SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT SELECTION

Procedures for Determining Scholarship Recipients

• The Application Form
  


• Screening
  


• Interviewing
  


• Rating
  


• Selection
  


• Same Award Letter
  


• Sample Rejection Letter #1
  


• Sample Rejection Letter #2
  

The Application Form:
One of the most important tasks of an SPSF board of directors is to decide on applicant eligibility criteria and then to incorporate these into the scholarship application form. The ASPSF has set criteria for awards:

• recipients must be residents of the county in which they are applying,
  


• recipients must be single parents with custodial care of at least one minor child
  


• recipients must earn income at or near the poverty level, and
  


• recipients must not have received a baccaulaureate degree, with the exception of candidates for the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree.
  

Beyond these requirements, affiliates are free to set other criteria as they deem appropriate within the bounds of the ASPSF philosophy and the requirements for affiliation status. Although required materials vary with each affiliate, applicants generally submit a completed application form, letters of recommendation, a current transcript of all completed courses, and a goal statement.

To reduce potential legal conflict or negative publicity, it is important for the scholarship application form to fully disclose all eligibility and application guidelines and criteria.

Click here to view a sample affiliate SPSF application. Additional applications can be viewed by clicking on any county link on the Single Parent Scholarships page.

For the convenience of busy single parents and to reduce your operation costs, ASPSF encourages affiliates to post a printable version of the scholarship application form on the affiliate web page. Simply attach the document file to an email and send it to Chris Womack at cwomack@jtlshop.jonesnet.org. Contact Chris at (479)927-1402 xt. 10 for questions and guidance.

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Screening:
Each application should be read over carefully with a checklist at hand to insure that the applicant has submitted all required materials and that s/he meets all eligibility criteria for a scholarship award.

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Interviewing:
While ASPSF does not require interviews as part of the scholarship application process, it is highly recommended. If they are conducted in a positive and supportive manner, interviews can be a win-win situation for the affiliate board and for the applicant.

If you plan to conduct applicant interviews, each participating board member should review the applications thoroughly before each interview and write down any resulting questions. The applicant should be made to feel comfortable with an explanation that interviews are conducted in order to allow board members to become familiar with each student. Questions should be posed in a non-threatening way and suggestions of other resources should be offered to the applicant, if appropriate.

In some cases, it may become apparent that the student will benefit from accessing certain assistance, such as tutoring or course selection advice. The board may then want to attach some conditions to the award of a scholarship, such as asking the student to make contact with an advisor or tutor before a scholarship check is released.

Interviews are critically important for another reason. They allow the student to become familiar with board members as interested, compassionate members of the community. As students pursue their education, they should feel supported and encouraged by the board members. This relationship is as important to the success of the student as the scholarship assistance itself.

During the interview process, no scholarships should be promised. During the interview, the applicant should receive a date when he/she will be notified of the board's decision concerning his/her application. Award notices with instructions on check disbursement procedures should be mailed within two weeks after recipients are selected. If the application is denied, a denial letter should be sent with reasons for the denial and if applicable, encouragement to reapply in the future.

Click here to view or print a sample interview script.

Below are example award and rejection letters.

• Sample Award Letter
• Sample Rejection Letter #1
• Sample Rejection Letter #2

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Rating:
When scholarship dollars are limited and the number of applications far outnumber the available scholarship assistance, it is necessary to utilize a rating system for applicants. There is no absolutely objective way to rate scholarship applicants, but certain factors can be assigned numerical ratings with as much objectivity as possible. Three such factors include the applicant's financial profile, the applicant's potential for success, and the expenses to be covered by the scholarship amount. Each interviewing board member should participate in numerical rating, using 5 as the highest rating in each category and 1 as the lowest. In this way, a combined ranking of between 3 and 15 will result when the three categories' rankings are totaled by each interviewer. By adding the scores assigned by each interviewer and dividing the resulting number by the total number of interviewers, a ranking will be available for each applicant.

Other factors, including number of children, practicality of goals, and past academic record are also worthy of consideration. These may sway a decision one way or another if the numerical ranking does not produce clear preferences.

Click here to view or print sample scholarship applicant rating forms.

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Selection:
Once the screening, interviewing, and ranking have been completed, selection of recipients should be simple. Whether or not a numerical ranking system has been used, the board should determine how much money is available for scholarships and make its selections accordingly. A waiting list of applicants may be created from those students whose ratings prevented their selection but to whom the board would like to offer assistance if additional funds become available.

If the availability of sufficient money to cover all qualified applicants is an issue, the board may consider offering half scholarships to students with lower rankings.

Students should be notified of the board's decisions within two weeks of the completion of the interview process. This will allow them to build the scholarship into their budgets and to reduce any financial pressure weighing heavily on them.

Click here to view or print a sample applicant ranking form.

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