Scholarships are gifts you do not have to pay them back. Scholarships can be based on need or merit or both. You may receive scholarships from colleges, organizations, or foundations. Different scholarships are available for different types of students. Scholarships may be based on your grades, what you want to study in college, whether you are male or female, or your after-school activities.

Click here for more information on CPS Strategic Scholarships

Grants are available from the government and from colleges. By submitting the FAFSA, you will be given eligibility consideration for all federal and state grants. Many grants are based on your financial need. Grants are considered gift aid and they do not need to be repaid. Some examples of grants are:

• Federal Pell Grant
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant
• Illinois Monetary Award Program (MAP) Grant
• Grants from colleges

Loans have to be repaid; even if you don’t finish school! Student loans, unlike grants and work-study, are borrowed money that must be repaid, with interest, just like a car loan. You cannot cancel this loan because you didn’t like the education you received, quit in the middle, or didn’t get a good job after school. There are several types of loans that are available:

• Federal Perkins Loans
• Stafford Loans
• PLUS Loans
• Consolidation Loans
• Private Loans

The FAFSA helps the U.S. Department of Education determine the amount you and your family are expected to contribute to your college expenses, and colleges determine how much aid you qualify for and what they can award you. Completing the FAFSA is just step one of the financial aid process.

Completing the FAFSA is a CPS graduation requirement.

An online application for nonfederal student financial aid.

Used by nearly 400 colleges, universities, professional schools, and scholarship programs to award more than $9 billion in grants.

Check the College Board’s website for a list of schools and institutions that require the CSS Profile application.

Available on October 1 each year.

Award letters are not standardized and can be confusing! Please ask for help from your counselor if you are unsure about what you might owe. You can also use this AWESOME on-line comparison tool from ISCA.

Thanks to the Obama Administration, EVERY college is required to have a NET PRICE Calculator on their website. This can be used to guesstimate the actual cost of a certain college.

You can search for the colleges on your list HERE. This can help with initial college cost planning.

• Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC)
• FAFSA Website
• CSS Profile Information
• Government Net Price Calculator
• CPS Academic Works Scholarship Search