A free scholarship can allow you to reach your educational goals without the expense and hassle of taking out a school loan. If you get a scholarship you also will not need to find a grant (these can be very hard to get) or quality for a graduate scholarship.

Military scholarships and other minority programs have many benefits including:

1. Less Competition
You will be competing against less people compared with the broader and more open scholarships that are available to the general public. What this means is that you have more chance of being successful and getting the money.

2. No Debt
Scholarships are essentially free money for your education so you will not have any debt hanging over your head as happens with a student loan.

3. Many Opportunities
There are countless military and minority scholarship programs available. These are often open to not only active and retired military personnel, but also their extended family as well.

Aim to apply for as many programs as you can, after all you want to increase your chance of being successful with at least one scholarship. Often you will be allowed to use more than one, so don't be afraid to apply for multiple opportunities and hope for the best!

For the purposes of a scholarship, the military is considered to be any of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard. If you or someone you know is serving or retired from any of these forces then the opportunity to apply for a minority scholarship could be yours - and theirs as well.

Many retired military personnel wish to start life anew and take on a career of interest - a scholarship gives you the cash to do all this and more.

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