With the academic year approaching, many students and families are searching high and low for ways to keep the tuition bills under control. All that hard work can be a grueling, humorless process. I thought we should take a few minutes to inject a few laughs into the process by noting some really bizarre scholarship opportunities.

Here are 5 of my favorites…

DUCT TAPE PROM: If you and your date are willing to attend your prom wearing nothing but duct tape, you can document your questionable fashion taste and qualify to pursue two $3,000 scholarhsips from the makers of Duck Tap brand duct tape. Back in my day, we rented the cheapest tuxes we could, because we had to pay that one creepy guy with the Camaro a lot of cash to buy our booze. Oh, how times have changed…

JUST LIKE IN THE MOVIES: You’ve seen Caddyshack, right? Of course you have. Be the ball. The gopher. The Baby Ruth in the pool. And, of course, the scholarship competition. The Evans Scholars Foundation hands out schoool money for those who thanklessly tote the bags of duffers. I can hear the Kenny Loggins music already. Apparently, this is serious scholarship and is very highly-regarded. At least that’s what Ted Knight told me.

COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY: We all know that those sci-fi geeks from high school go on to get free rides in the engineering departments of the very best colleges. It’s their revenge for all the crap with which they have to put up. That and the fact that geekiness is sort of becoming cool these days. In any case, it seems wholly unnecessary to give anyone who self-identifies as a “Starfleet member” extra money for school. But it happens. The Star Trek super fans can qualify for $500 scholarships. Live long and prosper.

SOUTHPAW PAYOFF: We wrote about this one a few days back, but it’s so good that it warrants inclusion on this list, too. Juniata College allows students who’ve been there for a year and who are left-handed to apply for a $1,000 scholarship. Not just any lefty will get the money. You need to be a good student and all that jazz. However, this is the one and only scholarship for the left handed!

KNITTING YOUR WAY TO COLLEGE: The American Sheep Industry Association wants to encourage folks to produce the best-looking wool garments possible. And they’re willing to dole out scholarship money for those who knit them. My granny would’ve had three PhD’s if she had known about this one–and I have the scarves to prove it.

These are only the tip of the iceberg. There are scholarships reserved exclusively for those with certain surnames. Every interest group from the NRA to Tall Club International is interested in funding the higher education of its members and their children. There are scholarships for out of the ordinary hobbies like duck calling and alternative lifestyles like nudism.

They’re all good for a laugh, but these wacky scholarships can also be a reminder that there may be more money out there for you to fund your college education than you realize. Hey, if someone is ready to give you school money for creating a gown out of duct tape or because your mom is a member of the Michigan Llama Association, there’s a good chance that you qualify for one or more scholarships that might not be as obvious as those based on athletic prowess or high SAT scores.