You may have heard that being left-handed can help pay for college. Perhaps a social media post promised thousands of dollars simply for writing with your left hand. The truth is more limited: there is no widely available scholarship that awards money based only on handedness. However, a legitimate left handed scholarship is currently available to qualifying left-handed golfers, while the famous scholarship once offered by Juniata College appears to be inactive.
Is there a real left handed scholarship?
As of November 2026, the clearest active opportunity is the NALG Ben Richter Scholarship from the National Association of Left Handed Golfers. It is not open to every left-handed student. Applicants must be left-handed golfers who satisfy the program’s academic and enrollment requirements.
The advertised award is a one-time $1,000 grant. The money is paid to the recipient’s chosen postsecondary school at the beginning of the student’s second semester. Because award amounts, deadlines, and requirements can change, applicants should review the official NALG Ben Richter Scholarship requirements before submitting anything.
Who is eligible?
The scholarship is intended for graduating high school seniors who play golf left-handed. According to the published requirements, an applicant must:
- Be a left-handed golfer
- Be a graduating high school senior
- Plan to enroll in a postsecondary institution during the summer, fall, or quarter immediately following high school graduation
- Maintain amateur status in all athletics
- Submit a completed application by March 31
The program does not publish a minimum GPA on its main requirements page, but scholastic performance is considered during selection. The application asks students to provide their GPA, intended college or other postsecondary school, proposed major, golf experience, tournament results, community service, and related accomplishments.
Applicants should not assume that being left-handed is enough. Golf participation and achievement are central to the award. A student who writes left-handed but plays golf right-handed may not satisfy the stated requirement for a left-handed golfer.
Award details at a glance
- Award name: NALG Ben Richter Scholarship
- Advertised value: One-time $1,000 grant
- Payment: Sent to the recipient’s postsecondary institution
- Payment timing: Beginning of the recipient’s second semester
- Application deadline: March 31
- Main qualifying activity: Left-handed golf
- Academic level: Graduating high school senior
The award may be used at the recipient’s school of choice, rather than at one designated college. Nevertheless, students should confirm how the institution will apply the funds. Depending on the school’s policies, an outside scholarship may reduce the student’s outstanding balance or affect another part of the financial aid package.
How to apply
1. Download the current application
Use the application provided through the scholarship organization rather than a form reposted by an unrelated website. An old copy may contain an outdated deadline, mailing address, or contact person.
2. Gather the requested information
The application asks for personal and academic details, including your contact information, GPA, intended school, and intended major. It also includes sections for your years of golf experience, best nine-hole and 18-hole scores, handicap information if available, tournament finishes, left-handed golf events, golf-related employment, and community service.
3. Prepare the essay
Applicants must submit a double-spaced essay of 150 to 300 words. It should discuss educational goals, future plans, and the ways golf has influenced the applicant’s life and ambitions.
Within this short word limit, use specific examples. Instead of saying that golf taught you discipline, briefly describe a setback, practice routine, tournament, or personal responsibility that demonstrates discipline. Address every part of the prompt and proofread carefully, because clarity, organization, grammar, and topic coverage are considered.
4. Include the photograph and signatures
The application requests a head-only photograph, which may be enclosed with a mailed application or attached as a JPEG when applying by email. Both the applicant and a parent or guardian are asked to sign the form. Review each page before submission so that no section, attachment, or signature is missing.
5. Submit everything before March 31
The application may be mailed or emailed using the submission instructions printed on the current form. Do not wait until the final day. Sending it early leaves time to correct an attachment problem, incomplete form, or email delivery failure.
What happened to the Juniata College scholarship?
Many search results about left-handed scholarships refer to the Frederick and Mary F. Beckley Scholarship at Juniata College in Pennsylvania. This was a genuine scholarship, established in 1979 through a bequest from Mary Francis Beckley. Historical college information described it as a need-based award for left-handed Juniata students who also demonstrated academic achievement.
Older materials list different award amounts and application procedures, reflecting changes across different years. More importantly, the scholarship does not appear on Juniata College’s current public scholarship listings. Students should therefore not treat archived articles, old PDFs, or recycled scholarship lists as confirmation that applications are being accepted.
If you are considering Juniata College, contact its financial aid office directly and ask whether the Beckley fund is still awarded internally. Do not enroll at a college solely because an old webpage mentions a left handed scholarship.
Why handedness alone rarely qualifies a student
Left-handedness is a normal human trait, not an illness or disability. Roughly one in ten people is left-handed, although estimates vary according to population and how researchers define handedness. Hand preference usually becomes clear during childhood and tends to remain consistent. Evidence indicates that both genetics and environmental influences contribute; there is no single simple “left-handed gene.”
Being left-handed also does not reliably predict intelligence, creativity, academic performance, or financial need. Although left-handed students may encounter practical inconveniences such as right-handed scissors, classroom desks, notebooks, or equipment, scholarship sponsors generally combine handedness with meaningful criteria such as a sport, field of study, community involvement, academic record, or demonstrated need.
How to find additional scholarship money
Do not limit your search to unusual personal traits. A highly specific scholarship may be interesting, but broader categories usually produce more opportunities. Search for awards connected to:
- Your intended major or career
- Academic achievement
- Financial need
- Athletics, arts, volunteering, or leadership
- Your employer or a parent’s employer
- Local foundations, civic organizations, and community groups
- Your high school, college, county, or state
Apply for several smaller awards rather than relying on one highly competitive scholarship. Before building your application plan, it can also help to understand how to get a scholarship and evaluate its advantages and limitations.
Protect yourself from misleading offers
A legitimate scholarship should clearly identify its sponsor, eligibility rules, deadline, selection criteria, and application process. Be cautious if an offer guarantees an award, requests payment to apply, asks for bank login information, or uses pressure tactics. Search results that describe the old Juniata award as currently available may simply be repeating outdated information.
The practical answer is that a left handed scholarship does exist for a narrow group: graduating seniors who are left-handed amateur golfers. For everyone else, handedness can still be an interesting detail in an essay, but your strongest scholarship opportunities will probably come from your academic goals, achievements, activities, background, and community involvement.
