By now you have waded through numerous scholarship announcements and applications to find the ones that fit your profile.
To complete your scholarship applications, you should have the following items:
• Transcripts
• Standardized test scores
• Financial Aid forms, such as FAFSA or CSS profile
• Parent’s financial information
• A couple of essays
• 2-3 letters of recommendation
*Helpful Hint* Create a calendar of application deadlines to ensure you turn everything in on time.
After researching the Cal Grant, FAFSA and colleges themselves, the best sources of financial aid are local.
For example, in Elk Grove, the Elk Grove Community Foundation, a non-profit organization, distributes thousands of dollars in aid to our graduating seniors each year. Applications for these scholarships are available in February. Visit http://www.egcommunityfoundation.org or contact your school’s counseling office for more information.
In addition to local scholarships, there are also scholarships offered nationally. Information on nationally-offered scholarships is available in the counseling office at your school. Increasing steadily each year, the web is now the source of national scholarship information.
If there is still a financial need after scholarship possibilities have been exhausted, the next step is to investigate loans. Loans can be obtained through college, the federal government and private entities.
Throughout the process of applying for financial aid, it is very important to honor deadlines in order to maximize your chances of being awarded financial aid.
To aid in your scholarship search, here are a few locations to assist you:
• EGUSD’s College/Career website: http://www.egusd.net/collegeandcareer/
Click the “Scholarships” link on the left sidebar. Here you will find a complete section on scholarship information.
• The College Board: http://www.collegeboard.com
The College Board has various scholarship links to assist you.
• Your high school career center
Don’t forget to visit your own high school career center for Sacramento area scholarship applications.
Financial aid is usually based on need. This computes into a simple formula:
College cost – your expected family contribution = your financial need
Financial aid is also awarded based on merit (academic achievement), financial need, or a combination of both. Some schools will offer merit scholarships to attract students who are high achieving relative to the school’s applicant pool. Few schools maintain “need-blind” admissions, meaning that applicants are admitted without regard to their ability to pay. Schools that do maintain need blind admissions will state this in their financial aid information.
Probably more than half of all student college applicants apply for financial aid. Colleges themselves are the greatest sources of financial aid because they distribute money made available through the U.S. government. There are various types of financial assistance and it is important that you understand the differences between them.
Seniors, it’s time to begin your college budget. If scholarships or work study does not cover all of your college expenses, student loans may help pay the remaining expenses. You may combine any of the forms listed below showing types of financial aid that meets the costs of college expenses.
Grants – Repayment is not required. Grants are given for athletics, academics, special talent, need based, etc.
Scholarships – Repayment is not required. They are rewarded based on athletics, special talent, or academic excellence.
Loans
College Work Study – This allows colleges to hire students for employment to pay their own way as they go to college. You do not repay money earned.
From detailed financial information reported in the FAFSA, formulas produce the expected family contribution, or EFC. This sum is considered an amount that the family can be reasonably expected to pay over time, not just currently from income and assets. Each spring, high school counseling departments invite a guest speaker to explain line by line the process of filling out the FAFSA.
