Possible Changes To Benacquisto and Florida Aid

Paying for College National Merit Aid
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81

We have to make a decision before listing the college for National Merit. Will we receive a letter from UF listing what Benacquisto will cover for an OOS and for how many years.
Have they done that in the past.

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From what I have read so far, UF does not offer any guarantee for the scholarship. With the latest legislation, there might be some risks. We may not have complete information before making a decision.

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83

They have never notified students of their award of the Benacquisto. Uf doesnā€™t award it. The state does. Basically you list your choice of number #1 and come fall it is there. Scary, I know.

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84

It does show up in the studentā€™s account in one form or another (at least, as an OOS fee waiver) as soon as it is communicated to UF by NMSC. You or you student may have to inquire about it to have it appear.

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Hi! I recently got accepted to the University of Florida! However, there was nothing regarding the Benaquisto scholarship in my admission letter, and I made a Gator ID, but there was nothing in my financial aid section yet either. I am a national merit finalist, and I also listed UF as my first choice school. When should I expect notification of it, if at all? Iā€™m out of state, and with Benaquisto, UF is my first choice. However, Iā€™m hesitant to commit to a school if I could potentially end up paying 30k a year in tuition fees to go there. Iā€™ve emailed financial aid, and they werenā€™t particularly helpful in finding out if I was still guaranteed the money. Please let me know. Thanks a million!

86

UF will not notify you about the Benacquisto because the scholarship does not come from the university - it comes from the state of Florida. If you select UF as your first choice with the NMSC, you will get the scholarship. However, please do your due diligence and read through this thread regarding potential changes to the Benacquisto.

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87

Alright, thanks!

88

UofF has never guaranteed funding if the Benacquisto is changed or discontinued. If you want to know your 4 year cost ahead of time (and our family does), I would take UofF off your list. With the pending legislation, I think changes will be made in the next few years (even if not this year). This legislation does give insight into what the changes will likely look like.

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89

hmm ill take that into account

90

Ikr, Iā€™m so stressed. My parents told me last-minute that they wonā€™t pay for any of my tuition and now UF is the only option I have (out of the schools I was admitted to). If I canā€™t get COA Iā€™ll be screwed.

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91

Which email address did you use to email financial aid? Their website says we can only call them and Iā€™d rather email.

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There are still schools you can apply to that give full ride NMF scholarships. Start researching so you can have a safety. UCF, UT-Dallas, etc

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93

Yikes, this is terrible news for me. My parents decided last-minute that they will not pay for any of my tuition. I really need a full ride and out of the colleges I applied to, only UF could give me one since Iā€™m an NMF. What should I do??

94

Did you apply anywhere else that gives a full ride for NMFs like U Alabama and UT Dallas?

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95

Apply to as many other Florida colleges you can right now. Perhaps one you get in to will guarantee Benacquisto even if state takes it away. From what I have heard, there is very little chance UF will do this.

In addition, if you havenā€™t done so already, make sure you list UNDECIDED on your national merit application. If UF offers you a NM scholarship then you cannot be offered one by another school. Keep it undecided until you know where you are going. (Just make sure you make your choice by the NM & school deadline, whichever is earlier).

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96

Unfortunately, I didnā€™t :slightly_frowning_face:

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Alright, I will apply to other Florida colleges.

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98

They are both (Alabama and UT Dallas) still accepting applications AFAIK. Itā€™s good to have a plan B, adding some more Florida publics is also a good idea, if they are still taking apps.

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99

But seriouslyā€¦so importantā€¦make sure your National Merit application is undecided. Because if you listed UF as your first choice and in the interim UF gives you a NM scholarship, you will not have the option of changing that to another school. It explicitly says this in the NM rules. So unless you are sure UF is the only NM school you would go to, make sure you do not list UF on your NM application and rather put undecided.

For instance, for me, I am considering 4 schools that give NM money:

  1. University of Floridaā€“Full ride
  2. University of Southern Californiaā€“1/2 tuition
  3. University of Chicagoā€“$2k
  4. Emory Universityā€“$2k

I am undecided on my NM application and will continue to be until I learn where I have been accepted and will only update my application once I have decided where I am going (and obviously will make this decision before the NM or schoolā€™s deadline, whichever is earlier).

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100

Apply also to Alabama and UTD.

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