Scholarship Information

One of the services that the School Counseling Office at Belfast Area High School is pleased to provide is scholarship information and resources for college-bound students.    Our goal is to make the scholarship search and application process as user-friendly and streamlined as possible.  However, it should be noted that it is the responsibility of each student to obtain the appropriate scholarship application and then submit it by the designated deadline.  We are more than happy to help students navigate the scholarship application process.  We hope this guide will encourage seniors to apply for scholarships as we increase awareness of local, regional, state and national financial aid opportunities.  

We would like to thank the many local organizations and individuals who support our seniors by sponsoring scholarships.  It is rewarding to work with the Belfast community and with students to help ensure a successful transition to post-secondary education.

APPLYING FOR SCHOLARSHIPS

1. All applications will be available both in our office and on the Counseling page of the BAHS website: bahs.rsu71.org  Students should frequently check the scholarship board in the School Counseling Office, or the website, to determine which scholarships they are eligible to apply for. Most scholarships become available during the 2nd semester, but there are some early ones as well. It is also important to be aware that this Guide contains only some of the scholarships that are available to students on a local, state and national level.  

2. All students planning to pursue post-secondary education should complete the BAHS Scholarship Application.  Applications are made available in mid-March.  Completing this one BAHS application will allow students to be eligible for a number of scholarships.  It is important to attach a copy of the student’s financial aid award letter from the college they plan to attend to this scholarship application, as well as a copy of FAFSA Submission Summary showing the Student Aid Index (SAI).  To access the SAI: log back into the FAFSA after it has been processed and print.

3. Scholarship money is ‘out there’ but it is fairly competitive to secure.  You are competing with your classmates for the same pot of money…so a word of  advice…make your applications neat with legible printing or word processing.  If the application asks for an essay, do your best work.  The application deadline must be followed, although some are slightly flexible.  If you have filled out an application and the deadline has just passed, please stop by and ask about the possibility of submitting.

SCHOLARSHIP RESOURCES

Students who have questions about the scholarship application process are welcome to make an appointment in the counseling office for extra assistance.  Parents are also welcome to come into the office for scholarship information.

There are many resources beyond our office available to help students with this process.  We encourage students and families to contact these resources early in the senior year:

• Maine Community Foundation: 

https://www.mainecf.org/find-a-scholarship/available-scholarships/

• Finance Authority of Maine (FAME): 207-623-3263 

https://www.famemaine.com/affording-education/pay-for-school/maine-grant-tuition-programs/

• College Financial Aid Offices

• Military (Montgomery G.I. Bill Benefits, tuition assistance for active & reserve)

Contact local recruiting offices for more information

Worthington Foundation: 

https://worthingtonscholars.org/

The Worthington Foundation offers an extremely generous amount of scholarships to our students!  The criteria has expanded for the Class of 2025!  Updated financial information will make this scholarship available to many more students. They also added 4 new Maine colleges to the list of eligible schools you can attend.  It just keeps getting better.  Don’t miss out on this. Applications open on January 1st and the deadline will be April 15, 2025.

Find out if you qualify to apply for this scholarship: Eligibility

 A NOTE ABOUT FINANCIAL AID

If you are applying for financial aid, you must file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).  https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa

They are available to be filed in December this year. It is strongly recommended that the FAFSA be filed no later than early February. The deadline for filing in Maine is May 1st. You must sign up for a FSA-ID before you can complete the FAFSA.  This can be done at  https://studentaid.gov/fsa-id/create-account/launch  

You may register for a FSA-ID at any time.

All colleges require that the FAFSA be completed in order to be eligible for financial aid.  

Some colleges also require students to fill out the CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE.  The PROFILE is a supplemental financial aid form that can only be accessed online.  Please go to  https://cssprofile.collegeboard.org/  to access the PROFILE.