How to Write Bursary Application Letters – I am sure everyone is aware that college education is expensive. Many people can’t afford it without having some kind of financial assistance or bursary from the college or university. Many of university students in the United States are receiving some form of financial assistance, whether it is student loan, scholarships or grants. While this assistance may come from various sources such as government or nonprofit organizations, there are also some financial aid prepared by the university or college.
Just like we’ve mentioned in earlier occasions, having a good application would dramatically increase your chance in getting that much-needed assistance. Today we will teach you some tips on how to write bursary application letters, and hopefully after reading this post you can write a better application and have a better shot.
A bursary application letter is like asking a group for money to help pay for school. It’s an important part of applying for a bursary, which is money given to students to help with their education costs. In South Africa, for example, where school expenses can be high, bursaries are really important for students who want to go to college.
Important Elements in Bursary Application Letters
Here are the elements you must add in bursary application letters:
1. Personal Introduction
The personal introduction is where you get to introduce yourself to the people who will decide whether or not you get the bursary. It’s super important because it’s your chance to leave a good impression. Here are some things to think about when you’re writing your personal introduction.
- In the personal background section, you should start by telling them your basic info like your full name, age, and where you live. This helps the committee get to know you better.
- In the educational background part, make sure to mention the name of your school right now. If you’ve been to any really good schools before, especially ones known for being great academically, you can mention those briefly too.
- When talking about what you’re studying and what year you’re in, be clear about your field of study and which year or level you’re at. This helps the committee understand how far along you are in your studies.
- When you talk about your career goals, just give a quick mention of what you hope to do in the future. This can be really powerful because it shows the committee how their support could make a big difference in your life.
- If you have space for it, mentioning any activities you do in your community or outside of school can be a good idea. This shows that you’re not just about studying—you’re also involved in making the community better, which can impress the committee.
- When you talk about yourself, focus on one or two traits that you think really describe you well. Pick ones that relate to school or your future job.
Purpose of the Letter
When you write about why you’re sending the letter, make sure it’s really clear that you’re asking for money to help with your studies. Here are some things to think about:
- Start your letter by simply saying that you’re applying for the bursary. This makes it clear right away why you’re writing.
- Explain quickly how the bursary connects to what you’re studying right now. This helps the committee see that their help is really important for your education.
- If you’re applying for a certain bursary, say its name. This tells the committee you’ve looked into it and you’re not just sending the same letter to everyone.
- If the bursary is for something you really care about, say that. It lets the committee know that you’re interested in the same things the bursary is for.
- If you really need the money soon, or if it’s super important for you to get it, say that. It helps the committee see how much you really need their help.
- It’s a good idea to thank them for letting you apply for the bursary. This shows that you appreciate the chance they’re giving you.
Academic and Personal Achievements
In this part of your letter, you talk about the things you’ve achieved in school and in your personal life. This helps the committee see the whole picture of what you’ve done and who you are.
- Besides just talking about your grades, mention any special academic awards or honors you’ve gotten. This could be things like being on the Dean’s list, getting top marks in certain subjects, or winning academic contests at school or in your area.
- Talk about any times you’ve been in charge of something, like at school, in a group in your community, or in activities outside of school. Explain what your job was, what you had to do, and any cool stuff you achieved while you were doing it. This could be things like being a school prefect, president of a club, or captain of a team.
- Tell them about any times you’ve helped out in your community or done volunteer work. Say which groups or causes you worked with, what you did, and if you made a difference in any way. This shows that you care about making things better for other people.
- List any activities you do outside of school that show off your different interests and talents. This could be stuff like playing sports, being in drama club, doing debate, or playing music.
- Talk about any times you’ve won awards or got recognized, either for doing well in school or for the stuff you do outside of school. This could be things like scholarships, certificates saying you’re awesome at something, or any times people said you did a really good job.
- Share any projects you’ve started or worked on yourself, especially if they’ve helped your community or relate to what you’re studying. This could be stuff like organizing events for your community, starting a small business, or doing research projects.
- Don’t forget to mention any special things you’ve done that make you stand out. This could be stuff like overcoming big challenges, doing something cool in your personal life, or having a talent or skill that’s not very common.
- Talk about how you’re planning to handle money for school in the long run, like how you’ll manage costs over the whole time you’re studying and how the bursary fits into that plan.
- Also, say what might happen if you don’t get the bursary. This could be things like not being able to take certain classes, having to wait to go to school, or having to borrow a lot of money
Financial Need
This part of your letter is super important because you have to explain why you really need the money and why they should help you.
- Give them a good idea of what your money situation is like, both for you and your family. Talk about things like how much money your family makes, how many people depend on that money, and if there have been any big money problems lately, like someone losing their job or having to pay a lot for medical stuff.
- Tell them exactly how much money you need for school. This includes stuff like how much tuition costs, what you spend on books, where you live, how you get around, and any other things you have to pay for. Giving them actual numbers helps them see how much help you really need.
- Talk about any ways you’ve tried to make money yourself, like working part-time or applying for other scholarships. This shows that you’re doing what you can to help yourself out, even if it’s tough.
- Explain how getting the bursary would make things easier for you financially. Be really clear about what you’d use the money for and how it would help you out with school.
How to Write Bursary Application Letters – The Tips
Below are the six steps of bursary application letter tips that you can try
- First, write the bursary address at the top left of the application letter. Make sure you research the right address of the bursary.
- Second, start your letter with a standard, professional way by writing “Dear sir or madam”. It would be great if you already know the name of the officer responsible for the bursary. You can write their name if that’s the case.
- Now you can start writing the main body of your letter. In the first paragraph, we recommend to write that you’re applying for a bursary. Be straightforward and keep everything simple. We recommend using less than five sentences in this first paragraph.
- In the second paragraph, it would be best to explain briefly about your plan, i.e. what will you take as your major and the reason you choose it. Again, keep everything simple and limit this paragraph to six sentences.
- In the third paragraph, you can explain the future plans of yours after graduating from college, and why it is important.
- In the last paragraph, do express your appreciation for the bursary’s time, and don’t forget to mention your gratitude if you received the financial aid for your education. In this paragraph, having up to six sentences should be more than enough.
- Last but not least, end your letter by writing “Sincerely” or similar statement, and don’t forget to give the letter a signature and a name below the signature.
We understand that some of you may think that the application letter would be too simple, but you have to think about the bursary’s time too. Chances are, they read many letters each day for the same application, and hence, it would be a great feat to deliver a simple and straightforward letter. After all, you don’t need to explain everything on the application letter since the information needed is already available in your application.
That being said, you still need to be different than others. Our last tip would be writing the application letter based on your own experience. Sometimes doing that can actually make a personal and intriguing bursary application letter! I hope that this post can help you achieve that.
References:
- http://www.sampleletters.org/bursary-application-letter.html
- Image: sdu.dk
- https://nasi-ispani.co.za/how-to-write-bursary-application-letter/
