Most financial aid professionals and guidance counselors recommend students use FastWeb when searching for outside scholarships online. This website is free for students and does a nationwide search for scholarships. Libraries, a parent’s employer, and community organizations are other good places to inquire. We also recommend sending inquiry letters to companies asking for information on available scholarships.
All legitimate scholarship searches should be free and should not ask for any credit card or bank information. If you are unsure of the legitimacy of a scholarship offer or search, please do not hesitate to contact Student Enrollment and Financial Services or the Better Business Bureau.
The following is a list of reputable scholarship search engines our students have found helpful.
The list below provides additional opportunities for scholarships. Keep in mind that February-May is when most outside scholarship applications are due. Scholarships are then usually awarded in May-June. All of the following scholarships have different criteria, applications, and application dates. Follow the links for more information about the scholarships and how to apply.
These offerings are not affiliated with John Carroll University. As with all outside scholarship searches, it is important for students to review them carefully and adhere to deadlines.
Earl F. Morris Endowed Scholarship Program
The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges
Kroger Always Game Changers Scholarship
Nordson BUILDS Scholarship Program
The Cleveland Foundation Scholarship Search
F. Edward Hébert Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship Program
The Purple Heart Foundation Annual Scholarship
If a student receives an outside scholarship, it must be reported to the Student Enrollment and Financial Services (SEFS) office as a resource. Depending on the student’s financial aid situation, additional scholarships could cause a reduction in other types of assistance.
Outside scholarships and the research you do to gain additional support for your college education should be rewarded. Overall, you should not be penalized for the research that you do. While you are required to report any outside scholarships to the school’s Student Enrollment and Financial Services office, our policies are structured to provide the most benefit to the student.
Every college and university has an outside scholarship policy that specifies what happens to your need-based financial aid package when you receive a merit scholarship. An outside scholarship is any scholarship not awarded by the government or the school, such as a scholarship provided by a private sector company, philanthropist, or foundation. Outside scholarships are considered resources, meaning that they have the potential to reduce your financial aid package. Often we may not have a choice in the matter. Federal rules concerning “over award situations” require the school to reduce the financial aid package when the sum of financial aid from all sources exceeds our total cost of education by more than $300.
Our policy is to apply the outside scholarship to unmet need, and then reduce self-help (loans and work-study) before touching institutional grants. This lets you replace your loans, which must be repaid, with the outside scholarship.