Differences of Scholarships & Grants

Although grants and scholarships are used in the same breath, there are some fundamental differences between them. The purpose of both is to act as financial aid for students to further their education. However, there are some intrinsic differences on how they go about achieving this target.

Grants are generally given by the government or other non- profit organisations which are exempt form tax payments. Corporate houses or foundations also give grants. The recipient of the grant is expected to report the progress of the project for which the grant was given, from time to time. Different grants have different specifications, varied requirements as well as a varied grant amount.

The initial step towards acquiring a grant is to send the ideas for your project or donor to the organisation giving out the grant. The project can be something the student initialised or something the funder has proposed. There are many types of grants are given for various causes such as grants for college, victims of natural disasters and entrepreneurs. It is generally believed that there is much money available in the form of grants to be given out than in scholarships. The government frequently gives out grants to maintain a fiscal balance. The grants given can cover the partial or full college expenses. Grants are given out more on the basis of need rather than merit.

Scholarships like grants are financial aids given to students by universities, foundation and organisations to further their education. Scholarships have different requirements based on varied specifications such as age, gender or even the field of major. In comparison, scholarships are more rigid as opposed to grants. Merit or credentials and the essays you submit to the scholarship committees are crucial for your chances of success in winning the scholarship. Scholarships are targeted towards students entering college in contrast with grants where students are not the only people to benefit from grants.

Scholarships are synonymous with education while grants are not. It is also however true that while essentially different there are many similarities between scholarships and grants. Both provide financial aid for further education and both do not require that the money be paid back. It is better to make full-fledged attempts to qualify for scholarships or grants before turning to student loans.