Sunward Scholarship Competition Process
Sunward has supported student members for 30 years with its annual Scholarship Competition. In 2024, we awarded a total of $12,000 to nine students, with a top prize of $4,000. Sunward strives to be transparent and open with members about our Scholarship Competition processes, including how winners are selected. More information follows.
SUBMISSIONS
All applications are captured via Submittable, a third-party vendor that supplies the online platform we use to collect essays and supporting documentation, complete judging rounds, and to store student and judge applications during the competition.
Children of both employees and members of Sunward employees and volunteers (e.g., those who serve on Sunward's Board of Directors or Supervisory Committee) are not eligible to participate in the Sunward Scholarship Competition.
JUDGING
Judging is comprised of three rounds:
Round 1
The first round of judging is an initial review of the scholarship applications. A team of Sunward employees screens all submissions to ensure applications meet all required qualifications. All personal identifiable information is removed from essay files, and a unique submission number is assigned to each applicant. This ensures the anonymity of each applicant and impartiality throughout the remainder of the judging process.
Applicants who are disqualified or who do not advance to the next round will be notified by email. This email does not state the reason why an applicant did not move forward. If the applicant would like more details about their disqualification, they can reach out to Sunward for information.
Round 2
In this round of judging, essays which made it through the first round are scored through Submittable. Judges consist of members and employee volunteers who are at least 18 years of age and are not related to any of the applicants. If a judge is related to an applicant, they are not eligible to participate as a judge in the competition. Approximately 18 to 25 volunteer judges participate each year.
Essays are divided evenly among all judges. Judges score each essay from 1 to 10 among four different categories:
- How well the essay addresses the topic
- Writing mechanics: spelling, grammar, punctuation, format, etc.
- Thought organization, clarity, and logical flow
- Originality
Scores are collected in Submittable and totaled. The top 15 essays with the highest scores proceed to round 3 of judging.
Round 3
In the final round, all remaining essays are reviewed by all judges via Submittable. Judges will review each of the 15 essays and assign a ranking of 1-10 among the same four categories described in Round 2.
Scores are collected in Submittable and totaled to determine a final score. The nine applicants with the highest final scores are deemed the winners and receive awards based on their ranking. In the case of a tie, both applicants will receive the full prize amount.
