Hey CC, this is my first ever post. I’ve read the forum before as an outsider, but now I’ve got a question.
I will very likely be a NMF. I don’t know if I will be one of the “Scholars”, though. (To qualify for the Benacquisto scholarship, all I would need to do is indicate UF as my first choice).
I will also be aiming the 10k/year Presidential Scholarship. Also, Bright Futures awards will be easily attainable. (And I have Florida prepaid for all 4 years of undergraduate).
Here’s my question:
The Benacquisto Scholarship says it will cover the cost of attendance minus Bright Futures money and the $500 UF would give yearly for NMF. Is there a point of even applying for Bright Futures, then? If I don’t apply for Bright Futures, the “cost of attendance” would be higher since no BF to go towards the payment of attendance.
Furthermore, will the amount of Benacquisto Money I get decrease if I get the full Presidential 10k scholarship?
Thank you.
Side note. Yes I am trying to Milk this opportunity as much as I can. I want to get as much money as possible from a State school as I have a chance of getting HYPS. As a likely pre-med student or Chemistry student, I’d like to graduate undergrad debt free.
Everything is very unclear. Here is additional info from the State of FL website:
24. How much is the scholarship award amount?
The award amount is equivalent to the per term institutional cost of attendance (COA), provided by
the Florida Board of Governors, minus the sum of the Bright Futures (BF) award and National Merit
award® (NM).
The institution may adjust an award based on a student’s other qualifying awards in order to satisfy
federal or institutional regulations.
- What is included in the cost of attendance (COA)?
The COA is the total cost to attend college full-time per term and may include, but is not limited to,
tuition and fees, on-campus room and board, books, supplies, travel, and miscellaneous expenses.
Ok right now, I’m guessing the merit scholarship money wouldn’t count as it says the “institutional cost of attendance” which gives the connotation of initial sticker price.
but say COA is 20k.
Say i get 4k bright futures a year. + 500 from the NMF award
17.5k would be the COA covered by Benacquisto.
but if I don’t get bright futures,
wouldn’t benacquisto cover 19.5k so the cost would be the same to me?
Hi, if you search this forum, you’ll find a huge thread on the Benacquisto (FIS) scholarship. You should read it, the parents were very helpful.
You have to apply for BF.
The other (office of admissions) scholarships will not “stack” with the Benacquisto. Read that other thread for details, but at the end of the day, the most you can get is COA (which is pretty darn great…)
Some UF scholarships come with things other than $$, such as the summer enrichment program for Lombardi Scholars, those, I think, will stack with the Benacquisto (get Benacquisto COA $ + Lombardi summer enrichment program).
Good Luck!
EDIT: found the thread…
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-florida/1856483-fis-national-merit-finalists-latest-info-p1.html
http://www.floridastudentfinancialaid.org/SSFAD/factsheets/FIS_FAQ.pdf
Here it says that you do not need to have the FFAA filled out (BF application) to become a Benacquisto Scholarship.
So, to clarify, the merit scholarships would subtract from the cost of attendance, so I would get less Benacquisto money, ie won’t be able to make money off of going to UF?
Yeah it’s still pretty awesome, the Benacquisto.
You still make some $ off going to UF. COA includes not only tuition, room and board, but also transportation, clothing, PC/phone, and personal cost. If you’re fugual with your room and board cost, that’s even more money in your pocket.
http://www.sfa.ufl.edu/cost/
True. Thanks for being so helpful, I see you post alot in other discussions.
Still is there even a point in applying for Bright Futures if there is a 100% chance of me being a NMF (which there isn’t, but this is hypothetical).
Obviously I should still apply for BF in the case that I don’t make NMF
Apply to BF. You never know what’s going to happen with the Benacquisto scholarship or with BF. Cover all of your bases.
@Gator88NE Sorry to bug you. One last thing.
I know my family purchased the prepaid for 4 years of tuition and 2 years of dorm housing. Is the prepaid money applied first and the remaining costs covered by Benacquisto?
Or do we just automatically get refunded today’s value of the plan or how much we paid? Do we have to fill out any forms for a prepaid refund?
EDITED
Ok i found this:
What if the child receives a scholarship (e.g., Bright Futures)?
If your child receives a scholarship, you can get a refund for the same amount as the plan would pay a public college or university in Florida.
Final questions I have are:
Is the refund automatic or will we have to fill out a Scholarship Refund Form (if we do, what’s the difference between an unrestricted and restricted refund)?
Lastly, JUST to make sure, Florida Prepaid would not affect the Cost of Attendance?
The pre-paid $$$$ goes ===>>>> into your parents pockets $-) :-bd
You have a couple of different options with the $$$, after you get awarded the Benacquisto, have your parents contact Florida Pre-Paid for the details.
Think this came up last year. If you are National Merit Finalist kind of student, the state of Florida counts on you being a Bright Futures kind of student, including the volunteer hours requirement.
The Benacquisto amount is Cost of Attendance less Bright Futures and less any National Merit Award. http://www.floridastudentfinancialaid.org/SSFAD/factsheets/FIS.pdf ( see page 3) And the Benacquisto Scholarship does not cover summer school( required at UF) & maybe, just maybe, Bright Futures may soon be covering full tuition for summer. Why not fill out the easy form? Congratulations on being a Gator & a NMF!
FYI - from UF’s FAQ regarding scholarships:
"Can I “stack” scholarships offered by UF with my other financial aid awards or other scholarships I’ve been offered?
It depends. The type of award will determine whether your scholarship will “stack” or will adjust that particular award.
UF’s merit-based scholarships may impact how much in loans you are eligible for, but it will not change the amount of Pell grant you are eligible for.
UF’s Presidential scholarships will “stack” on top of Bright Futures and the Benacquisto Scholarship offered by the Florida Department of Education.
UF’s out-of-state scholarships cannot be stacked with another scholarship (offered by the School of Music, for example) since both scholarships waive the same portion of non-resident tuition."
It appears to me that the Presidential Scholarships are indeed in addition to the Benaquisto.
Thank you @18yrcollegemin
I also figured from their FAQ website that Florida prepaid can be applied first to tuition cost and the scholarships cover the rest and are put in your bank account if you have left over scholarship money.
That sounds great to me. Having to fill out a refund form for Prepaid every semester would be a pain especially as it is confusing (unrestricted vs restricteD) or cancelling the prepaid account…
I do wonder about the specialty scholarships like the Lombardi or Stamps, though.
What do you wonder about the Lombardi or Stanps? If they stack? They do.
^ Yep that. Thanks again for the help @madredos
SAT scores come out in 5 days !!
Do you find out about your Benacquisto Scholarship “acceptance” before you accept UF’s admission letter?