If you are one of the students looking forward to receiving recognition as a National Merit Scholar, you can definitely apply for the Benacquisto Scholarship.
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What is the Benacquisto Scholarship?
Benacquisto Scholarship program in Florida, USA can be defined as a merit Scholarship awarded to high school graduates to gain recognition as the National Merit scholar.
It is a help for the high school graduates to get into any university in Florida and achieve higher education. This scheme is available for the in-state and out-state students as well.
The following university in Florida will verify the status of the student against a roster from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
Thereafter, the student will be given a copy of a certificate from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The letter will state that the student will be a finalist and eligible for the Scholarship.
The student receiving the National Merit Finalist title then becomes a scholar with the National Merit of $2500 Scholarship, Corporate Sponsored Merit Scholarship or a College Sponsored Merit Scholarship.
Importantly, you must notice that the students having received the Special Corporate Scholarships or the Presidential Award will not be qualified for the Benacquisto Scholarship.
What are the Eligibility Criteria for the Residents and Non- Residents of Florida?
The students need to fulfill some of the criteria to be eligible for the Benacquisto Scholarship. Check out the list that is given below.
The Eligibility Criteria for the students residing in Florida
- The student should have a diploma from any high school present in Florida.
- The candidate must be capable enough to receive the award for a maximum of 10 semesters.
- Must be a US citizen.
- Should be a national merit scholar.
- The candidate should be eligible enough to enroll in any Florida post-secondary institution during the fall academic term.
To know the eligibility of the non-residents of Florida for the Benacquisto scholarship, please have a brief look at the following list.
Eligibility criteria for non-resident students for Benacquisto Scholarship
- The candidate should have achieved a high school diploma similar to the standard high school diploma of Florida.
- Should be a national merit scholar.
- The student should be eligible to enroll in the post-secondary institution in Florida during the fall academic term.
- The applicant must be living close to Florida or within the campus where the enrollment event takes place.
Every student should enroll a minimum credit of 12 hours per term in the Baccalaureate Degree program.
Therefore the awards given to the in-state students of Florida are $21,210 (for the college students). While coming to the out-state college graduates the amount remains the same, $21,210.
What are the Requirements for the Benacquisto Scholarship Renewal Process?
The requirements for renewal of the Benacquisto Scholarship here below.
- The eligibility for the renewal needs to be done at the end of the second semester during the academic year.
- For the automatic renewal of the Scholarship, the candidate needs to achieve the credit for all hours.
- The student should have achieved a minimum calculative GPA of 3.0.
Credit hours will only be counted as earned hours if the students score grades including A, A-, B+, B, B-,C+, C, C-, D+, D, D- and NC. Benacquisto Scholarship doesn’t accept the F scores as the earned credit hours for any student.
What is the Award Amount for the Candidates Under Benacquisto Scholarship?
The award amount allotted for the students as per the Benacquisto Scholarship is typically more or less equal to the (Total institutional cost of attendance- Sum of the Bright future award along with the National Merit Achievement Award).
Moreover, the students who fall in the Out-of-State category will receive the awards which are equal to (the in-state on-campus cost of attendance – National Merit Award cost).
What is the Primary Goal of the Benacquisto Scholarship?
The main aim behind the formation of the Benacquisto Scholarship is to help the students within the USA and staying away from Florida. The authority provides the opportunity for them to study at the best Universities present within the states.
Additionally, the scholarship aids in the process of motivating the students to go for higher education and study even harder. Therefore, it acts as a catalyst in the process of encouraging them to score good marks and make it for the National Merit Scholar Award.
Benacquisto Scholarship Contact Information
FAQs- Frequently Asked Questions
Q1- What are the Scholarships a National Merit Finalist will receive?
Ans- The three scholarships that the National Merit Finalist will receive are as follows.
1- National Merit $2500 scholarship.
2- Corporate Sponsored Merit Scholarship.
3- College Sponsored Merit Scholarship
Q2- Which colleges of Florida have participated in the National Merit Scholarship Corporation or Benacquisto Scholarship?
Ans- The institutes of Florida that have participated in the National Merit Scholarship Corporation program are includes,
Embry – Riddle Aeronautical University
University of South Florida
Florida International University
Florida State University
Florida Atlantic University
New College of Florida
University of Central Florida
University of Miami
University of Florida
The students with the National Merit Scholarship of $2500 are eligible to attend any regionally accredited college in Florida
Q3- Can a student who has accepted the scholarship award delay the post-secondary career during the fall?
Ans- No, they can’t. The students are not allowed to delay their post-secondary career during the fall once they accept the Scholarship. They have to enroll and accept the funding in the fall term only after receiving the scholarship for high school graduation.
Q4- Can a student renew their scholarship if they have skipped their spring semester?
Ans- If the student has already received the Benacquisto Scholarship misses both the spring and fall terms, they need to enroll for the fall term right after their high school graduation. Besides that, the student should meet all the eligibility criteria if they wish to renew the scholarship during the fall term.
Q5- Is it allowed for a student to get transferred to another institution after he starts receiving the Benacquisto Scholarship?
Ans- No, that won’t be possible. Any student under Benacquisto Scholarship with the College Sponsored Merit Scholarship needs to maintain the enrollment in that particular institution only from where he was funded. Or else, the scholarship will be canceled for them.