Scholarships and Financial Aid

Now the all important question: How do you pay for college?

Most important form to fill out as soon after Jan 1st as possible:

FAFSA – Free Application for Federal Student Aid

www.fafsa.ed.gov

This application is used for applying for federal and state student grants, work-study, and loans. All colleges request the completion of this form when applying for financial aid.

South Carolina Financial Aid Programs

For those students that plan on attending College in state (South Carolina), there are several scholarships and grants that are need based as well as merit based (academic achievement or a special talent).

South Carolina Tuition Grant:

This Grant must be applied directly towards tuition and fees at the college for a maximum of eight full-time semesters.
The application for a South Carolina Tuition Grant is the Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). When filling out the FAFSA you will indicate the South Carolina college of your choice and the Tuition Grants Commission will receive your application electronically from the federal processor.
Grant is based on financial need in which the Commission calculates financial eligibility based on family income, family assets, cost of the selected college, number of family members in household and how many attending college.
Recipients must be in the upper 75% of their senior class or score at least 900 on SAT or 19 on ACT.
www.sctuitiongrants.com

The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship ($6,700 annually) :

The purpose of this scholarship is to recognize the most academically talented high school seniors and encourage them to attend college in state.
Academic eligibility requirements include: scoring 1200 or higher on the SAT or 27 on the ACT, 3.5 GPA at the end of junior year, and rank in the top 6 percent of the graduating senior class OR 1400 SAT or 32 ACT and 4.0 without class rank.
Application and assistance in determining if a student is eligible will go through the College Guidance Counselor.

LIFE Scholarship (varies up to $5,000 per year):

The Legislative for Future Excellence Scholarship Program is a merit – based scholarship with a purpose of providing incentives for students to be better prepared for college.
A student must meet two of the three academic requirements- earn a 3.0 GPA after official completion of courses required for graduation, score 1100 on the SAT or 24 on the ACT, graduate in the top 30% of the graduating class.
There is no application for the LIFE scholarship. The college you plan on attending will determine eligibility based on the official high school transcript. The college will notify you directly if eligible.

HOPE Scholarship (up to $2650, first year only):

This program is a merit- based scholarship created for students attending a four year college who do not qualify for the LIFE or Palmetto Fellows Scholarship.
Academic eligibility- Earn a 3.0 GPA upon high school graduation
Recipient must enroll as a full time degree seeking student

Robert C. Byrd Scholarship ( $1500 annually):

This program promotes academic excellence through federal funds. The federal government determines the total number of scholarships for South Carolina.
The high school guidance counselors and principals nominate qualified students to represent their school and the applications are sent to the State Department of Education.

Scholarships available on the local level:

The Community Foundation of the Low country has a directory of scholarships indicating the criteria, financial need, the amount of the scholarship, and the application process.

www.lowcountryscholarshipdirectory.org

College Scholarships:

Be sure to go onto the sites for colleges that you applied to and see what scholarships may be available through them.

Important scholarship website resources:

(you should NEVER pay to obtain scholarship info; watch out for scams!)

nextstep.collegeanswer.com

www.gocollege.com

www.financialaidtips.org

** Each month the College Guidance Department will inform the seniors during their weekly meeting, what monthly scholarship deadlines are going to be.

It is important to know that some scholarships require one-two years of the most recent Federal Income Tax returns as part of the application. Your parents will need to have copies made and placed in sealed envelopes to attach to the applications.