The Saginaw Community Foundation administers a variety of scholarship programs for post-secondary education students (community college, university, nontraditional and vocational students). Here are five things you need to know about our application process. Applications for 2017 scholarships are due on Feb. 15, 2017. 

1. One application. Hundreds of opportunities.

Through our single online application, you will be considered for all scholarships in which you meet the eligibility requirements. The application instructions will help you get started on your application.

2. You don’t need to be the “perfect” student

Every scholarship has different required qualifications and the evaluation criterion varies. GPA is only a factor for some of the scholarships. SCF also has scholarships for nontraditional and vocational students, as well as high school seniors, undergraduate and graduate students.

3. Financial need isn’t a factor for all scholarships

Not all of the scholarships consider financial need when evaluating the applicants. Additionally, scholarships give a varying degree of weight to financial need. For example, financial need is 50% of the total score for some scholarships, but only 5% of the total score for others. Sometimes, financial aid is only a small percentage of the evaluation criteria and score.

4. The evaluation process is extremely fair

Community volunteers of all ages and backgrounds review a packet of applications from students they do not know. These volunteers score the students in 10 different areas – such as leadership, volunteer service, extracurricular activities and essays – according to the provided guidelines. To assure fairness, every student is reviewed by five different volunteers and their score is averaged. These scores determine the student that will be awarded each scholarship.

5. There are scholarships for non-Saginaw residents

Some scholarships are regional, meaning you can be from Bay City, Midland or another city or county. Visit our Additional Scholarship Opportunities page for a listing of scholarships available from other area, state and national resources.

You can view each scholarship available at the foundation in the scholarship directory. Before you get started, be sure to read these important instructions.