From what i’ve seen, the majority of scholarships applications are due in the winter/spring. Since most colleges application deadline is January i really don’t understand how this works.
Let’s imagine that i apply for a need-aware college by the january deadline and, by that time, i provide my financial information required. My financial need is, in this example, 90%; this means that i can only pay up to 10% of my predicted expenses. Being a need-aware college, this may influence negatively my application; but let’s say that in March i get $30.000 from a scholarship that i applied to; now i can pay almost the full tuiton for that particular college in that particular year. However, my application was already sent and the decision is already being made based on my financial need. Now i have the money but i can’t do nothing about it and i may get rejected as the college thinks i don’t have the money to pay full tuition and they can’t provide my all my financial need.
What can a student do in this case? Is this really the way this process works?
If you need financial,aid, you need to apply for it. Getting acceoted to a need aware school with insufficient aid is NOT going to do you a speck of good. And these schools exoect to,see your financial aid application when you apply for admission. Most state that if you don’t apply for,aid,when you apply for admission, your application for aid will NOT be considered.
So…apply to the colleges…and get your aid applications sent ASAP as well. The FAFSA and CSS Profile will both be available for submission in October 2016 for,the 2017-2018 school year. You will use 2015 tax return info to complete these applications.
Your speculation about a $30,000 outside scholarship is just that…speculation…until you actually receive the award.
The reality is…you might not get THAT award.
So…get those financial aid applications completed if you require need based aid to attend.
That was not my intended question. I’m using an example of a situation where i already applied for aid but my determined financial need was 90% of the predicted expenses at the time i’ve applied. Then, after i applied i receive this scholarship worth $30.000 and i no longer need financial aid; but now i may get rejected because i applied for financial aid worth 90% of the predicted expenses and maybe the college wants to accept me but they don’t want to pay me my full financial need (not knowing that i already have the money).
What can i do in this situation? Scholarships are really only given in this period of time (winter/spring)?
You’re picking to much on the amount of reward in scholarships. I’m just asking about a hypothetically change of your financial status between the time you apply (needing financial aid) and the time that colleges make their decisions (when you, in this case, no longer need any financial aid or at least you can pay more).
Sometimes you can’t control all the factors that go into the acceptance decision. Most schools are NOT need aware and will just accept you or reject you based on the application, not finances. There are always people who win the debate after they send in their applications, or are picked for captain, or move into the top 10% of the class. If you find out about the big scholarship before the admission decision is made, you can update the school. If not, you just have to deal with the factors you control.
Yes thats how it works. The reality is that there are so few “hypothetical $30k scholarships” floating around out there that it would so rarely affect any decision. Students likely to win random $30k scholarships are probably the students that a need-aware school are likely to accept anyway, even knowing their need.
And Pedro- make sure you understand how “need” works. It’s not that you can only pay 10% of costs so your need is 90%- need is what the college determines your need to be. Many people (hundreds on CC alone) cannot pay their “need” as calculated by a particular college.
Thank you. Can you confirm that the majority of scholarships are given between this period (winter/spring)? I heard that some students with great SAT scores, for example, can get a good amount of money trought scholarships that’s why i’m asking questios about this topic.
Btw, i think that is important to refer that i am an international student.
As an international student, please understand that the US can’t fully educate its own deserving students. Please do not think the streets here are paved with gold and that there are tons of $30k scholarships just waiting to be had.
Most scholarships of ANY significant value are awarded by the schools themselves to students after they are accepted at those schools. (As someone already said, things work a little differently for International)
@pedrofbandre what scholarships were you going to apply for?
I didn’t think about any specific scholarships because i am only going to apply by january 2018 (deadline). I was just wondering if that was a realistic possibility (talking about external scholarships to int’ls, not colleges scholarships).
No, I can’t confirm most or all scholarships are given between the time you apply to a school and when you are accepted. There are some awarded in the summer, there are some awarded in the fall before most students even apply. Most big scholarships are awarded by the school itself, so most are given before /at the same time as acceptance.
I really think you are imagining scenarios that aren’t likely to happen - big outside scholarship, getting accepted into a school that is need aware (I didn’t realize you were international). You just have to deal with the situation you are in and if you apply before you get the big outside scholarship, and the school turns you down because your need is too high, that’s just how it is. You could ask for reconsideration.