What are the eligibility and renewal criteria for my scholarships?
For scholarship awardsmade by the Student Financial Aid Office, Admissions Office, and Honors College the renewal and eligibility criteria are available on your FlashLine account. Please follow the directions below to review the details.For scholarships awarded by Colleges and other departments, please contact the appropriate office for more information.
- Login to your FlashLine Account atwww.kent.edu
- Select Student
- Under Finances, choose Financial Aid
- Select Financial Aid Awards
- Select Aid for Award Year
- Choose the current Award Year from the drop-down menu and click the Submit button
- Click on the Award Overview tab
- Click on the name of each scholarship and carefully read the Eligibility and Renewal Criteria for that award
Do I have to submit a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) to be considered for scholarships?
Newly admitted students do not have submit a FAFSA to be considered for the Academic Achievement Award, President’s Achievement Award, Oscar Ritchie Memorial Scholarship, Founders Scholarship, Honors Distinction Award, or incoming transfer student scholarships.These scholarships are strictly merit based.
If a scholarship program indicates that “demonstrating financial need” is required, then the student must have a FAFSA on file for the academic year to be considered for that award. The FAFSA allows the Student Financial Aid Office to determine whether the student is demonstrating financial need.
How do I accept my scholarships?
View step-by-step instructions on how to accept your Kent State scholarships.
Accepting a scholarship does not commit you to attending Kent State University, but we ask that you only accept your scholarship if you are planning to attend. Accepting a scholarship will not eliminate you from consideration for additional scholarship awards.
How will I receive my scholarship award?
All Kent State University scholarships (except for a limited number of scholarships awarded specifically for research or conference travel) will be applied to your student account for the semester. Scholarships will show as credit on your student account, but the actual funds will not be released any sooner than 10 days before your classes start. You cannot receive the scholarship funds early. If you owe a balance for any reason on your student account, your scholarship will be applied to that outstanding balance. If you do not owe a balance for that semester, the scholarship will be issued to you as a financial aid refund for that semester.
Will my other financial aid be revised if I receive a scholarship?
The addition of a scholarship, from any source, could result in the revision of your other financial aid awards. The most common revision is a reduction in a Federal Parent PLUS Loan, a private alternation loan, or the reduction/cancellation of student’s federal Direct Loans. This typically happens only when the student is receiving a very large amount of financial aid that already equals their Cost of Attendance budget. Based on a student’s FAFSA results, the student’s Federal Direct Subsidized Loan may have to be reduced or cancelled. Whenever possible, that funding is replaced with a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan.
Scholarship awards that can only to be applied to certain expenses, such as tuition, may have to be reduced if the student’s total scholarships exceed that expense.
If I did not meet the renewal criteria in order to receive my scholarships next year, is there anything I can do?
Students who did not meet their scholarship renewalcriteria for the awards listed below canrequest an appeal if they have extenuating circ*mstances.
- Academic AchievementAward
- President's Achievement Award
- Oscar Richie Memorial Scholarship
- Trustee Scholarship
- Founders Scholarship
- University Award
- President's Scholarship
- President's Award
- Academic Transfer Award
- President's Transfer Award
- Transfer2Kent Scholarship
- Flash Transfer Northeast OhioScholarship
Extenuating circ*mstances include illness, death in family, family crisis, etc. The appeal must includesupporting documentation. Students cannot request a scholarship appeal form until after they have been notified that the scholarship was cancelled for the upcoming year or semester.
Can I request an extra semester of my scholarship because I will be here for a 9th semester?
Yes, but you must submit a Scholarship Appeal Form to request the additional semester.
I am graduating early – can I double up on my scholarship in my last semester?
No, your Kent State scholarship cannot be increased from the original offer amount per semester. For example, an $1,000 annual scholarship will be awarded $500 per semester. You cannot receive all $1,000 in one semester.
Can I receive my scholarship if I register for regional campus courses?
You will not be eligible for your Kent Campus scholarship if you register for regional campus courses unless you are also enrolled for a minimum of 12 credit hours in Kent Campus designated courses that same semester.
I only need 2 courses this semester to graduate and I have one semester of scholarship eligibility remaining. Am I eligible for my Kent Campus scholarship?
You may appeal to use your scholarship, for less than full-time enrollment, if it is your last semester of enrollment prior to graduation. View scholarship appeal forms. Please note, your scholarship may be prorated if you are not enrolled full-time.
