La universidad ofrece quinientas becas este año, pero conseguir una no es fácil.

Because becas is a feminine plural noun, and the hundreds number must agree with it in gender.

• quinientos = masculine
• quinientas = feminine

So:

• quinientos libros = five hundred books
• quinientas becas = five hundred scholarships

Not all numbers change for gender, but the hundreds from doscientos/doscientas onward do.

Beca usually means scholarship or grant for studies.

In this sentence, quinientas becas means the university is offering 500 scholarships. Depending on context, a beca might cover tuition, living expenses, or other educational costs.

Because in Spanish, ofrecer takes a direct object directly, without a preposition.

• La universidad ofrece quinientas becas.
• literally: The university offers five hundred scholarships.

This works the same way as:

• ofrecer ayuda = to offer help
• ofrecer trabajo = to offer work/a job

So no a or other preposition is needed before quinientas becas.

In Spanish, many expressions of time do not need a preposition.

So you normally say:

• este año = this year
• este mes = this month
• esta semana = this week
• hoy = today

Using en este año is possible in some special contexts, but it is not the normal choice here. In this sentence, este año is the natural way to say this year.

Here, conseguir una functions as the subject of the sentence.

• Conseguir una no es fácil.
• Getting one is not easy.

In Spanish, an infinitive can act like an English -ing form:

• Fumar es malo. = Smoking is bad.
• Estudiar ayuda mucho. = Studying helps a lot.
• Conseguir una no es fácil. = Getting one is not easy.

So conseguir is not being used after another verb here; it is the thing being talked about.

Because una here means one and stands in for una beca.

So:

• conseguir una = to get one
• meaning: to get one scholarship

Spanish often avoids repeating a noun when it is already clear from context.

Compare:

• Tengo dos camisetas y quiero comprar una más. = I have two T-shirts and I want to buy one more.

Here, una is feminine because it refers back to beca, which is feminine.

Yes, conseguirla no es fácil is grammatically correct, but it sounds slightly different.

• conseguir una = getting one
• conseguirla = getting it

In this sentence, una highlights the idea of one out of those many scholarships. That fits very naturally after quinientas becas.

Using la would refer back to la beca more directly, but una is often preferred here because the sentence contrasts many scholarships are available with getting even one is difficult.

In Spanish, no normally goes before the conjugated verb.

So:

• no es fácil = it is not easy

This is the standard pattern:

• No tengo tiempo. = I don’t have time.
• No podemos ir. = We can’t go.
• No es fácil. = It isn’t easy.

Es no fácil is not natural standard Spanish.

Pero means but. It connects two contrasting ideas:

• La universidad ofrece quinientas becas este año
• pero conseguir una no es fácil

So the contrast is:

• there are many scholarships available,
• but obtaining one is still difficult.

This is a very common use of pero.

Because fácil is stressed on the first syllable: FÁ-cil.

Spanish spelling rules say that words ending in n, s, or a vowel are normally stressed on the second-to-last syllable. Since fácil ends in l, it would normally be stressed on the last syllable unless an accent mark shows otherwise.

The written accent tells you the stress must be:

• fácil = FÁ-cil

Without the accent, the pronunciation rule would suggest a different stress pattern.

In this sentence, la universidad most naturally refers to a specific university already known from context.

For example, it could mean:

• the university we are talking about
• this university
• the university in question

Spanish often uses the definite article this way when the reference is clear. If you wanted to speak more generally, you might say something like:

• Una universidad ofrece... = A university offers...
• Las universidades ofrecen... = Universities offer...

They are very close in meaning here, and both can mean to obtain/get.

• conseguir often sounds a bit more like manage to get or succeed in getting
• obtener is a bit more formal and neutral

So:

• conseguir una beca = to get/manage to get a scholarship
• obtener una beca = to obtain a scholarship

In everyday Spanish, conseguir is very natural in this sentence.

Because una is the object of conseguir.

• conseguir una = to get one

This follows the normal Spanish order:

• verb + object

Examples:

• comprar un libro = to buy a book
• ver una película = to watch a film
• conseguir una = to get one

You cannot put una before conseguir here in standard Spanish.