How many students apply for college scholarships each year?

I'm curious about the volume of students applying for scholarships annually. How competitive is the process, and are there statistics on how many actually win scholarships?

The exact number of students applying for scholarships each year is challenging to pinpoint due to the vast variety of scholarships available. These could include merit-based scholarships, need-based scholarships, organizational scholarships, corporate scholarships, private scholarships, college-specific scholarships, etc.

According to a report by Sallie Mae, approximately 58 percent of families utilize scholarships in some form to fund their college education. That's over half of college-going students actively seeking and applying for scholarships.

As for the competition, it's important to understand that it varies greatly by the scholarship. Some popular, nationally recognized scholarships are incredibly competitive due to the large applicant pool, while smaller, local, or niche scholarships may have a much smaller pool of applicants.

Regarding the success rate, Sallie Mae estimates that around 1 in 8 families (about 13%) successfully obtain scholarship funding in an average year. That said, this depends heavily on the nature of the scholarship and the applicant pool, among other factors.

So overall, while scholarship application is considerably competitive, it should not deter you from applying. Keep in mind, the efforts towards obtaining scholarships could lead to sizeable relief from college expenses. It's recommended to apply to a variety of scholarships to increase your chances of getting awarded.