How do Outside Scholarships work?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>Hi, so in my FA package, my EFC was $4500, work study was $2500, and Federal sub+unsub loans equaled to $5500. The rest were from cal grant, pell grant, unviersity grant, etc. I was curious on how outside scholarships worked. The FA counselors all told me something different, so I thought to post here and get some straightforward answers from experienced students.</p>

<p>I have about $3100 in scholarship money right now, which will all be sent directly to USC in the fall. On the FA website, it says that outside scholarships will not affect your EFC, but one FA counselor told me that the EFC will be cut first. Another told me that my work study will be cut first. So my question is, what will my outside scholarship money cut first? What is the order that usually cuts w/ outside scholarships?</p>

2

<p>to my knowledge:</p>

<p>university grant, work study, loans in that order</p>

<p>however if you have extenuating financial circumstances you can try appealing so that they just reduce your loans (make sure they reduce/remove the unsubsidized before the subsidized). my freshman year i had a $1500 scholarship and after appealing they took it off of my unsubsidized loans.</p>

3

<p>Outside scholarships are not applied to your expected contribution unless they have completely replaced all of your need-based aid first.</p>

<p>In general, outside scholarships can be used to replace all or part of your self-help portion of your package which conists of your subsidized loans and Federal work/study. Outside scholarships cannot be used to replace unsubsidized loans.</p>

<p>When the outside scholarships are applied, USC will generally automatically replace Federal work/study. This is because each college or university has a limited amount of work/study to distribute and they try to spread it around. If you prefer to have your subsidized loans replaced first (and I recommend keeping w/s and reducing debt if possible), be sure that requrest goes in before your scholarship funds arrive at USC. You can make the request after they have been applied to work/study, and it will often be honored, but then there is a delay while the changes are made.</p>

<p>In some cases USC will replace part of your need-based grant with outside scholarships. This happens when there is an overaward - that is, USC has considered your individual circumstances and awarded more need-based aid than the numbers would dictate. If this happens I suggest sending a letter to financial aid thanking them for their generosity and asking if there is any way at least part of the outside scholarships can be applied to loans or work/study. They may consider it. </p>

<p>It is always best to discuss how your outside scholarships will be applied BEFORE you commit to a school. In order to encourage you to attend they may be more willing to be flexible. Mentioning, in an earnest way, how much work you put into the scholarship applications might be appropriate.</p>

<p>For scholarships that are awarded after the commitment deadline this isn’t possible, of course. If you have already committed and receive a scholarship notification, FAX it to USC financial aid with a cover sheet (include USC ID#) politely asking them to apply it to your subsidized loans. </p>

<p>Remember, you must also report to USC any outside scholarships that are paid directly to you. Often students are reluctant to do this because they know it will impact their need-based aid. PLEASE try to remember that you may be endagering tens of thousands in need-based aid to hold on to that $500 - it isn’t worth it. </p>

<p>There have been some threads about the cost of orientation - USC may allow you to apply an outside scholarship paid directly to you to be used for that - IF you arrange it with them in advance. You also could request to keep it for a college computer purchase.</p>

<p>You will find USC financial aid to be very flexible if you are straightforward with them. If after all of your requests they still decide to reduce your grant, please try to remember that means you probably got an incredible aid package already.</p>

<p>More info here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/839970-faq-usc-financial-aid-2010-a.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-southern-california/839970-faq-usc-financial-aid-2010-a.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Congratulations of the outside scholarships!</p>

4

<p>Thanks for all the help. Well today I was awarded another $3000 from the Walmart scholarship, and was wondering how this will all affect everything. So now I have a total of $6100 that will be sent directly to the school this fall. </p>

<p>My unsub loans : $2000
sub loans: $2500
work study: $2500
university grant: $26,000
and a few more grants like the cal and pell that add up to $51,228, leaving my EFC to be $4500.</p>

