A Brief Scholarship Guide: From a Student who won 1M AED

Scholarships are often a convoluted and lengthy process that is shrouded in mystery. The benefit, both academic and financial of scholarships are obvious, but understanding how to maximise your chances of being awarded one is a different story.

Here's how I won 1 million dirhams in scholarships in high school.

With hundreds or even thousands of other applicants vying for those limited scholarship places, you need to stand out.

There will be waves of applicants with perfect grades, test scores and awards. These metrics are all almost "pre-requisites" for being considered, every successful applicant is usually a good student. The way to differentiate yourself is through a solid narrative, which is where your essays and interviews come into play.

Create a niche for yourself, and excel at that.

My niche was within the realms of personal finance, data science and maths. I constantly use the three to help make a difference in my local community and on students from across the world.

When you feel so passionately about a topic, it will shine through, and will help you stand out to admissions committees.

I'm not a perfect student, nor am I particularly gifted at anything. I was just extremely passionate about the things I did and wanted to continue that, no matter what school I went to.

Remember, find your niche, excel and stay passionate.

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