College Need Scholarships

The financial need scholarship—sometimes referred to simply as a “need scholarship”—has become a staple of American higher education. And the need scholarship is exactly what its name implies—it fills a need and in some ways has become the crutch in getting a modern college education.

There was a time when if you couldn’t afford to go to college, you simply didn’t go. Or you worked and saved up money and went when you could afford it. Maybe you even worked full-time and went to college at night or part-time during the day.

This still happens, of course, but now when you have that financial itch, somebody—usually the government—is there to scratch it for you.

The main way to get that need scholarship today is by filling out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). If you and your family earn less than $40,000, you usually qualify for at least a Pell Grant, which can be worth up to $5,800. This number will decrease as the government has cut many federal programs offering education aid by about 15 percent.

There may be other need scholarships available through FAFSA as well. When you receive your FAFSA results, you will be informed of your EFC (expected family contribution). There are generally need scholarships available to fill in some of the gaps in your education funding.

It is estimated that nearly half a million qualified high school students don’t go to college every year because they can’t afford it. Many organizations are doing their part to ensure that anybody who wants to go to college will be able to.

One of these organizations is the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). For over 60 years, the UNCF has been providing need scholarships for African-Americans.

With a few rare exceptions, just about every scholarship you can find will be a need scholarship. If you want to go to college, there will be a need scholarship for you somewhere.

Many need scholarships are provided directly through the college or university you will be attending. A visit with the financial aid office at the university can provide invaluable guidance.

The need scholarship has helped America to get the very best out of so many of its citizens. Without it, the United States would most certainly be a diminished place.

At least that is one side of the argument. The other side is that a college campus is the last place impressionable youth should be today because of the lack of intellectual diversity.

The need scholarship, while playing an important and pivotal role in higher education, has also wasted a lot of taxpayers’ money on students who drop out of college at a much higher rate. Need has been defined down as to be so all-inclusive that it has, in many ways, lost its meaning entirely.

Despite need scholarship cuts, there is still plenty of money available for college for those who truly need it. Fill out your financial aid paperwork early to give yourself the best chance to qualify.