How To Apply For The Bright Futures Scholarship As A Florida Resident – If you’re a Florida resident, listen up and pull up a chair. Floridians have a great gift in the name of cheap college. And it’s called the Florida Bright Future Scholarship.
Founded in 1997, Florida Bright Futures provides a strong incentive for students who excel academically to stay in the state for college. Pays college tuition for eligible students. This scholarship award is also renewable. As long as the earned GPA and credit hours are above the cutoff, students can continue to apply for scholarships to cover tuition and fees.
How To Apply For The Bright Futures Scholarship As A Florida Resident
The Florida Department of Education publishes an annual handbook detailing how to apply, eligibility and renewal requirements, but it contains “quick and dirty” information that applies to most high school students, especially when strategizing how to be the best fit. (Also, meeting with your high school counselor is a good place to start!).
Protect Bright Futures
There are 4 scholarship competitions – each with unique eligibility criteria. Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) and Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) focus on a traditional 4-year college degree path, while Gold Seal Vocational Scholars and Purpose Seal CAPE Scholars programs focus on a vocational or career/technical education (CTE )-way.
Many CTE programs require a year or two of coursework, earning an associate degree or certificate, before directly entering the workforce. Examples include lawyer, electrician, physical therapy assistant, etc.
As an independent college counselor based in Florida, most of the high school students I work with are eligible for academically-based scholarship programs. That’s why I pay more attention to them.
Generally, to qualify, students must achieve a weighted GPA of 3.0+, complete 16 required high school credits, meet a certain SAT/ACT cutoff, and complete a documented number of community service hours.
How Florida’s Bright Futures Favors Wealthier Families
The Florida Academic Scholar (FAS) award covers 100% of tuition and fees, and students receive $300 to cover additional academic expenses during the fall and spring semesters. Students can also take advantage of the scholarship during the summer semesters. In contrast, the Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) award covers 75% of tuition and fees.
Both FAS and FMS awards can be applied to virtually any state college. However, due to the difference in tuition costs for public and private colleges, students are offered a comparable amount to attend a private college.
The University of Florida is one of our state’s premier public colleges. If tuition and fees are $8,000 per year and the student receives a FAS award, the entire $8,000 is covered by the Bright Futures scholarship. (These are not real numbers – eg). Conversely, if the University of Miami is the best choice, students will be able to apply for a comparable amount for tuition at this private college. (Of course, tuition is over $8,000 a year!).
Updated for 2023: Our Florida State Legislature has made some important changes to the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program. Previously, students had to complete and log at least 100 community service hours to be eligible for this scholarship award. Under the new update, students can distinguish between community service (volunteer work) and paid work to meet the requirements. Good news for working students! Please contact your local school district to determine which community service and paid work activities will count and how the time will be recorded. We’ve updated our chart above to provide the most recent information.
Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Requirements 2025
The FL-DOE Bright Futures Handbook explains this in more detail, but National Merit Finalists and Scholars and National Hispanic Scholars qualify for scholarships regardless of SAT/ACT scores as long as they complete community service/paid work hours. (Both of these special designations are determined by PSAT scores). Check with your student’s high school to find out if and when they offer the PSAT.
Another special requirement is to obtain an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma or an Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE) Diploma. They are eligible for Bright Futures regardless of their SAT/ACT scores. IB students usually take the exam in the spring of their senior year of high school, so you won’t know for sure whether you qualify for the FAS or FMS award until the end of the school year. Florida Colleges will renew a financial aid award with the Bright Futures Scholarship, if applicable.
Homeschool students are eligible for the Bright Future Scholarship as long as they are enrolled in the district for grades 11 and 12. (Of course, they must also meet the SAT/ACT and service requirements).
A real-life example of when details matter: One of my students placed in the top 11% of his graduating class. (Yes. 11%). He is enrolled in the IB program. He exceeded the GPA requirement. The IB curriculum meets high school credit hour requirements. It also focuses on the requirement of 100+ community service hours. We started working together at the beginning of my senior year in high school. He has already qualified for the FMS award.
Bright Futures Scholarship Program: Making Educational Goals Possible
Despite taking the SAT several times, she did not make the cut to receive FAS for full tuition. He can continue to take the SAT to raise his score to qualify for the FAS award; He has until the end of the school year to study. However, if he passes the IB exam at the end of the year and obtains a diploma, the FAS award goes to him. See how it works?
Since he was assigned a lower level FMS, I advised him to submit his application as soon as he submitted it: October 1st. Brilliant Futures is offered on a first come first serve basis, we don’t want to risk missing out.
Another update: Our young lady was finally awarded a FAS award, 100% tuition paid to an in-state public college. After collaborating, each college on his list added some out-of-state options. He decided to use the Bright Futures scholarship money and start college at the University of South Florida. After graduation, he plans to attend graduate school and thought it would be wise to save money here, since graduate school tuition is not guaranteed to be paid in full. (Smart girl).
You must apply for the Bright Future scholarship. It is not given automatically. I often wonder how many students don’t know how to apply and/or apply at the end of the season after the award ends. To apply, visit the Florida Student Scholarship and Grant Programs website, create a profile, enter your information, and then click submit.
Fgcu Financial Aid
And then wait. At the end of the spring semester of their senior year, students can access their profile for early updates on eligibility and award status notification. Once final high school transcripts are posted, you will receive final award status posted to your account.
I encourage all my students to work towards completing their Bright Future requirements ahead of time. The first stop is to consult with your high school counselor about course selection. If your student is still a freshman or sophomore in high school, you have plenty of time to make sure you are on track and taking courses to meet the requirements each year. If you start later, if you are a junior or senior, you will have to scramble to complete the required coursework.
It’s also easier to build up the required community service hours if you start early. Summer is a great time to volunteer. You don’t have to dedicate the entire summer to 75-100 hours. Explore your local area, community or school for volunteer work opportunities. Keep detailed records as you go for official documentation purposes.
As I mentioned earlier, one difficult area to navigate is the SAT/ACT test score requirement. Any standardized test is fine. Neither colleges nor Bright Futures favor one type of test over another. But I recommend to start the exam early. Early adolescence is a good time to take the SAT or ACT for the first time. Any points you get will be your base. Now you have a ballpark of how many more points you need to get the Bright Future scholarship. Spend time studying for the SAT/ACT and retest later. Although colleges want your test scores early, you actually have until the end of your 12th grade year to qualify for the Bright Futures scholarship.
Lawmakers Must Reshape The Bright Futures Program To Build A More Equitable Florida
Bright Futures scholarship requirements are subject to change each year as decisions are made by the Florida State Legislature, so check back often to make sure you have the latest, most updated information on eligibility, application and application. . And most importantly, renew the scholarship for all 4 years of your university education.
Check out the second part of our Florida Bright Futures series… Perhaps, like many of our clients, this is not the end of the road when it comes to deciding which college to attend. we