Want to stomp out the college cash competition? Take it from the judges... there are ways:

Prevent Senseless Disqualification
That's first off, says Sherrill Kirchhoff, scholarship judge for 16 years and scholarship program manager of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission. Make sure your scholarship applications are complete, on-time, and contain no spelling errors or incorrect word usage like writing "to" when you mean "too."

Secondly, play it smart, not silly. "Being cute is not the way to get people to invest in your college education," she says. Resist the urge to include stickers on your apps or send in alternative essays that are actually your old love letters or crush-based poems.

Be True To You
Sincerity about hardships you've overcome can go a long way in helping judges make decisions about your potential as a scholarship winner, says Dr. Maria Lombardo, who has been a judge and director of education for The National Italian-American Foundation (NIAF) for over a decade. She recalls one physically challenged student's entry that really made an impression on her as a judge. It explained her hardships and motivation -- the student was handicapped and knew she had a lot to overcome at college -- hills and stairs for starts. T

he essay clearly illustrated the teen's honesty and individuality, explains Lombardo, and it made her an excellent scholarship candidate. "She wanted to be a voice for other people who are handicapped," says Lombardo.

Don't Be Bashful or Boring
Modesty may be a charming quality amongst your peers, but not in competition, confides Kirchoff, which is essentially what scholarship contests are. When an essay starts with the student writing how they didn't do all that much in high school, she explains, "you can sort of see the depression spread across the room [of judges]."

Additionally, do not choose an essay topic that doesn't offer any new insight into you. "It would be better to write about some small, unique experience [than] to repeat something we already learned."

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