A scholarship letter of intent (LOI) is an academic document showing interest in an academic opportunity such as a scholarship, internship, or admission.
If you are a scholarship aspirant, then there are high chances of you to be going through the hassle of creating those tons of documents to accompany your scholarship application.
Now, keep those disturbances aside for a second and consider those thousands of candidates out there who are aiming at winning that fully-funded scholarship award just like you, while making it difficult for you to win that scholarship at each and every stage of document submission.
Yeah… that’s a lot of anxiety over there. But worry no more! As in this article, we will tell you all that you need to in order to compose the ideal Letter Of Intent for your scholarship application so that you can guarantee yourself a spot on the list of scholarship winners.
Also, stay tuned till the end to get some tips for preparing a winning Letter of Intent for your scholarship application.
What Is A Letter Of Intent?
As most of you are scholarship aspirants, I am sure the majority of you would be familiar with this term. But for those who are unaware of this very important document for scholarship applications, let me briefly define it for you.
A Letter Of Intent is an academic kind of formal document, which declares the writer’s interest to the reviewers for a particular scholarship, vacancy or an opportunity.
Even though Letters Of Intent (LOI) are usually demanded by recruiters, some scholarship committees also require one to know of a particular candidate’s intentions regarding the scholarship award.
Importance of Letters Of Intent (LOI) for Scholarship Applications:-
A Letter Of Intent (LOI) also called a statement of purpose (SOP) or a personal statement holds paramount importance in scholarship applications because it states to the scholarship panel why you are a worthy candidate to be awarded the scholarship grant.
Now, you must be wondering that this is what every other document that accompanies a scholarship application does.
Let me tell you that you are absolutely correct; because the maximum information that you can provide to a scholarship awarding panel is your previous educational achievements. But this is not what they require.
They want to select such a candidate from the pool of applicants who shines out from the rest and wishes to create an impact on society after being granted the award.
And this is exactly what a Letter Of Intent does; providing the scholarship awarding authorities with a solid confirmation as to why their investment in a particular candidate is worth every penny.
Format of Winning Letter Of Intent (LOI):-
If you want to make your Letter Of Intent (LOI) stand out from that of other applicants’, then it is necessary that it impresses the scholarship panel.
An impressive Letter Of Intent (LOI) is generally divided into the following parts; Introductory paragraph, main body, and closing paragraph.
#1 The Introductory Paragraph:-
The introduction of your Letter Of Intent (LOI) decides whether the reviewing authority will read it till the last or not.
Start your Letter Of Intent (LOI) by giving some interesting information regarding the degree you wish to pursue and how the particular scholarship award can help you in achieving your career goal.
For example, you can start off your Letter Of Intent (LOI) with a statement like, ‘Having been raised in an economically backward country, it has been my dream to get affiliated with such a sector that would allow me to work for the progress of your home country. In this regard, I have always dreamt of getting enrolled in the XYZ Degree program, at XYZ College; something that your (name of scholarship program) will help me in achieving.’
#2 The Main Body:-
The next part of a Letter Of Intent (LOI) is the main body. This part can e divided into 3 to 4 paragraphs.
- The first paragraph: at the start of your body paragraph, the ideal scenario is to state your study plan. If you are applying for an undergraduate degree program, state what you wish to do afterward; start a job right away or enroll in a postgraduate degree program or do both simultaneously.
- The second paragraph: in the second subdivision of the main body, it is a good idea to talk about your passion. What you aim to be and do in life and how the particular scholarship award can help you in your way.
- The third paragraph: in this paragraph, enlist your goals in the long run. Where you see yourself after 5 or 10 years and how that goal will help you in making a positive contribution towards society.
#3 The Concluding Paragraph:-
End your Letter Of Intent (LOI) with a summary of all the details that you mentioned above and give credits to the scholarship awarding authorities for launching such a program that can help hundreds of children achieve their goals.
Tips for Writing a Letter Of Intent (LOI) for Scholarship Application:-
Since you have come this far, here is a little treat for you. Keep in mind the following tips and tricks to make the most out of your Letter Of Intent (LOI).
#1 State a clear vision:-
In your Letter Of Intent, use those words that depict confidence. You need to show the reviewing panel that you are a person who has set his goals in life, not someone who is okay with whatever situation he is in.
#2 Conduct proper research:-
Before starting your Letter Of Intent, make sure to know of all the requirements of the scholarship panel like the word count, or any specific font and size or format to be followed.
#3 Create a rough draft:-
It is advised that you frame the outline of your Letter Of Intent beforehand and then proceed to create a finalized version.
#4 Recheck your document before submission:-
Always recheck your Letter Of Intent before submitting it to the scholarship committee because the last thing that you want is to ruin the attraction of an otherwise perfect Letter Of Intent.
Final wordings:-
That was all for this transcript for writing a perfect intent letter for scholarship application. If you still have any queries, you are always welcome to ask them in the comments section below.
