The University of Calgary is known for its goal of being one of the top research universities in Canada! In addition to its excellent programs and location in the most liveable city in North America, the University of Calgary offers many scholarships for prospective students. Here at GrantMe, we’ve helped many students apply to and win scholarships to this university. Watch our YouTube video or read the blog below for our top advice on how to win University of Calgary scholarships. 

What Scholarships Are There?

UofC awards $17 million in scholarships, bursaries, and awards each year! We’ll focus on three main University of Calgary scholarships here. 

Academic Entrance Awards

The majority of the University of Calgary scholarships are academic entrance awards. These scholarships are grades-based and award students with high academic performance. The better your grades are, the more money you can receive! 

These awards are automatic, meaning you’ll be considered for them as soon as you submit your admissions application. No additional essays required! Most academic entrance awards are also renewable. If you keep your grades up during university, you can receive the scholarship each year!

To win academic entrance awards, be sure to maintain an academic average of 80% or higher!

Student Peer Bursary

The next scholarship is the University of Calgary Student Peer Bursary! This award is provided to students with a financial burden or those who have more financial need than anticipated.

The application for this bursary requires you to list out your community involvement. For the best chance at success:

1. Make sure that you have a diverse range of involvements

You only have limited space to demonstrate why you should receive this bursary. You want to make sure you’re fully expressing your involvement! Try to list a mixture of initiator, leader, and member roles. 

Initiator roles are volunteer roles in which you started an initiative like a new club or project. Leader roles are a step down from initiator roles, like being a coach or a camp counsellor. Lastly, member roles are involvements in which you volunteered as part of a team. For more help on choosing which involvements to highlight, check out our article here!

2. Make sure you use the STAR structure

To help you clearly and powerfully communicate your experiences, use STAR structure! STAR is a 4-part acronym that will help you powerfully describing a specific volunteer or extracurricular experience. 

• S — Situation (who, what, when, where)
• T — Task (your objective)
• A — Actions (what you did, how you did it, skills you used)
• R — Result (qualitative or quantitative proof of your success) 

Use this formula to discuss your volunteer involvements in your application! STAR will make your writing powerful and easy to follow. For more help using STAR, check out our article here!

Other Awards

To apply for other University of Calgary awards, you will be required to create a personal statement! In this statement, you want to provide a snapshot of who you are and overview the leadership achievements that make you an excellent candidate. 

Stand out from the crowd right away by beginning with a hook. A hook is one to two sentences at the start of your essay that capture the reader’s attention and encourage them to keep reading. A great way to write a hook is to use a personal story or a powerful statement! Tell them your story and give a snapshot of your character. What specific event, person, or experience motivated you to be who you are today? For more on hooks, check out our article here!

Then add in some body paragraphs describing your volunteer experience. Use STAR to structure each paragraph! 

Finally, make sure that you discuss what YOU will bring to the University of Calgary experience! How will your unique skills and experiences help you contribute to the University of Calgary? What clubs, student groups, or initiatives do you want to start or get involved in? How will you make an impact? 

Make sure that your personal statement does not exceed 1 page! You want it to be concise and easy for the reader to follow. 

Follow this advice and you’re sure to submit strong applications for University of Calgary scholarships!

If you want even more support, GrantMe can help you stand out. We provide personalized scholarship matches, essay editing, and mentorship from past winners to maximize your success. Complete our short scholarship eligibility quiz to learn more about how GrantMe can help you achieve your post-secondary goals.