5 verified scholarships have a confirmed upcoming deadline, the nearest being The Gates Scholarship from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 21 days. A further 20 run on recurring annual cycles where the sponsor has not yet published the next date.
We never show a deadline that has already passed. When a cycle closes, the listing switches to its recurring pattern and records what the sponsor has said about the next round, so you know when to come back rather than being told to apply for something that shut months ago.
Closing soonest
| Scholarship | Sponsor | Award | Deadline | Min GPA | Who can apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Gates Scholarship | Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | Full cost of attendance not covered by other aid | September 15, 2026 | 3.3 | Open to all · National |
| Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship | Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation | $20,000 | September 30, 2026 | 3.0 | Open to all · National |
| QuestBridge National College Match | QuestBridge | Full four-year scholarship (valued over $360,000) | October 1, 2026 | None stated | Open to all · National |
| 2026 D.C. Future Legal Leaders Scholarship | HKM Employment Attorneys LLP | $1,000 | October 15, 2026 | 3.0 | Open to all · Campus within 60 miles of Washington, D.C. |
| Cooke College Scholarship Program | Jack Kent Cooke Foundation | Up to $55,000 per year (last-dollar) | November 11, 2026 | 3.8 | Open to all · National |
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Questions about scholarship deadlines
When do most scholarship deadlines fall?
Two clusters dominate. Autumn, roughly September through December, is when the large national awards for high school seniors close, including Gates in September, QuestBridge in October, and Jack Kent Cooke in November. Late winter and early spring, roughly January through April, is when most organisational and institutional awards close. Applying in autumn of your senior year rather than spring is the single biggest scheduling advantage available to you.
What happens if I miss a deadline?
Sponsors almost never accept late applications, because selection committees begin reviewing immediately after closing. The practical response is to note the month the award recurs and set a reminder for six weeks before the same date next year. Most scholarships in this catalog run annually on a stable cycle, so a missed deadline is a delay rather than a permanent loss.
How far in advance should I start?
Four to six weeks for a single application. Recommendation letters are the constraint: teachers and counsellors need two to three weeks and are fielding many requests at once. Transcripts can take a week. If you are applying to several awards in the same window, start with the one whose essay is most distinctive, since that essay is hardest to adapt from another application.
Do recurring scholarships have fixed dates each year?
Usually close, but not identical. A sponsor that closed on 1 March one year might close on 28 February or 15 March the next. Where a sponsor has not published its next date, we record the month and the pattern rather than inventing a specific day, and we say plainly what the sponsor has stated about the coming cycle.