<p>I agree that it is a huge myth about unused scholarships sitting out there, which should be apparent to anyone who’s ever looked to apply for as many of these as possible. It’s also clear that local scholarships are much easier to win than national ones. This doesn’t mean the national ones are impossible, just that they’re truly a crap-shoot, IMO even tougher than getting into the most elite schools. Why was I awarded A and B national scholarships, but didn’t make it past the first round in Y and Z? I have absolutely no idea, but when they’re evaluating 70,000 applications, it’s tough to make yourself stand out.</p>