Some scholarships will be handed to you. Local examples:
- LCSC offers an automatic $2500 to Idaho students with a 3.75 GPA, and $1500 for a 3.25 GPA.
- NSA offers an automatic $1000 scholarship for grads of an ACCS school.
- UI offers an automatic $4000 scholarship for Idaho students with a 3.9 GPA, $3000 for a 3.75 GPA, $2000 for a 3.4 GPA, and $1000 for a 3.0 GPA.
- If you declare a certain major, some departments may simply give you a scholarship.
But many scholarships require some initiative on your part. You must find them and apply. Often, the application requires an essay, or written references. It’s a bit of a hassle! But, if you spend 10 hours filling out 10 applications, and you get 1 or 2 of those scholarships, the return on your investment is immense. Logos receives mailings on scholarships that are often quite specific. There are scholarships for young entrepreneurs, dancers, and students who do volunteer work. There’s no easy way to post all of these offerings, but if I know you are interested in something specific, I will pass it along to you. Or, come in and browse! If there are scholarships that seem to be general interest, I’ll send them along to everyone.
Idaho State Board of Education Scholarships
Here is one of interest: The State of Idaho awards scholarships every year to Logos students. These are for any state school in Idaho. The application opens up Oct 1st. See https://boardofed.idaho.gov/scholarships/ (for further info, here is a short video that walks through the steps to complete https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9mBjb-uDic). There are numerous options; two specific ones to look at are:
- Idaho Governor’s Cup Scholarship. Deadline February 15. Requires 2.8 GPA and strong public service/volunteerism experience.
- Opportunity Scholarship. Deadline is March 1. GPA must be at least a 2.7, with demonstrated financial need.
Military: If you are interested in the armed forces, they have many options for paying for college. ROTC and the Reserves are options while you go to college, and active duty has educational benefits afterward under the GI bill. I have promotional material in my office if you are interested.
Athletics: if you have an interest in college athletics at any level, you should discuss with Mr. Lopez and Mr. Euhus. There are many detailed forms and requirements to ensure your eligibility.
Need-Based Financial Aid:
Merit-based scholarships are based on your abilities and accomplishments: test scores, GPA, recommendations, etc. Need-based scholarships are based upon you and your family’s actual tax returns and other financial data. If you don’t submit your financial information, you will be eligible for only merit-based scholarships. Know the filing priority date for your college. There are two common ways financial need is assessed:
- The FAFSA (“Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is one indicator of financial need. The federal government uses it to decide on federal grants and loans, but other non-Federal entities use it for an appraisal of financial need. For example, the FAFSA is used by some Christian schools, private scholarships, state scholarships, departmental scholarships, and work-study programs (which are prioritized by financial need). Applications are available from www.fafsa.ed.gov and can be filled out after October 1st (it’s open now). The FAFSA deadline is June 30th, but do not be deceived: colleges require it MUCH earlier for their purposes. For example, the UI requires it to be submitted by Feb 15th.
- CSS Profile: Another means of assessing financial need is the College Board’s CSS Profile. About 400 colleges use it, generally private and elite colleges. New Saint Andrews uses it. The CSS Profile is more detailed than the FAFSA. https://cssprofile.collegeboard.org/
Depending on parental finances, both the CSS Profile and FAFSA can be complex (for example, if the parents own a business), so don’t wait to begin this process.