Millions of dollars in scholarship funding are available to college students each year. However, many students never apply — and nationally, some awards go unclaimed.
At Oakland University, scholarships operate through two primary pathways. According to Nicole Boelk, director of financial aid and scholarships at Oakland University, automatic scholarships are awarded based on GPA and admissions criteria, while the OU Annual Scholarship application — open Dec. 1 through March 1 — matches students to more than 350 donor-funded awards based on submitted information.
Many of those scholarships carry specific eligibility requirements tied to major, GPA, background or extracurricular involvement. Boelk explained that these conditions are often established by donors.
“Our Advancement team works closely with these donors to help them understand our students while also balancing the passion of the donors to support our students,” Boelk said.
According to scholarship expert Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Private Scholarships and Fellowships, unused scholarship money is a documented national issue.
“Students leave billions of dollars of financial aid unclaimed each year simply because they don’t apply for it,” Kantrowitz said.
The gap between availability and application reflects what some students describe as hesitation.
Maggie Quinn, an OU senior and public relations major, said scholarships represent opportunity — but applying can feel overwhelming.
“The first thing that comes to mind when I think of scholarships is the amount of opportunities it provides to a lot of students,” Quinn said. “College is really, really expensive … scholarships symbolize just an opportunity for you to continue your education.”
Despite receiving annual reminder emails about the OU annual scholarship application, Quinn admitted she has often skipped the application process in the past.
“As a full-time college student with on-campus jobs, I just haven’t had the time to sit down and do the paperwork,” she said. “I definitely have skipped applying for a scholarship because I didn’t think I would qualify.”
Boelk said self-disqualification is a common misconception among students who would otherwise find ample opportunities for financial aid.
“I would say the single biggest misconception is that students believe they aren’t going to be awarded anything and then simply don’t give themselves a chance,” she said. “Give yourself a chance. Submit the application.”
Boelk added that it is rare for university-managed scholarships to go unused.
“I would say it’s very rare that a scholarship is not awarded,” she said. “We want to award scholarship funding to students — which is why we communicate with every student to apply.”
The university has worked to streamline the process. The annual scholarship tool uses student-record data to match applicants automatically, and built-in smart logic ensures students only see scholarships relevant to their program.
Still, experts say awareness and follow-through remain national challenges. Kantrowitz has emphasized that the largest barrier is not eligibility, but effort.
“The biggest mistake students make is not applying for scholarships,” Kantrowitz said.
For students balancing coursework, employment, and rising tuition costs, scholarships represent not just aid, but practical accessibility. The funding exists; students must only understand that it is meant for them — and take the time to apply.
Criteria and renewal rules are publicly available through Oakland’s scholarship page.