The Importance of a Statement of Financial Need in Scholarships

Introduction

Scholarship applications can be an outstanding tool for students to help finance their undergraduate education. Arguably, the most important category of scholarships relates to financial need. Financial assistance is frequently necessary to help a student meet the financial obligation of acquiring higher education. Some students face significant barriers when entering college; these barriers are often compounded by the fact that these students do not have the financial resources to help fund their education. Accordingly, for many of these students, scholarships are the only option to help defray college costs, and applying for scholarships and other types of financial assistance is particularly compelling for these students.

Scholarships can mitigate the financial obligation of students with financial need and give them invaluable access to higher education.

The scholarship application is potentially a labor-intensive process; therefore, scholarship applications are often evaluated by scholarship administrators and selection committees. Moreover, many scholarship awards are indeed minimal when compared to the total cost of education, particularly in the field of medicine. Accordingly, scholarship awards can be competitive, and scholarship applicants are advised to submit a high-quality and compelling application in a timely fashion. Furthermore, a portion of scholarship applicants are accepted only if they demonstrate financial need, usually by proving need with an official ruling from a school's financial aid office. Therefore, it may be helpful for scholarship administrators to have an understanding of the Statement of Financial Need and the financial assessment process.

The Role of a Statement of Financial Need

Scholarship awarding authorities use the statement of financial need within the applications to determine which students are eligible to be considered for a given award. This very basic function can be the light at the end of the tunnel for many struggling students. This can be a difficult process starting out since it forces applicants to put on paper a very real struggle. But in the end, it can be a very important step made in attaining the scholarship that makes a lifelong goal realized.

Being honest about needing assistance cannot be overstated. This includes fully opening up and having no shame in sharing your own financial background so that the scholarship committee can effectively determine who is in the most need. The story of your past and present financial circumstances paints a very vivid picture of who you are and the struggles that you have had to face. No one can tell your story better than yourself. It might be difficult to bare something so personal to someone that you largely do not know, but it is a step to take for a better future. A very emotional response from committee members can be elicited by a story that reaches out and touches the heart. If you can bring joy and hope to an otherwise tight lunch with narrative, do so. This is a component of a winning statement.

Effective Statement of Financial Need

Making a compelling case for financial need in a scholarship application is as much about the narrative as it is about the numbers. To help applicants write and compellingly submit a statement of financial need, we offer several best practices. Primarily, while applicants should be completely honest, they should also take care to frame their financial circumstances in a clear, factually persuasive light. This should not involve self-deprecation or exaggeration. However, it should involve disclosing clear financial need by detailing personal and familial situations, speaking directly to the costs of their desired program of study, and connecting these costs to their long-term professional goals. This narrative should also thoroughly mirror the scholarship program’s stated goals and values. Beyond this large-scale picture, a compelling statement of financial need will also pay close attention to style and tone, balancing storytelling with facts and being concisely communicative while remaining under the word or character count. This document will highlight the applicant’s academic, professional, or community service and blend the personal and the professional into a captivating, compelling narrative. While information matters, the applicant will not save money later; therefore, focusing primarily on the financials will not effectively carry your financial need at all levels. Additionally, be honest in your tone and style; a statement of financial need written in a particular style will be unconvincing to a review committee and may, in fact, disqualify you if it seems deceitful or overly dramatic. Because you are telling a story in your statement of financial need, it is especially crucial to involve the review committee in the process. Communicate clearly, effectively, and engagingly to share your reality and financial need. Items to note: Make sure that the financial information provided in your statement of financial need matches the financial information provided in your admissions. For candidates selected for admission, financial information reviewed at the time of your selection will be compared to the financial information you include in your statement of financial need.

Case Studies and Examples

Three different panelist groups evaluated statements of need from students from a variety of institutions and at various levels of education. A committee of trustees at a large research institution awarded a multi-thousand-dollar scholarship to a first-generation mother who works third shift at a fast food outlet and attends university full-time. The first-generation college committee panelist had this to say: “It is painful to only be able to select one from this pile. They are all so worthy. All of them interface strength and hardness with what hurts them to their core. They see how difficult it has been for the ones they have grown dependent on and how much they have hurt to keep them out of their hard life. Hardship is born of every family, regardless of place, upbringing, or class. I can only imagine what little bit this money will do for all of these families.” During the fifth year of the scholarship program, Ms. Shulman coordinated a pilot program for students who were not eligible for the large scholarships but showed need for additional support to help finance college. Here is an example of one student’s application. This recipient was awarded more than $1,700. A mother of infant twins living off one income and government-assisted housing, Sara’s family combined makes $13,000 a year. The zoo cashiers are a mother and her adult daughter, who takes it as a small victory that her Alzheimer’s-afflicted mother still can match the animals on the other side of the counter with corresponding play money. The girl spends days juggling her screeching infants. Meetings with Kate, the young mother, need to be scheduled in advance, but even when an appointment is made, the others at the apartment complex agree that it isn't worthwhile. At that two-bedroom house on Hector Street, there are no scholarships to award. Just as well. The girl with the pale pink palms meets the minimum credit requirement for the bank. She doesn't balance her financial aid refund checks, but they pass through her just the same. If Kate only knew how much was in the handfuls of cash in her red birthday bag... Stashed in the back room of her mother’s apartment, the bills keep her from being homeless.

Conclusion and Future Implications

Although the exact role financial need may play in the minds of individual selection committee members is virtually unknown, numerous studies suggest that financial need determines not only an applicant’s eligibility for funds but also influences evaluative ratings. The findings presented suggest the importance of the statement of financial need and its strengths in the recruitment of prospective scholarship applicants as well as in tracking the impacts of scholarships on appreciative recipients. Knowing the funding sources and the rationale behind scholarships or fellowships can only help the student. With the ever-increasing amount of scholarship money available, often as a means to recoup an institutional financial aid budget, hand in hand with an increased expectation of transparency in higher education funding models, the need to offer a more frank and direct discussion of personal finances is timely. This is also another method of providing underrepresented students a voice. In revisiting this, we have summarized the importance of a statement of financial need, and both it and our stance on the situation remain the same. We implore institutions and private scholarship organizations, especially those providing aid to targeted student populations, to reconsider an applicant’s statement of financial need as an avenue to mine individual story narratives as well as a strategy to promote accessibility and diversity at the college or graduate school level. Whether it is legal is no longer the point, because any minimally trained professional will tell an officer of the organization that the subjective consensus evolves into a discriminatory practice in the belief of funding scarcity. Future research should explore best practices in communicating financial stories to intercollegiate and scholarship audiences. Moreover, in a situation aware of increasing and exorbitant educational fees, it would behoove all of us to revisit the aforementioned argument, as in-depth our background is our future, and access to tertiary education is a basic human right.

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