Welcome to the QCC Library guide to financial aid and scholarships!
Above are tabs with many resources to help you fund your college education. The first tab contains information about our Financial Aid Office, which should be your go-to source for accessing financial aid. There you will find information on completing the Free Application for Student Aid, or FAFSA, and some very important deadlines that you will not want to miss, so visit their website frequently.
Other tabs link to numerous sources for scholarships, other types of aid, and multimedia resources.
Financial aid is monetary help to meet the costs of higher education. Assistance can come from federal, state, or private sources in the forms of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study. Aid can be need-based or merit-based.
Scholarships and grants are gifts that do not need to be repaid, but you must maintain high academic achievement to continue to receive them.
Loans must be paid back, usually beginning about six months after graduation.
College can be expensive, and it's worthwhile to seek out forms of outside funding to help pay for this important path to your future.
Federal aid is available for anyone with a household income below $250,000 a year. Filling out an application for FAFSA (Free Application for Student Aid) can result in a good deal for students. Federal grants do not need to be repaid, federal student loans have low interest rates and work-study programs help fund your education and also give you important work experience.
New York State also offers grants to income-eligible students through its Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). A link on your online FAFSA application directs you to the Higher Education Services Corporation website where you can fill out your TAP application.
As you will discover in this guide, numerous other sources fof financial aid, including private scholarships and grants, are also available. Aid providers are looking to award these resources to a wide variety of students, so, take a look at some of them here and see if you might qualify.
You're likely to be surprised, and you'll never know unless you apply. Community college students don't apply for scholarships at the same rate as four-year college students, and that is something that should change. There are so many sources of funding available, aimed at many different types of students, that obtaining a scholarship can be achievable.
Make sure that your financial aid sources are reputable by using those shown here or through our Financial Aid Office. Stick to free scholarship and grant websites and avoid those that request a fee; some are scams and phishing sites. For more information,look here:
