The benefits of academic scholarships

Scholarships are an important part of the education system. Not only do they acknowledge academic and other achievements of students, but they can also incentivise performance and ease financial burdens. Scholarships may include partial or full coverage of a school’s tuition fees and can be offered annually or more frequently throughout the year.   The most common type of scholarship is merit-based, given to students based on excellence in an area. Schools may also offer need-based scholarships that consider a student’s financial situation, and scholarships for foreign students. Criteria may also include a mix of both merit and need.   In this blog, we’ll discuss some reasons schools offer scholarships, and why your child deserves one.  

Attracting talent

  To earn a scholarship, a student has to show high performance in academics, sports, arts, science, technology, or other subject areas. As scholarships are not required to be paid back, it attracts students and parents to a school. Scholarship amounts vary, but they allow many children to attend school with little or no cost to parents. Offering scholarships helps schools build their reputation, gain recognition for their efforts, and create more engagement opportunities with its students and the community.   Parents may look for a school that provides an individualised education for their child, for example, schools for children with a disability. Schools with scholarships may help parents decide the best school based on the environment that will serve their child's social, emotional, and academic needs.   At the college level, some scholarships offer internship opportunities, which benefit college students with work experience. Interns bring insights from their education into the company they work for, and support innovation. It’s also an opportunity for the company to show it values its employees.  

Encourages philanthropy and diversity

  Scholarships enable schools to practice corporate social responsibility and teach philanthropy. It shows they support the community and want to be seen as a top school.   Offering scholarships to foreign students or those of minority groups can show that the school values diversity in its student population.   Students are grateful when they receive a scholarship and can understand the value of giving back. As a result, they may be more willing to be in service to others in the future.  

Accessibility and affordability for prospective students

  Scholarships may be essential for students and can open doors for those in minority populations who may not otherwise have the funds to attend school. At the high school level, scholarships allow parents to save funds for their child’s future college tuition.   Costs of a college or university education are rising along with inflation, and can be difficult to manage. According to Sallie Mae’s How America Pays for College report, 65% of college students and 58% of families used scholarships to help cover their costs from 2019 to 2020. The report showed scholarships and grants provided a quarter of coverage for college costs per family.   Scholarships help students pursue their career goals while minimizing the need for student loans to pay back after college.   Many scholarships are awarded to students with both a high GPA and some sort of public service or extracurricular activity. For that reason, they support ambitious goals and show the importance of giving back.  

Benefits for students

  When students earn scholarships, they learn compassion and the importance of hard work in academics, sports, service, or other abilities. Earning a scholarship at the high school level can provide a boost when applying for college. It also looks good on a job resume as well. High achievement gives students a competitive edge.   Scholarships can be a source of pride for both students and parents. The recognition the student receives for excelling and maintaining a reputation can build their sense of self-confidence. Even more so if they receive the scholarship at a young age.   Aside from rewarding students for performance and providing a financial incentive, scholarships lessen the financial burden of school. College students may have to work while attending school to meet their financial needs, which can lead to less time to focus on their studies. Scholarships can help students use their time at college more wisely.   At SISD, we offer academic scholarships to gifted students from Grade 11 onward. We also have sporting scholarships from Grade 9 onward. For more information about our scholarship programmes, contact our Admissions team at admissions@sisd.ae.