Sumsion Business Law recently announced the creation of their annual Live Like Alex Scholarship. All college students at a 2-year or 4-year institution are encouraged to apply. In order to apply, you can make a video or write an essay. Our first piece of advice would be to choose the application option that you will be most successful at. If you will be more successful writing an essay than talking in front of a camera then do that! For tips on writing a scholarship essay visit our blog post here. But if you choose to create a video here are a few things to consider:
The first step to making a good video is to have a plan. Writing a script will ensure that you have a plan to fully answer the question that you are being asked. Without a script you risk rambling or going off topic.
Your script should include a brief introduction, maybe just a sentence long, saying who you are and transitioning into the question that you are planning to answer. The two video prompts for 2025 are
Whichever prompt you choose, you should research before writing your script. For business law topics be sure that you fully understand the concept you are talking about and that you fact check any information you include in your script to make sure that it is accurate. In order to talk about how you Live Like Alex you can research his life and what made him special by reading the blogs on Sumsion Business Law’s website, visiting our social media, or searching his obituary.
If you research then it will help you write a better script that makes you stand out as someone who took the time to learn what this scholarship is really about.
It’s important to have a plan for what you are going to say, but it’s equally important not to read from your script when you film. Talking to a camera can feel unnatural, but those who watch your scholarship video shouldn’t know that. Take time to memorize your script, or the main points you want to talk about in your video so that when you go to film you are able to speak without reading from your script.
For the video we want you to be well informed, but also sociable and confident presenting. Take time to practice what you are going to say, and don’t be afraid to re-record if your first attempt at filming goes poorly.
It may be obvious, but if you choose to submit a video response then we will be able to see your face! While you are not being judged based on appearances, Sumsion Business Law would prefer to award this scholarship to someone who is excited about the opportunity, and cares enough about it to look and act professionally when they film.
This can look like taking time to smile at the camera, but it can also look like cleaning your room so the background of your video isn’t messy, or changing out of your pajamas before you film. There are a lot of small things you can do to ensure that your video essay looks professional and gives us a good first impression when we see it.
The purpose of the scholarship videos is not to entertain, but that doesn’t necessarily need to stop you. Making a video gives you much more creative freedom than writing an essay, and being creative can help you to stand out in a sea of applicants.
Remember, we would prefer that all photos, videos, or music included in your scholarship video be your own original work, but there are other ways to showcase your creativity.
While I would love to give lists of examples, you would then get ideas from me instead of doing your own creative thinking, so I will refrain. Remember to answer the prompt fully, but feel free to try different styles of filming or editing as you work on it.
In the excitement of having finally finished filming and editing your video it can be easy to rush to submit. However, this is not the time to rush. Make sure you review all the rules of the scholarship and follow them exactly to ensure that your hard work is submitted correctly. For video responses you must:
Failure to follow all of these steps could result in your application being disqualified, so take your time and be careful.
Creating a good scholarship video may take time. Your video should be creative while also fully answering the prompt you choose. Take time before filming to research both the history of the scholarship and Sumsion Business Law. For 2025, all scholarship submissions are due June 30th. If you have questions about the scholarship, email scholarship@businesslawutah.com.