Students heading to college in Illinois will probably be on the lookout for scholarships to help them get through college for free.

No doubt their mad hunt can easily run them in vicious, confusing circles so hopefully this information will help get started on the right track.

The state representatives and senators offer the Illinois General Assembly Scholarship with each different region having its own set of criteria for the student to meet.

High school standardized tests are used as decision makers for the Merit Recognition Scholarship. Family of soldiers may also be eligible for the MIA/POW Scholarship Program.

Here is a list of some scholarships available as well as the awards they offer:

• Illinois Department of Public Health for Rural Health Allied Heath Care Professional Scholarship Program $15000
• Illinois Department of Public Health for Rural Health Nursing Education Scholarship Program $6000
• Illinois Monetary Award Program $4968
• Indiana Scholarship $1000
• Merit Recognition Scholarship Program $1000
• Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholarship $1500
• Veterans’ Children Educational Opportunities $250

Remember you can also talk to your high school counselor about receiving scholarships for your college years.

You can also get direction and advice from the college admissions office, your college student adviser and the financial aid office. In the meantime, here is a list of Illinois scholarships for college students to get started.

• “Bud” & Lauri Pilling Scholarship Fund
• A. Augustus Tyler Scholarship for Outstanding Science Students
• A.B. Roberts Scholarship
• A.G. Carnine Scholarship
• A.L. Knoblauch Scholarship
• A.S.I.S. American Society for Industrial Security Scholarship
• AARP-American Association of Retired Persons Sangamon Chapter 195 Scholarship
• AAUW Charlotte Waller Williams Scholarship Fund
• Academic Achievement Scholarship
• Academic Distinction Scholarship Essay Contest
• Academic Excellence Award
• Academic Excellence Scholarships
• Academic Finalist Award
• Academic Merit Scholarships
• Academic Scholarship
• Academic Transfer Scholarship
• Academy Scholarship
• Achievement Award
• Achievement Scholarship
• Ada B. Drake-Hazel M. Oest Scholarship
• Addie E. Mueller Fund
• ADM Awards
• Adult Learner Grant
• African Students Tuition Grant
• AI & Americans for the Arts Poster Design Contest
• Al & Anne Swartz Scholarship
• Al Lira Scholarship
• Al Parker Scholarship
• Alane Stoffregen Memorial Scholarship
• Albert & A. Mansfield Scholarship
• Albert A. & Mildred B. Anderson Scholarship
• Albert Andreas Foundation Business Scholarship
• Albert Eades Scholarship
• Albert F. Siepert Memorial Scholarship
• Albert M. Andreas Horticulture Scholarship
• Albert T. Mills Prize
• Albert Weisman Scholarship
• Alex Van Pragg Fund
• Alfred J. Lindsey Memorial Scholarship
• Alice Ambrose Lazerowitz Philosophy Prize
• Alice Herren Ayars Award
• Alice Irene (Gardner) Schulze & Irene M. (Schulze) Wilcox Scholarship
• Alice Kruse Ministerial Scholarship Fund
• Alice Lambert Scholarship
• Allen J. Parcell Scholarships
• Allied Health Care Professional Scholarship
• Alpha Epsilon Delta Award
• Beta XI Chapter of Alpha Delta Kappa Scholarship
• Beth M. Stiffler Scholarship
• Betty Eikenberry Bogardus Scholarship
• Betty Garrett Musical Theater Scholarship
• Beverly Slabaugh Memorial Management Scholarship
• Bhagat Singh Scholarship
• Bill & Pat Parr Nursing Scholarship
• Bill Bradshaw Memorial Scholarship Fund
• Biology Fellows Scholarship
• Biology Honors Award
• Biotechnology Research & Development Corporation
• BKD LLP Scholarship
• Black Family Scholarship
• Blackburn College Alumni Leadership Award
