College Financial Aid & Scholarships

Financial aid is usually awarded in a "package," which can consist of one or all of the following components: a scholarship or grant (usually directly from the university) which does not need to be repaid, a loan (usually from the federal government), and an on-campus job. Distribution is based on financial need.

Most financial assistance is administered through the financial aid office of individual colleges. Therefore, care should be taken to make application for financial aid at each of the colleges to which the student applies. In most instances this will require that the family file some combination of the following three forms:

1) Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA): The Federal government will process this form free of charge. Almost every college or university requires this form. It asks families to supply information about their income and assets and is most easily filled out using a completed tax return (questions will refer to specific lines of the 1040 or 1040A). The FAFSA will be available in early January of the senior year and may be filed electronically at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.

  2) College Board’s PROFILE form: Most private colleges and universities require more information than the FAFSA can provide. Therefore, many of these schools will ask the financial aid applicant to complete the PROFILE. The PROFILE application consists of two parts: an initial registration form available in the College Counseling Office (or online at http://www.collegeboard.com), which should be completed in the fall of the senior year, as soon as the student’s list of colleges to which he or she will apply is finalized. The College Board will process the initial PROFILE registration form and will return to the family forms that have been customized to gather the information required by each of the schools listed on the initial form. Since the College Board is gathering this information on behalf of the participating schools, there is a processing fee of $18.00 per college listed, plus a one-time $5.00 service charge.

3) Institutional Forms: because some colleges objected to the high fees associated with the PROFILE form, they chose to request additional information using a form that they developed in-house. Be aware, however, that a few colleges require the FAFSA, the PROFILE, and their own institutional form! Because colleges often differ in their requirements to receive financial aid, students should contact the financial aid office at the schools they wish to attend to determine which forms are necessary and to request that these forms be forwarded to them.

• Tennessee SCHOLAR DOLLARS:

In addition to money distributed by the Federal government or individual colleges and universities, the Tennessee Student Assistant Corporation (TSAC) awards additional funds based on merit and/or financial need. The following is a brief description of the two major awards. Please visit the TSAC website for complete information.

Tennessee HOPE Scholarship:
• Award amount is $3,000 for 4-year institutions, $1,500 for 2-year institutions (no more than cost of attendance)
• Entering freshmen (High School Class of 2005) must have at least a 21 ACT (980 SAT) OR a 3.00 unweighted GPA, which includes all courses on the transcript.

General Assembly Merit Scholarship:
• Award amount is $1,000 supplement to Tennessee HOPE Scholarship
• Entering freshmen must have at least a 3.75 weighted GPA and 29 ACT (1280 SAT)
• TSAC will calculate this weighted GPA by giving a 1/2 point for honors and a full point for AP courses. This is a different weighted scale from the Briarcrest "weighted GPA" calculation.

• College Board Online: http://www.collegeboard.com Best authority on CSS Profile and the SAT…excellent/useful EXPAN database with ability to search for colleges based on up to 6 criteria…monthly calendar for students and parents…getting the most of your high school experience…list of loan sources with descriptions…financial aid calculators for students and parents…over 300 applications available online…testing information…essay critiquing services…lists of available publications

• National Merit Scholarship Corporation:http://www.nationalmerit.org/ The scholarship program for students who qualify through the PSAT test . . . enter the competion . . . report test scores

• FastWeb: http://www.fastweb.com Excellent private scholarship/grant search vehicle…students must create user ID and profile…request scholarship applications electronically

• FAFSA: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov Submit the FAFSA via the web…avoids complications with the mail, filling out forms incorrectly

• Finaid.org: http://www.finaid.org The “ultimate” guide to financial aid resources…links to any and all financial aid sites…easily navigated and sorted into list of financial aid topics

• Nellie Mae: http://www.nelliemae.org Nonprofit provider of education loans…good information on the differences between private and federal loans…selecting the right loan for educational needs

• ROTC: good source of information regarding ROTC scholarships, as self-described by each branch of the military

• Sallie Mae: http://www.salliemae.com Financial aid calculators…how to find, compare and manage loans…information on loans as part of financial aid packages…frequently asked questions

• U.S. Department of Education:http://www.studentaid.ed.gov Good overview of available federal financial aid.