Focusing On The Student
We believe students should focus less time on searching for scholarships and more time on pursuing a major at a university that’s the best personal — and financial — fit for them.
Non-Community Foundation
Scholarship Resources
NEVER pay an agent to search scholarships for you. They don’t have any secret databases. Students should focus less on searching for scholarships and more on pursuing the right major at the right university at the right price point. Starting at the local state college while working is an excellent way to save money and gain work experience. The best source for scholarships is the university itself.
To help you find even more tuition support we have listed links for you to explore scholarships not managed by the Community Foundation.
- George Snow Scholarship Fund Open to PBC high school seniors with financial need. No minimum GPA or test score.
- GoingMerry A one-stop financial aid application platform. Students answer 12 questions and then apply directly to the federal aid, state aid, and private scholarships that GoMerry matches them to.
- Homeless Youth & Higher Education: Resources & Awareness for College Students in Need
- Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship $35,000 over 4 years for minority seniors with financial need and community service.
- Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarships Up to $55,000/yr. Need based, high achieving. Funds students from middle school through university, even transfers from community college to 4-year university.
- National Scholarship Search Tool Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, searches 8,000+ scholarships.
- Navigating College – Resource Guide for Homeless & Low-Income Students
- Resource Guide: Scholarships for People of Color – Resources and Requirements
- Scholarships available through the State of Florida: Many scholarships are available through the state beyond Bright Futures.
- Tuition Funding Sources Sponsored by Wells Fargo, this site provides access to over 7 million scholarships.
Understand the requirements for the Florida Bright Futures scholarship.
The Medallion Scholars grant pays 75% of tuition and fees and requires a 25 ACT or 1210 SAT, 75 hours of community service or work (not combined; one or the other), and a GPA of 3.0. The Academic Scholars pays 100% of tuition and fees and requires a 29 ACT or 1330 SAT, 100 hours of community service or work (not combined; one or the other), and a GPA of 3.5. The courses that count toward the GPA are 4 years of English, 4 years of Math, 3 years of Natural Science, 3 years of Social Science and 2 sequential years of the same World Language.
Check your prospective major here to see what percentage of graduates in that major are underemployed (working in a job that does not require a degree like a barista) or unemployed. Check here to see what jobs most graduates in a field are actually doing. 20% of college graduates aged 25-34 earn as much or even less than a high school graduate, even before considering student loan debt. Don’t let that be you!
Choose your major wisely for greatest return on investment.
Input your prospective career here: https://www.zippia.com/ and https://www.indeed.com/ to see what preparation is desirable and the kinds of jobs available. In many fields, a small percentage are employed full-time and mostly as waiters and retail clerks, which is not what you are going to university to do.
Input your prospective career into ZIPPIA and Indeed to see what preparation is desirable and the kinds of jobs available.
Job Search Intelligence is a website with an abundance of excellent information.
Check the University of Florida student outcomes here just to see the average salary of a UF graduate in that major.
For planning purposes, Edmit and TuitionFit can give you an idea of how much you will wind up paying in different universities.
Are you borrowing money? How a student loan can balloon to far more than you expected: Student loans 101: What you need to know
Student Loan Calculator: Know how much your payments will be.
You cannot over-prepare for the SAT/ACT. Use Palm Beach County Library’s free and excellent site http://www.pbclibrary.org/research to practice the tests and get tips for improving. Scroll to Education. Choose Learning Express. Input your library card number or get one immediately (it’s free!) and type the name of the test (ACT or SAT). Practice, practice, practice! It may lead to a great deal of merit aid.
Input your library card number or get one immediately (it’s free!) and type the name of the test (ACT or SAT). Practice, practice, practice! It may lead to a great deal of merit aid.
The Wall Street Journal published a superb guide to college costs and loans (and much more) available online.