• Blackburn Grant
• Blenda Olson Scholarship
• Blyler Award for Musical Excellence
• Board of Regents Scholarship
• Board of Trustees Grant
• Board of Trustees-Student Advisory Council (SAC) Scholarship
• Bob Enrietto Scholarship-Semester in L.A. Program
• Bob Evans Fund
• Bob J. Davis TPD Scholarship
• Bonna B. Roth Scholarship Fund
• Bonnie Keith Albracht Scholarship Fund
• Bonus Incentive Grant (BIG)
• Borg-Warner Automotive Fund
• Boyer Scholarship
• Boys & Girls Club Scholarship
• BP Honors Tuition Scholarship (Amoco)
• Bradley University Scholarship
• Brandon Scholarship
• Brandt Consolidated Inc. Scholarships
• Brebner, Joesting-Herrington, & Kester Scholarship Fund
• Brenda J. Price Memorial Scholarships
• Brenda Kay Garrett Memorial Scholarship
• Brian & Sue Shannon Scholarship
• Brian Johnson Memorial Scholarship
• Bridgewater-Gripp Scholarship
• Brophy Scholarship
• Brown, Hay & Stephens-Springfield Urban League Scholarship
• Bruce Callis Scholarship
• Bruce Deaton Memorial Football Scholarship
• Brunswick Foundation Scholarship
• Bryce K. & Elizabeth Brown Scholarship
• BU Academic Hall of Fame
• Burdette & Kathryn Knappenberger Scholarship
• Burridge D. Butler Scholarship Fund
• Business & Technology Alumni Funded Scholarships
• Byron L. & Mildred Kerns Scholarship
• Class of 1960 Scholarship
• Class of 1963 Scholarship Fund
• Class of 1978 Scholarship
• Class of 1981 Scholarship
• Class of 2001 Scholarship
• Clayton Westgate Scholarship
• Clela Trotter Wilson Scholarship
• Clifford A. & Rosa Julstrom Scholarship-Foreign Languages & Literature
• Clifford A. & Rosa Julstrom Scholarship-Music
• Clifford E. Conry Memorial Scholarship Fund
• Clifton Gunderson & Co., Accountancy Award
• Cline-Lofftus Scholarship
• Clo I. & R.L. “Rex” Rees Scholarship
• Clyde Browning Scholarship
• Clyde Dennis Award
• Cognis Corporation Scholarship
• College Book Stores of America Scholarship
• College of Education Tuition Scholarship
• College Scholarship Program
• Colonel Marinda Coultas Wood Scholarship
• Colonel Sidney Ginsberg Scholarships
• Colorado Alumni Scholarship
• Commited To Lives of Excellence Scholarship
• Commonwealth Credit Union Scholarship
• Community College Scholarship
• Community College Scholarships
• Community Scholar Award
• Community Service Scholars Program
• Computer Science Programming Excellence Scholarship
• Computer Science Scholarship
• Conant English Department Award
• Conant Society Achievement Award
• Concert Band-Chamber Orchestra Participation Scholarship
• Connie Bakker Memorial Scholarship
• Cora B. Ryman Art Scholarship Fund
• Cornelia S. Hodges ZONTA Scholarship
• Corporate Alternatives, Inc. Scholarship
• Corydon M. Hubbert Endowed Scholarship
• Counselor Education & College Student Personnel Alumni Scholars
• Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc. Scholarship
• Credit-In-Escrow Scholarship
• Crime Stoppers of Sangamon & Menard Counties Scholarship
• Crimestoppers Scholarship
• Crown Scholarship
• Crow’s Hybrid Corn Company Scholarship
• CSBG Scholarship
• Culinary Scholarship
• Cultural Diversity Awareness Scholarship
• Cuneo Foundation Scholarship
• Currently Enrolled Student Scholarship
• Alpha Kappa Psi Award
• Alpha Lambda Delta Senior Book Award
• Alpha Tau Delta Honorarium Award
• Alumnae Association of Brokaw Hospital School of Nurses Scholarship Fund
• Alumni Association Scholarship
• Alumni Dependent Scholarship
• Alumni Elementary-Secondary Education Scholarship
• Alumni Grant
• Alumni High School Merit Scholarships
• Alumni Legacy Scholarship
• Alumni Merit Scholarships
• Alumni Scholarship
• Alverno Scholarship in Fine Arts
• Amateur Musical Club Scholarship Fund