<p>So, probably my work study will be cut first. 6100-2500 = $3600
then it will be my sub loans, so 3600-2500 = $1100
I will have $1100 left. Will that then go to my EFC of $4500?</p>

5

<p>

No, outside scholarships will not reduce your EFC unless ALL of your need-based aid has been replaced, including USC grants, Pell, Cal Grant, etc. After your work/study and subsidized loans have been replaced, they would then reduce your USC grant with the remaining $1,100.</p>

<p>I suggest you ask for a Cost of Attendance increase to cover a one-time purchase of a computer to use for college. The Cost of Attendance adjustment will not change your aid (other than increasing your loan eligibility), but it will create a “gap” in your need-based aid. A “gap” can sometimes be covered by an outside scholarship.</p>

<p>A Cost of Attendance adjustment for computer purchase can only be done one time in your undergraduate years.</p>

<p>Write up a letter to USC financial aid listing your outside scholarships, work/study and subs loans and the remaining outside scholarships just as you have done here. Then ask if you can have a Cost of Attendance increase of $1,100 so you can use the remaining outside scholarship for a computer.</p>

<p>I do not know if they will honor your request, but it certainly can’t hurt to try. Even if they don’t you are in great shape with your aid package and having the w/s and subs loans replaced. Good luck, and congrats on the scholarships!</p>

6

<p>Thanks! I will try that. Wow, that really sucks though, that the outside scholarships cannot affect the EFC at ALL… I should stop applying to scholarships now since then they wont help anymore anyway. Is USC the only one that does this? One would think the scholarships you won after all the hard work should go the way you choose it to be… that is a bummer.</p>

7

<p>i hope you realize that USC taking the money away from your loans is much better than decreasing your EFC in the long run, unless your EFC is completely prohibitive.</p>

8

<p>

No, this is standard at all colleges and universites due to federal and state regulations. If schools do not replace need-based funds first, their students would not be eligible for any state or federal aid such as Pell, Cal Grant, Stafford loand, Perkins loans, etc. USC is one of the more generous schools in terms of outside scholarships - some reduce university grant first (or do not award university grants).</p>

<p>If you do apply for or win more scholarships, it is also worth a try to ask the scholarship sponsore if they can defer the award one or more years - most of thgese outside scholarships are 1-year only, and if the sponsore will award it next year it could cover those loans or work/study.</p>

9

<p>^ Oh, gee whiz. Too late to edit. I was running out the door… Didn’t proof-read… I really DO know how to spell “sponsor…”</p>

<p>Sorry!</p>

10

<p>This thread was really helpful. I was just wondering, Alamemom, why can’t scholarships be used to cover unsubsidized loans?</p>

11

<p>I have some differing information, so I would suggest you check, and maybe more than once, with the Financial aid Office…</p>

<p>After my daughter was accepted as a freshman and received her Financial Aid Letter, I called the FAO and asked how any of her outside scholarships would be applied. I was told they would first go to reduce the University Grant until it was eliminated, then be applied to reduce her loans and work study. This didn’t seem right to me, but the rep was sure of herself.</p>

<p>I decided I would re-ask my question in person of the Financial Aid Director at out local Reception for Admitted Students once all the presentations were completed (to keep the conversation private).</p>

<p>His response was that how the awards get applied basically depends on individual student factors. He asked some specific information. I then also said what I had been told and that the information puzzled me. He said the size of the University Grant can factor, as well, but he would email me after looking into the matter - and noted that the FA reps are required to make notes in the student files for every phone call.</p>

<p>He responded very promptly saying I had been given mistaken information. In my daughter’s case, any outside scholarships would be first applied to replace UNsubsidized Stafford, then Perkins, then Subsidized, then Work Study, then University Grants if there was enough of them to do so. This was better news.</p>

<p>Subsequently, I talked to FA on another matter and mentioned my understanding of how her outside scholarships would be applied. I asked the rep to double check if that information was there, and yes, it was.</p>