Scholarships and Financial Aid

If you are a senior who is looking for scholarships, there are multiple ways to search of financial opportunities. 

The first is to make sure your family fills out the FAFSA form on time when it is made available(before Dec. 31st) at https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa.  

Financial Aid Presentation 2023/2024 

You may also need to complete the CSS Profile, which is required by some private schools as well as some public (UVA included). This form is through Collegeboard and can be accessed here https://cssprofile.collegeboard.org/.   

All students can access Schoolinks https://app.schoolinks.com/login/k12 to look for scholarships and contests as well as Zoe Padron's weekly newsletter at https://zapadron.weebly.com/. 

Shelby Poole, WAHS' Scholarship Coordinator, sends out an email to seniors and their families once a month on timely local and regional scholarships so make sure you open all emails pertaining to scholarships. 

Colleges and universities also have their own in house scholarships that can really help move the needle. Students can go to the college's financial aid website to find out if there are separate applications or if the student is tapped for merit scholarships within the application process.  Research these opportunities early, as many times these application deadlines are earlier than the regular decision deadlines.

Finally, do not wait to start applying for scholarships.  The scholarship season is September through mid April and there are deadlines throughout.  If you miss a deadline, you will not be able to apply.