• American Chemical Society Award
• American Criminal Justice Association Lambda Alpha Epsilon Phi Alpha Epsilon WIU Chapter Scholarship
• American Institute of Chemists Award
• American Legion Scholarship-McDonough County Post #6
• American Marketing Association Out-standing Marketing Student Awards
• American Society for Industrial Security Internship Scholarship
• Ameritech Tuition Scholarship
• Amstutz Memorial Scholarship
• Amy Lynn D’Amico Scholarship
• Andrew J. Dallstream Fund
• Anita Magafas Nontradtional Student Award
• Ann & Byron Booth Scholarship
• Ann & Terry Peel Scholarship
• Ann Collins Jazz Piano Scholarship
• Ann L. Dondanville Nursing Scholarship
• Anna E. Stiller & Anton P. Stiller Memorial Scholarship
• Anna Lou Johnston Roth Scholarship
• Anna Lou Johnston Roth Scholarship Fund for the Study of Humanities
• Anna Mae Smith Scholarship
• Anna Marie Gruber Scholarship
• Anne Kaplan Fund
• Anthony Samfay Memorial Scholarship
• Applied Music Scholarship
• Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) Scholarships (college)
• Ari & Ruth Kovacevich Distinguished Scholarship
• Arizona Scholarship Fund
• Arlington & Arlene Seymour Teacher Education Scholarship
• Arnold Kirkeby Tuition Grant
• Art Cragoe Scholarship
• Art Department-New Freshman Scholarship
• Art Institutes Scholarships
• Art Leadership Award
• Art Scholarship
• Arthur Crandall Tuition Scholarship
• Arthur F. Schulz, Jr. Alumni Scholarships
• Arthur J. Schmitt Scholarships
• Arthur T. Schramm Memorial Scholarship
• Associate in Applied Science Scholarships
• Association Award
• Association of Facilities Engineers Scholarship
• ATHENA Scholarship
• Athletic Grant
• Athletic Scholarship
• Athletic Scholarship (NJCAA)
• Athletic Scholarships
• Athletic Scholarships
• Athletic Scholarships
• Athletic Scholarships
• Athletics Leadership Awards
• Attye Belle McGee Tuition Scholarship
• Audrey A. Crutchfield Memorial Scholarship
• Augenstein Memorial Scholarship
• Aurora East Educational Foundation Scholarships
• Aurora East Educational Foundation Scholarships
• Aurora Kiwanis Club-Waubonsee Community College Graduates Scholarship
• Aurora Neighbors Uniting Scholarships
• B. Howard Wooters Scholarship
• B. William “Bill” Franklin Scholarship
• Baccalaureate Scholars Program
• Bachelor’s Degree Excellence
• Bagpiping & Highlander Drumming Scholarships
• Banco Popular Dream Scholarship (Adult) (US only)
• Banco Popular Dream Scholarship (US only)
• Bank One & The Springfield Urban League Scholarships
• BAP-KPMG Scholarship
• Barbara Klespitz Wright Scholarship
• Barbara Wright Scholarship
• Barnes Music Scholarship
• Bartlett Tree Foundation Scholarship
• Bassett, Chiswick, Kosobud & Stokes Award
• Bea & Jim Wehrly Scholarship
• Behavioral Science Award
• Ben Eli Grossberg Memorial Fund
• Ben Franklin Award
• Ben Hoffman Memorial Scholarship
• Benedictine University Science Scholarship
• Bernie Flock Memorial Scholarship
• Bessie Myers International Student Scholarship
• Bessie Myers Music Scholarship
• Best Teen Chef Culinary Scholarship
• Beta Sigma Phi Scholarship
• Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Issues-Undergraduate Award
• Charlene F. Wood Scholarship Fund
• Charlene G. Callison Fashion Merchandising Scholarship
• Charles & Carolyn Long Scholarship
• Charles & M.R. Shapiro Business Tuition Scholarship
• Charles A. Leonard Memorial Continuing Student Scholarship
• Charles E. Maxwell & Helen J. Maxwell Athletic Scholarship Fund
• Charles F. & Ida Diller Record Scholarship
• Charles G. Sadler History Memorial Scholarship
• Charles Shapiro Education Tuition Scholarship
• Chartwells Scholarship
• Chef John R. Lawrence Scholarship
