Finding scholarships and filling them out can be time consuming and grueling, but with a new program called STARS (Scholarship Tracking and Review System), Sinclair Community College students can complete the process in as little as 15 minutes, according to Sharon Smith, stewardship and annual gifts officer.
STARS is an online system that takes students’ biographical and financial aid information and matches it to scholarships they qualify for, Smith said.
“The great thing about STARS is that it will match students’ information with the criteria for the scholarship. So what used to be a very manual process is now automated,” Smith said.
There is a link through Sinclair’s financial aid website where students can get information and access the site or they can go directly to the website at http://scholarships.sinclair.edu/STARS, according to Smith.
The application process requires students Sinclair e-mail address, student I.D. number, several questions about their biographical information, two essay questions and the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form. The essay questions consist of students describing their education and career goals, and discussing their extracurricular, community service and volunteer activities.
“You do have to fill out the FASFA although not all of them are based on financial need. We do try to use every other means available to the student first before going towards the foundation scholarships,” Smith said. “If they are eligible for financial or state aid we want them to be able to use that first before coming to us. So that’s why we ask everyone to fill out the FAFSA.”
Sinclair has more than 200 foundation scholarships available for students for 2010-2011, ranging from $50 to more than $1,000. STARS will reopen on June 21 to July 25 for fall 2010 scholarship applications.
“We have quite a bit available to students,” Smith said. “And we have some new scholarships that become available every quarter.”
After students register with STARS, Smith encourages them to come back and reapply every quarter to check if scholarships are available that previously were not.
In 2009, more than $476,000 were awarded to approximately 1,800 students, according to Smith.
“So far we have a pretty good turnout and it’s increasing every quarter,” Smith said. “Students are still learning about it. I don’t know if all the students are aware of it yet, but we hope that through articles such as this, they will become more knowledgeable about the processes.”
While some scholarships require certain criteria, such as a certain major or being a tutor, others are very general and don’t require any specification after filling out the application, according to Smith.
“I would encourage anyone to apply because they just don’t know what might be available to them,” Smith said. “Unfortunately, a lot of students think that they wouldn’t qualify so they don’t even try but there are some many available.”
Service Box
1. Visit www.sinclair.edu/stars for a complete list of instructions.
2. To go directly to the STARS website visit http://scholarships.sinclair.edu/STARS. Have student Sinclair e-mail address, student I.D. number and essay questions ready.
3. Fill out FAFSA form.
Contact the Help Desk if assistance is needed at 512-HELP (4356) or helpdesk@sinclair.edu
For other questions regarding financial aid or scholarship information call the Financial Aid and Scholarships department at 512-3000 or visit them in Building 10 Room 324.