School is a huge expense but one worth investing in. Besides parental help, financial aid and loans, you can compete in essay contests to earn cash to attend college. Here are some of the top sites to search for opportunities to use your essay writing skills to win.

Big Future: Big Future is part of the College Board, the originators of many college readiness tests such as the SAT. There is a search option to look for upcoming essay contests, as well as scholarship and grant opportunities. This is a helpful site also for overall planning advice for college. To learn more, visit https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/.

College Prowler: This site is run by Niche, which is a company founded by students of Carnegie Mellon University. Niche provides students and parents in-depth info on K-12 schools and colleges with thousands of reviews at their fingertips to help them assess which one is right for them. The search option at College Prowler will help you find essay contests. To learn more, visit https://collegeprowler.com/.

FastWeb: FastWeb is one of the largest sites to find financial assistance for school including essays. You need to register to be kept up to date on the latest opportunities but it's free. There's also a Sweepstakes and Promo section. To learn more, visit https://www.fastweb.com/.

Scholarships360: The owners of Scholarship360 review current scholarships and essay contests nearly every day to help students find up to date opportunities fast rather than wade through possibly expired contests. To learn more, visit https://www.scholarships360.org/.

Scholarships.com: Scholarships.com was founded in 1998 and is another free site to search for essays and other financial aid opportunities. They also specialize in helping students understand the financial aid process. To learn more specifically about essay contests, visit https://www.scholarships.com/financial-aid/college-scholarships/scholarships-by-type/scholarship-essay-contests/. You need to register for full access.

All of these sites have Facebook pages. Some of them have blogs and/or forums to get your questions answered and articles with essay writing tips to help you write a winner. Good luck!

Here are two resources to help you write winning essays from Amazon.com:
On Writing the College Application Essay, 25th Anniversary Edition: The Key to Acceptance at the College of Your Choice

How to Write Essays: A Step-By-Step Guide for All Levels, with Sample Essays