FAQs
Scholarships do not increase the total amount of your need-based financial aid. In most cases, we allow outside scholarships to reduce the amounts of student loans or Federal Work-Study in your financial aid package. We make every attempt to preserve any university need-based grant you may have been awarded.
How does FAFSA and scholarships work? ›
Before each year of college, apply for federal grants, work-study, and loans with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form. Your college uses your FAFSA data to determine your federal aid eligibility. Many states and colleges use FAFSA data to award their own aid.
Do scholarships count as income on FAFSA? ›
Most students leave this question blank because most scholarships and grants are not taxable, unless those award amounts exceed the total amount the student paid for tuition, fees, books, supplies, and required equipment. Typically, this isn't the same amount as the adjusted gross income (IRS Form 1040, line 11).
How much scholarship can you get from FAFSA? ›
The amount of money you can get by filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) depends on your financial need. But, the maximum amount can be in the low tens of thousands of dollars per year. Average amounts are about $9,000, with less than half of that in the form of grants.
Can you get financial aid and a scholarship at the same time? ›
Can you get a scholarship and financial aid at the same time? Yes, since scholarships are just another form of financial aid, you can receive one (or several) alongside other types of aid like work-study, grants, and student loans.
What happens if you have more scholarships than tuition? ›
What happens to leftover scholarship money. If you earned scholarships and grants that add up to more than your total cost of attendance, your school may send you a refund of the leftover scholarship money. Keep in mind, you may have to pay taxes on that amount.
Do I need to fill out FAFSA if I have a full scholarship? ›
The short answer is yes, you can earn scholarships without the FAFSA. However, this is not the recommended option. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) opens doors to several other types of financial aid aside from scholarships. Not filing the FAFSA may limit your scholarship opportunities.
How many years does FAFSA cover? ›
For details, contact your school's financial aid office. Please note that you can receive the Federal Pell Grant for no more than 12 terms full-time terms or the equivalent (roughly six years). You'll receive a notice if you're getting close to your limit.
What determines how much money FAFSA gives you? ›
The financial aid office at the college or career school you will attend will determine how much financial aid you're eligible to receive. Your eligibility depends on your Expected Family Contribution, year in school, enrollment status, and the cost of attendance at the school you'll be attending.
Does the FAFSA check your bank accounts? ›
Students selected for verification of their FAFSA form may wonder, “Does FAFSA check your bank accounts?” FAFSA does not directly view the student's or parent's bank accounts.
Generally, you report any portion of a scholarship, a fellowship grant, or other grant that you must include in gross income as follows: If filing Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR, include the taxable portion in the total amount reported on Line 1a of your tax return.
Do scholarship refunds count as income? ›
Some scholarship funds are subject to taxation. If you have scholarship money left over after covering your qualified education expenses, you'll need to include that amount as part of your gross taxable income.
What is the highest income to qualify for financial aid? ›
There is no set income limit for eligibility to qualify for financial aid through. You'll need to fill out the FAFSA every year to see what you qualify for at your college. It's important to make sure you fill out the FAFSA as quickly as possible once it opens for the following school year.
Does FAFSA cover 100% of tuition? ›
The financial aid will be based on financial need, which is usually less than the cost of attendance. A full need student, who has a zero SAI, might qualify for enough financial aid to cover the full cost of attendance. However, most full need students will be left with a gap of unmet need.
What is parents income for FAFSA? ›
The FAFSA requires information about the income of any parent living in your household while you're applying to determine the amount of money you'll receive as student aid. What counts as income earned from work on FAFSA is any compensation your parents receive for work that's reported on their taxes.
How will this scholarship impact you financially? ›
If you're looking to attend a prestigious university, a scholarship can give you the financial means. Additionally, a scholarship can help you cover the cost of living expenses while you're in school. It can include things like rent, food, and books. A scholarship can also help you graduate from college debt-free.
What happens when you receive a scholarship? ›
Students might receive the money directly as a check in their name. In other cases, the money is given to the student's school. When that happens, the student would pay the school for the difference in any money owed for tuition, fees, room, and board.
What can affect your financial aid? ›
Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
Your family's taxed and untaxed income, assets, and benefits (such as unemployment or Social Security) all could be considered in the formula. Also considered are your family size and the number of family members who will attend college or career school during the year.
How do scholarships determine financial need? ›
Financial need is the difference between the cost of attendance (COA) at a school and your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). While COA varies from school to school, your EFC does not change based on the school you attend.
