10 Wackiest College Scholarships

Think your kid (or you!) is not the college scholarship type? Not smart enough, not athletic enough, etc.? Well, think again. As the forthcoming gallery shows, the only reason not to apply for college scholarships is that you haven't yet gone on an online scholarship hunt. These days, you can win $2,000 for college merely by reading a brochure and filling out a short online questionnaire, or collect $5,000 for making a snazzy prom dress out of Duck Brand Duct Tape. Intrigued? Rean on…

Okay, how easy is this? Go to the website of the American Fire Sprinkler Association and read a six-page PDF on the history of hire sprinklers, how they work and careers in the industry. Then take a 10 question on line test. Each correct answer means one entry into a drawing for 10 scholarships worth $2,000 each. The scholarships may be applied to tuition or the cost of books at any accredited two or four year institution, including technical and online schools.

This is an award for not moving. Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania offers two scholarships—the Gertrude J. Deppend Scholarship and the Voris Auten Scholarship—to Bucknell students who are residents of Mount Carmel; graduates of Mount Carmel Public High School; do not drink smoke or use drugs on a regular basis; and do not participate in strenuous athletic contests. Sound like a match for your kid? Let's hope they're not much older than eight: Only Mount Carmel residents of ten years or more are eligible to apply. Moving time!

Want to spend a year living in JD Salinger's former dorm room? Each year, Ursinus College in Collegeville, PA offers one creative writing student a $30,000 annual scholarship (renewable yearly), and the chance to spend his or her freshman year residing in the dorm room once occupied by the author of Catcher in the Rye. "We are looking for an unusual perspective," says the college, "for quirky brilliance, for a voice, not necessarily the kind that can be measured by conventional standards."

At Loyola University Chicago, a last name means money—if that last name is Zolp. Yep, that's right—anyone admitted to LUC with the last name of Zolp can apply for the school's Zolp Scholarship. To be eligible, you must be attending or planning to attend the Catholic university, and submit a copy of your birth certificate and (to prove you are Catholic) a copy of your baptismal or confirmation certificate to the financial aid office. The scholarship amount varies from year to year, depending upon the amount of money available and number of applicants with a last name of Zolp.

Photo via Enrollment Marketing EDU

This one is full tuition, plus room and board. The catch? Only golf caddies need apply. The Chick Evans Caddie Scholarship pays to way for selected golf caddies to attend one of 20 (mostly Midwestern) universities for up to four years. Caddies must be nominated by their sponsoring country club and are judged on four criterion: caddie record (minimum of two years experience), financial need, academics, and character and leadership. Scholarship winners are expected to live in an on-campus Evans Scholarship House, where one is available.

Even prom night is a scholarship opportunity. The Duck Brand Duct Tape Stuck at Prom Scholarship awards $5,000 (plus smaller prizes for runners-up) to the prom-going couple that comes up with the best pair of outfits made (mostly) out of Duct Tape. How do they decide what's "best?" The company chooses its ten favorite submissions, then invites the public to vote via the Internet. This is one contest that's still open, so get designing—the entry period ends June 10th.

Photo via Duck Brand

Sound like a duck? There may be money in that. Each year, high school seniors from across the Midwest descend on the little town of Stuttgart, Ark., to compete in a highly specialized field. The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Call Contest Scholarship awards a $2,000 first prize scholarship to the best duck caller among a field of in- and out-of-state callers. The scholarship, which has given out more than $60,000 since its inception in 1974, honors the memories of the Majors, legendary duck callers and duck call ma kers.

Are you continually looking down at other people—literally? If so, your height may earn you money for college. Tall Clubs International awards scholarships of up to $1,000 each to tall students who are under 21 years old and starting their first year of college. Here's how they define "tall": minimum heights of 5'10" for women and 6'2" for men. Start the process by finding your local Tall Club and getting a member to sponsor you.

Here's a targeted scholarship: college money for aspiring aviators who can, among other things, demonstrate involvement in the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender (LGBT) community. The National Gay Pilots Association Education Fund awards up to $6,000 in scholarships per student. The money may be used to pay for advanced flight training or tuition and fees at an accredited college or university with a flight education program.

The Vegetarian Resource Group is looking for high school seniors who do not eat meat, fish or fowl and who actively promote the vegetarian lifestyle in their communities. "Applicants," the group says on its site, "will be judged on having shown compassion, courage and a strong commitment to promoting a peaceful world through a vegetarian lifestyle/diet." To win one of the two $5,000 scholarships, applicants must write an essay that addresses 16 points, including "your perfect life in five years," and "what restaurants you would recommend to a non-vegetarian."