Students

You should plan to have a copy of your transcript, a list of your extracurriculars and work experience, and an idea of what you want to communicate to the scholarship committee - career goals, how you’ve been involved in your community, what you want to pursue in college, etc. For scholarships that consider financial need, you will likely also need a copy of your family’s tax returns or your Student Aid Report from the FAFSA.

When you hit submit, a Foundation staff member will review your application to be sure it’s complete and follow up if needed. All applications are submitted to committees for review and recipients are decided during committee meetings. These meetings take place April to June, so there may be a few weeks or months of no communication after you submit your application. All applicants for a scholarship are notified of decisions as soon as the committee meets. All applicants should receive a communication from the Foundation by mid/late June at the very latest.

We receive hundreds of applications, so reviewing them takes a while. Committees are also made up of community members and they need time to review the applications assigned to them!

YES! Our staff reviews all applications; if your application is complete and you’re eligible for the scholarship, it’s also read by multiple committee members before a decision is made.

No - because we expect that applications will be different just like the students that submit them. We want to know about you! That will likely mean your essay, writing style, and other application pieces will be different from someone else.

1. Make sure you read the prompt! If it asks about specific things (your career goals, adversity you’ve overcome, community service, etc.) be sure you address those. Even if you have a great essay, if it doesn’t address the topic the committee may not see you as a great fit for the scholarship.
2. Proofread! Make sure your essay has correct spelling and grammar. Ask a friend, teacher, or mentor to read it over before you submit it.

Congrats! If you receive a scholarship from TCF, you will be notified by email and physical mail and asked to submit an information form. This will collect your updated contact information, the school where you’re enrolled, your Student ID number, and a thank you note for your donor. We WILL NOT process a scholarship check without this information. These forms are due June 30 each year.

We will mail a check directly to your school. Don’t worry - we know where to send it! We don’t expect you to find this information. We will send one check for the full academic year and ask them to split it evenly between Fall and Spring semesters. If you’d like it to be split differently, just let us know.

You’ll need to login to the scholarship portal to complete a report each semester. This helps us verify that you’re still enrolled and meeting the GPA minimum for your scholarship. Your scholarship donor(s) also read these - they like to hear about you! Please make sure you keep us up to date on your email, so you continue receiving the link to complete your report.