Bellevue College Foundation offers annual, non-transferable scholarships for all BC students. The online application for the 2019-2020 school year scholarships will open on Wednesday, January 2, 2019, and closes on Monday, March 4, 2019.
The Bellevue College Foundation Scholarship program is funded by generous donors that include community members, corporations, alumni, BC faculty, staff and students. Scholarship awards are based on academic merit, financial need, personal history, achievement, or for specific areas of study. With one application, students are automatically considered for the majority of available scholarships.
The first step in the application process is to be enrolled at Bellevue College. Running Start students are eligible to apply if they are currently in their senior year of high school and plan to attend BC during 2019-20 school year. Students are required to complete the BC Foundation Scholarship Application Form along with several short answer questions. They will also need to submit their transcripts and letter of recommendation online to be considered for scholarships.
Applicants will begin to be notified of selection decisions by the email address provided on the application until the end of May. Around July 2019, selected applicants must submit the online Acceptance Form. The funds will be distributed three times, once each quarter during the school year (fall, winter, and spring) to selected scholars’ student account. However, not completing all required items (i.e. missing financial aid documents, scholarship acceptance form, enrolling less than full time, etc.) will result in a delay of funds being released.
Caleb Nims, a student who received a BC Foundation scholarship for 2018-19 school year said, “The scholarship allowed me to complete my quarter without the pressure of a part time job. It allowed me to give my all to the full credit load I had this quarter. I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity to study at Bellevue College and the scholarship I received helps make that possible.” He continued, “I found encouragement as I completed the application process. Whenever I get the chance to reflect on my achievements, I come away with a thankfulness of the abilities I have been gifted with that have helped me come to the place I find myself in today.”
Lauren Hardin, Scholarship & Programs Manager at BC Foundation said that the scholarship opportunities are open to both prospective and current students, as long as they will be enrolled during the 2019-2020 academic year and have a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Hardin also explained that the applicants are evaluated by community volunteers that rank applications based on many factors, including GPA, letters of recommendation, financial need, and intended major at BC “279 students were eligible to compete for the scholarship for the current 2018-19 school year,” Harden said. “We awarded 175 students from those 279 applicants over $364,000.”
To Harden, the benefits of applying to the BC Foundation Scholarship goes beyond the money received. When applying, students practice important communication skills, and responding to the required short-answer questions can help clarify students’ educational and career goals, and applying to a scholarship like this gives students practice for similar applications they will have to complete later in life, Harden said. “If applicants are selected to receive a scholarship, they will also have a chance to learn more about the BC Foundation and the resources that are available to them,” Harden said. “For example, scholars are encouraged to participate in events and activities that will allow them to network with donors, board members, faculty and staff, which will only benefit them going forward in their career and personal lives. Being a scholar also teaches students what it means to give back and many express the desire to one day do what someone has done for them and become a scholarship donor in the future.”
Students can apply to the BC Foundation Scholarship each year that they attend Bellevue College. According to Harden, “applying multiple years in no way harms [students’] chances of receiving a scholarship in the future and only means that there is a greater chance they will receive one at some point.”