There are thousands of grants and scholarships available to college students in North America. There are grants offered to students who excel in academics, students who are exceptionally tall or left-handed, students who are adept at duck calling and even a grant for musically inclined students.

This is the first year that The First 15 grant program is being offered. The $5,000 grant is being offered by the Post Foods company to talented Canadian musicians.

The grant was started when independent composer and producer Adam Damelin collaborated with hip-hop artist Ish Morris. Damelin approached Post Foods with a new spin on Sugar Crisp cereal's jingle "Can't Get Enough", hoping to get funding and sponsorship to promote the track.

The song samples the classic 1960s jingle from the Sugar Crisp cereal commercials. Damelin said, "It was a catchy hook that really set a cool vibe for the track both melodically and lyrically."

Post eventually decided to take the collaboration a step further and started The First 15 grant in order to help support emerging Canadian artists.

Jennifer Dumoulin from Post Foods said, "For Sugar Crisp, it was all about being authentic and getting involved, which in this case is helping young adults with musical talent realize their dream."

To participate in the contest, hopeful bands and artists are invited to go to facebook.com/thefirst15 to upload their track. Artists are allowed to use the Sugar Crisp jingle, but this is not a requirement. The contest opened on October 17 and will run until December 9.

The First 15 winner will receive free recording studio time courtesy of GIRTH Music in Toronto with the support of a producer and a cash prize of $5,000.

A shortlist of potential winning artists will be determined by Facebook community voting. A judging panel including Ish Morris, Post Foods and music industry experts will determine the final winner.

"The number one priority is to help artists gain exposure and help artists engage with users and listeners. All artists or songwriters are looking to have their music heard and submit content to a platform that has listeners," said one of the involved artists. "There are a lot of really great opportunities in Canada for artists to get funding but sometimes the process is difficult and artists sometimes have a hard time discovering these opportunities."

Ish Morris gave this advice to aspiring musicians: "It's all about the output. We like to hold on to things until they're perfect. You just have to trust your instincts and let it go. Write what you like, not what you think is current. Write what you listen to yourself. Don't do dance music because you think that's what people are into."

The download for the "Can't Get Enough" song and more information about the grant and how to submit your song can be found at facebook.com/thefirst15.