• Chemical Rubber Company Prize
• Chemistry Award
• Chevrolet-General Motors Scholarship Fund
• Chicago Bar Association Charles Goodnow Memorial Award
• Chicago Bar Association Entertainment Committee Criminal Justice Graduate Award
• Chicago Bar Association Entertainment Committee Criminal Justice Undergraduate Award
• Chicago Bar Association Entertainment Committee Music Award
• Chicago Bar Association Entertainment Committee Theater Award
• Chicago Catholic Heritage Award
• Chicago College of Performing Arts Scholarships & Awards
• Chicago Metro History Fair Scholarship
• Chicago Public School Tuition Scholarship (Kaplan)
• Chicago Public Schools Science Fair Scholarship
• Chicago Scholarship
• Children of Veterans Scholarships
• Chown-Himmel Special Education Scholarship
• Christian Service Dependent Scholarship
• Christine Poole Ponquinette Scholarship
• Christine R. Cline Memorial Scholarship
• Christy Scholarship
• Chuck & Mary Jo Novak Scholarship
• Chuck Suber Scholarship
• Church Partnership Scholarship Program
• Circle of Advocates Scholarship
• Cisco Networking Academy Scholarship (a)
• Cisco Networking Academy Scholarship (b)
• Citigroup Fellows Program (C)
• Citizens National Bank Agriculture Scholarship
• Clara R. Brian Memorial Scholarship
• Clara Schwab Whelan Music Scholarship Fund
• Clarence & Dorothy Best Scholarship Fund
• Clarence Davids & Joyce Vanderbent Davids Business Scholarship
• Clarence E. & Shirley M. Johnson Scholarship
• Clarence E. Neff Memorial Scholarship
• Clarence Neff Scholarship in Agriculture
• Class of 1936 Scholarship
• Class of 1938 Scholarship
• Class of 1940 Scholarship
• C. Emery & Thelma B. Sallstrom Memorial Scholarship Fund
• C. Max Hoover Memorial Scholarship
• C. Robin Frieden Memorial Scholarship
• C.C. Wheeler Scholarship
• C.E. “Fuzz” Sutherd & Mildred Lingle Sutherd Scholarship
• C.H. Logan III Scholarship
• C.PP.S. Scholarship
• C.W. Barnes Memorial Award
• Camilla & Harry Singler Scholarship in Educational & Interdisciplinary Studies
• Campbell-Thompson Northern Star Scholarship
• CampusRN-AACN Nursing Scholarship
• Camras Scholarships
• Cancer Federation Scholarship
• Cardinal George Scholarship
• Cardiss Collins Scholarship for Diversity
• Careers in Transition, Inc. Scholarships
• Cargill Scholarship-Internship Program
• Carl & Lois Lawrence Music Scholarship
• Carl & Lucille Weatherbee Chemistry Award
• Carl & Lucille Weatherbee Graduate Studies Award
• Carl Davidson Scholarship Fund
• Carl Sandburg-Lombard Scholarships
• Carol J. Grice Major Scholarship
• Carol Jacobson Remembrance Fund
• Carol L. Hamilton Memorial Tuition Scholarship
• Carolyn Houghton Crew Scholarship
• Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau Foundation Scholarship
• Cataldo Family Endowed Tuition Scholarship
• Caterpillar Business Scholarship
• Caterpillar Employee Dependents Scholarship
• Caterpillar Excellence Scholarship
• Caterpillar Scholarship
• Catholic School Scholarlship
• Cathy Hill Cawthon Memorial Award
• CCAMPIS Grant Scholarship
• CCSJ Mentoring Grant
• Cecil F. Abrams & Katherine V. Abrams Scholarship
• Centennial Scholarship
• Central Illinois Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration Scholarship
• Central Illinois Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management Scholarship
• Central Illinois Community Blood Center Scholarship
• Central Illinois Typographical Union Local 177 Scholarships
• Century Club Scholarship
• Chairman’s Scholarship
• Chalmer & Lulu Newbould Music Scholarship
• Chambers, Bering, Quinlan Company Scholarship
• Chamness Family Scholarship
• CHANCE Tuition Waivers
• Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Issues-Graduate Award