Scholarship Guidelines

Forms to File

• The College of Communications Scholarship Application Form (required to be considered for a college scholarship). Available online beginning Jan, 1, 2010.
• FAFSA (Free Application for Federal and State Aid) is required for scholarships that stipulate financial need. In order to establish and document your financial need, you must complete this form in accordance with instructions from the Office of Student Aid. The form is available in 314 Shields Building, Office of Student Aid, or at http://www.psu.edu/studentaid/index.shtml. This financial statement should be filed as soon as possible after Jan. 1.
  

PLEASE SURE TO SUBMIT EACH FORM TO THE APPROPRIATE OFFICE ON OR BEFORE THE INDICATED DEADLINES.
Online applications for the College of Communications must be submitted by April 15, 2010.

Eligibility
Recipient selection is based on the pre-set criteria established for each scholarship. While on scholarship, students must continue to meet the eligibility requirements:

• Declare a major in the College of Communications at University Park
  
• Complete a full-time course load (12 or more credits per semester with a requirement of 30 credits per year)
• Maintain a respectful cumulative GPA
• Attend scholarship recognition events as requested
  

Conditions for Scholarships
Recipients are selected based on the pre-set criteria established for each scholarship. If you are selected for a scholarship you will be notified of the criteria you must meet in order to remain eligible for the scholarship. If you to fail to meet the criteria, your scholarship will be canceled.

Scholarship Descriptions
Details about each of the scholarship funds in the College of Communications.

Disbursement
After the start of classes in Fall 2010, scholarship monies will be awarded to your student account in the Office of the University Bursar and disbursed as stipulated by the scholarship guidelines. However, monies will not be released from your Bursar account until we receive a thank-you letter to your scholarship donor, per the instructions in your notification letter. All scholarships require a thank-you letter. If you have any questions concerning the disbursement of scholarship funds, please contact Janet Klinefelter, External Relations Office, College of Communications, 301 James Building, (123 South Burrowes Street), 814-863-6135, or jqk9@psu.edu.

Renewals
Most scholarships are not automatically renewable and a new application should be filed each year. You will be notified if you have been chosen to receive an automatically renewable scholarship.

Notification
Scholarship awarding is an ongoing process; however, the majority of the awarding is made prior to June 1 for the upcoming academic year. You will be notified by an email at your Penn State address. ONLY RECIPIENTS ARE NOTIFIED. If you do not receive a scholarship in the first round, your application will be kept on file for the academic year and will be reconsidered if additional funds become available.

Other Sources
You should also apply for federal and state grants and loans, University-wide scholarships and loans through the University’s Office of Student Aid. Information may be found at http://www.psu.edu/studentaid.