5. Is The Scholarship A One-Time Award Or A Recurring Award?
Whether you offer students one-time scholarship awards or recurring amounts throughout college makes a big difference to those students, but also the supporting organization. A recurring scholarship adds incentive for students to stay in school and achieve their degrees, even if their majors change. One-time scholarships, while more generous upfront, can sometimes leave students lacking support as they get closer to reaching their degrees. On the other hand, a one-time scholarship may free up dollars to support a greater number of students. A recurring scholarship draws down the fund over time and also comes with additional work, including the expectation that scholarship recipients keep the funder appraised of their progress, whether through personal statements or student transcripts. This due diligence takes time, but typically enables a scholarship fund to achieve greater long-term impact.
6. What If You Intervened Later In A College Students’ Academic Career?
Despite the advantages of a recurring scholarship, the majority of scholarships are, in fact, one-time awards. This leaves sophomores, juniors, and seniors—not to mention graduate students—in search of critical funding to complete their degrees. A scholarship fund that supports upperclassmen or graduate students helps these students cross the finish line and get into their careers, often yielding a greater return on investment.
7. What Is Your Scholarship’s Life Cycle?
Just as scholarships awards can be one-time or recurring, so too can your contributions into a scholarship fund. Think about how long into the future you would like your scholarship fund to generate awards. You can give a scholarship fund a specific end date, with any excess dollars granted out in line with existing criteria. You can also have a scholarship fund live out in perpetuity, assuming it is of sufficient size. For scholarship funds intended to last in perpetuity, be careful not to constrict the use of the dollars too tightly. While, in the example above, the United States faces a nursing shortage today, it may face an altogether unrelated academic challenge in the not-too-distant future. Make sure to build in the sort of flexibility that ensures your scholarship fund remains relevant, aligned with your goals and impact-oriented well into the future.
A higher education is a determining factor in future employment, salary and financial independence, making scholarships a critical link to a much brighter, more sustainable future.
Just be sure your clients answer these seven questions before creating their scholarship funds—so that their philanthropic dollars are achieving the greatest intended impact.
Faith Krueger is COO and Director of Scholarship Services at the Community Foundation of New Jersey.