Whether you’re a senior in the midst of applying for countless scholarships, a junior who is beginning to think ahead, or a curious underclassman, the financial benefits of receiving a scholarship can’t be denied.

Scholarship qualifications vary greatly; some are standard athletic scholarships, while others are as abnormal as the Chick & Sophie Major Memorial Scholarship Duck Calling Contest. Yes, you read that correctly: a duck calling contest can help you pay for college. 

The thousands of scholarships available require a great deal of research on the part of every student who is looking to receive money. There’s a variety of resources accessible to students in order to help them find what they need.

Using the Internet to research scholarships is always helpful. However, without having a specific idea in mind, a student can be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of scholarships out there.

In order to focus your research, try typing the following into your search bar: “the U.S. Department of Labor scholarship search,” “Illinois State Grant Agency,” or “Federal Student Aid.” These websites will give you a broad list of scholarships that may apply to you.

Researching specific nonprofit or private organizations will help narrow your search. This can include religious or community organizations, local businesses, or civic interest groups. A civic interest group is simply a group that shares a common interest or concern.

Many organizations provide scholarships that are specifically related to your field of interest. Other organizations provide scholarships based on ethnicity as well.

Even with focused research, a student can still receive a lot of irrelevant results.

“Many websites will have you put in information so they can then email you information that they think would be applicable for you,” said Ruth Netland, an assistant in the College Resource Center, or the CRC.

An even simpler, more personalized way to access scholarships can be done by downloading Scholly on the app store.

“Scholly helps you fill out 8 simple parameters, and then our comprehensive and constantly curated scholarship database delivers a verified and personalized list of scholarships,” said Christopher Gray, creator of the app, in a written statement.

Finding the right scholarship can be stressful, but students aren’t alone. In addition to assisting students with information on college, the CRC also helps students with the scholarship search.

“It’s better to apply to local scholarships because it’s more likely for students to earn them. National and international scholarships get thousands of applicants, which is then of course much more difficult to receive,” said college counselor Scott Birtman.

Just because the scholarships in the CRC are local, the amount of scholarships available is just as comprehensive.

“We receive information from some kind of company or organization, may it be nonprofit or not. It’s either e-mailed or mailed to us. We have contacts in the community that we’ve posted on our web page,” said Netland.

Students can get the information they need by either visiting the CRC’s website or visiting in person. By using the website, students can get direct access to links to the scholarships they’d like to apply for.

Scholarships are listed in the order in which the CRC received information about them. This ensures that new scholarships are posted, constantly updating the page.

“I’ll always put a little blurb up there which explains the requirements, where you go to apply for it, and what the application deadline is,” said Netland.

After the list of scholarships, there are links to websites that have services similar to Scholly. Following that, there’s a list of scholarships that are past their deadlines. Finally, at the very bottom of the page, there are links to scholarships that are non-school specific or for undocumented students.

It’s never too early to think about applying for scholarships: any high school student can receive one, regardless of their age. While the search for the right scholarships is daunting, the potential benefits of receiving one are well worth it.