Financial Aid and Scholarships office to centralize application system
Ruhi Patil, the Undergraduate Students Association Council Financial Supports commissioner, and her office will hold a meeting to inform students about the centralized scholarship system. (Owen Emerson/Daily Bruin)
By Hannah Rosson
May 27, 2015 12:07 a.m.
The Financial Aid and Scholarships office will centralize all undergraduate scholarships for the 2015-2016 academic year.
Ruhi Patil, the USAC Financial Supports commissioner, said the new system will allow students to complete one application rather than individual applications for each of the 52 merit-based university scholarships.
Patil said the process will be modeled after the Common Application, which allows high school students to apply to more than 500 colleges nationwide.
Patil said many students complained about the current scholarship application process and said the applications are difficult to understand.
Susan Dimotakis, associate director of the Financial Aid and Scholarships office, said students can learn about the new process at a meeting Thursday.
The meeting, organized by the USAC Financial Supports Commission, will discuss the changes to the application process. Students can suggest questions they would like to see asked on the universal application, and give feedback to representatives from the Financial Aid and Scholarships office.
Patil said she thinks the application will consist of one common essay, supplemental questions and a resume submission.
The application system will be accessible in July and should be operational for all the scholarships awarded in the next academic year, Dimotakis said.
Complied by Hannah Rosson, Bruin contributor.
