race, gender, family, religion, and other factors that are student specific. One most common kind of student specific scholarships is minority scholarships.

A certain kind of “bond” is required by some scholarships. For example, a recipient could be required to work in a certain place or for a certain employer for a specific period of time. Recipients who fail to comply with this requirement are usually compelled to repay the value of the scholarship. Various kinds of scholarships also have certain requirements or obligations attached. Know your options well and explore them all before you apply for any of the scholarships available to you.