Financial Aid & Scholarship FAQs

About Outside Scholarships

Students are welcome to bring any scholarship received from an external source (such as your high school, church, employers) to Kent State University, provided the donor will allow the use of the scholarship at Kent State. However, those scholarships must be reported. 

What Must Be Reported?

All external scholarships must be reported to the university, even if the organization gave the student a check made out to them personally.  

Students who will receive an outside scholarship/resource that will assist in paying their education-related expenses (tuition, housing, food, books, supplies, equipment, travel, miscellaneous and personal expenses) must report that information and include documentation annually through FlashLine.

External resources include outside donor scholarships and/or tuition assistance/reimbursement. 

Note: You are not required to report aid already included in your financial aid package. You also do not need to include monetary gifts from friends, relatives or scholarships that were awarded to you by Kent State University.

How Do I Report an Outside Scholarship? 

Students can self-report external scholarships in FlashLine by following these steps:

• Log on to your FlashLine Account at Login | kent
• Select Student from the menu on the left
• Choose Finances and then Scholarships & Financial Aid
• Click on Financial Aid Dashboard.
• Confirm that the Aid Year displayed in the upper right corner is the correct aid year.
• Click the Offer tab from the top menu.
• Scroll down to Other Resources and under Reporting Outside Resources there are 2 steps to complete:
  • First, expand the text and click "THIS FORM" link to report outside resources.
  • Second, after the form is complete, return to the Reporting Outside Resources section and click Add/View Resource to complete reporting. 

Your reported aid will not be accepted or applied without documentation. It is only necessary to report an outside scholarship/resource once per academic year. This form is not to be used to request additional financial aid.

When Will I Have Access to Outside Scholarship Funds?

External scholarships/resources will not show as a credit on the student's account until the funds are received by the University. Once the external scholarship funds are received, the scholarship will be added to the student’s financial aid offer and will appear as a credit on the student’s account for that semester.  The actual funds will not be released any sooner than 10 days before your classes start.  You cannot receive the scholarship funds early.   If you owe a balance for any reason on your student account, your scholarship will be applied to that outstanding balance.  If you do not owe a balance for that semester, the scholarship will be issued to you as a financial aid refund for that semester. 

Will Outside Scholarships Affect Scholarship or Other Financial Aid from Kent State?

Outside scholarships can affect a student’s existing financial aid package. Typically, this happens only if a student is receiving a large number of scholarships that exceed the cost of the student’s tuition, room and/or board. Students in this situation will usually see a reduction in the amount they can borrow in a Federal Direct Student or Parent PLUS loan. Students cannot receive two scholarships that cover the same expense in its entirety or when combined exceed that expense. For example, a student cannot receive two tuition scholarships that exceed the cost of tuition. To find out if an outside scholarship will change a student’s financial aid or scholarship offer, please feel free to contact the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center.

What If the Scholarship Check Was Sent to the Student?

Make sure the student's name and Kent State ID Number is written on the check or included with the check. Submit your check using one of the following methods: 

• In-person Kent Campus:  Take the scholarship check to the Drop Box, located on the first floor of the Schwartz Center
• Mail: 
  Kent State University
  Bursar's Office
  P.O. Box 5190
  Kent, Ohio 44242

What Actions Must International Sponsored Students Take?

We offer special support for students who are financially supported by ‎governments (U.S. or foreign), international organizations, public or private companies and other third-party entities.

If you are a sponsored student or a sponsoring organization, please visit our dedicated webpage or contact Sponsored Student Services intlspon@kent.edu for more information.

What are the eligibility and renewal criteria for my scholarships?

For scholarship awards made by the University Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid, Admissions Office, and Honors College the renewal and eligibility criteria are available on your FlashLine account. Please follow the directions below to review the details. For scholarships awarded by Colleges and other departments, please contact the appropriate office for more information.

• Log on to your FlashLine Account
• Select Student from the menu on the left
• Choose Finances and then Scholarships & Financial Aid
• Click on Financial Aid Dashboard.
• Confirm that the Aid Year displayed in the upper right corner is the correct aid year.
• Click the Offer tab from the top menu.
  • Scroll down to view the name of the scholarship awarded
• Click on each scholarship to read renewal criteria information. 

Do I have to submit a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) to be considered for scholarships?

Newly admitted students do not have submit a FAFSA to be considered for the Academic Achievement Award, President’s Achievement Award, Oscar Ritchie Memorial Scholarship, Founders Scholarship, Honors Distinction Award, or incoming transfer student scholarships. These scholarships are strictly merit based. 

If a scholarship program indicates that “demonstrating financial need” is required, then the student must have a FAFSA on file for the academic year to be considered for that award.  The FAFSA allows the Student Financial Aid Office to determine whether the student is demonstrating financial need. 

How do I accept my scholarships?

View step-by-step instructions on how to accept your Kent State scholarships.

Accepting a scholarship does not commit you to attending Kent State University, but we ask that you only accept your scholarship if you are planning to attend.  Accepting a scholarship will not eliminate you from consideration for additional scholarship awards. 

How will I receive my scholarship award?

All Kent State University scholarships (except for a limited number of scholarships awarded specifically for research or conference travel) will be applied to your student account for the semester.  Scholarships will show as credit on your student account, but the actual funds will not be released any sooner than 10 days before your classes start.  You cannot receive the scholarship funds early.   If you owe a balance for any reason on your student account, your scholarship will be applied to that outstanding balance.  If you do not owe a balance for that semester, the scholarship will be issued to you as a financial aid refund for that semester. 

Will my other financial aid be revised if I receive a scholarship?

The addition of a scholarship, from any source, could result in the revision of your other financial aid awards.  The most common revision is a reduction in a Federal Parent PLUS Loan, a private alternation loan, or the reduction/cancellation of student’s federal Direct Loans.  This typically happens only when the student is receiving a very large amount of financial aid that already equals their Cost of Attendance budget.  Based on a student’s FAFSA results, the student’s Federal Direct Subsidized Loan may have to be reduced or cancelled.  Whenever possible, that funding is replaced with a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan.

Scholarship awards that can only to be applied to certain expenses, such as tuition, may have to be reduced if the student’s total scholarships exceed that expense.

If I did not meet the renewal criteria in order to receive my scholarships next year, is there anything I can do?

Students who did not meet their scholarship renewal criteria for the awards listed below can request an appeal if they have extenuating circumstances.  

• Academic Achievement Award
• President's Achievement Award
• Oscar Richie Memorial Scholarship
• Trustee Scholarship
• Founders Scholarship
• University Award
• President's Scholarship
• President's Award
• Academic Transfer Award
• President's Transfer Award
• Transfer2Kent Scholarship
• Flash Transfer Northeast Ohio Scholarship

Extenuating circumstances include illness, death in family, family crisis, etc.  The appeal must include supporting documentation.  Students cannot request a scholarship appeal form until after they have been notified that the scholarship was cancelled for the upcoming year or semester.

Can I request an extra semester of my scholarship because I will be here for a 9th semester? 

Yes, but you must submit a Scholarship Appeal Form to request the additional semester.

 I am graduating early – can I double up on my scholarship in my last semester? 

No, your Kent State scholarship cannot be increased from the original offer amount per semester.  For example, an $1,000 annual scholarship will be awarded $500 per semester.  You cannot receive all $1,000 in one semester.  

Can I receive my scholarship if I register for regional campus courses? 

You will not be eligible for your Kent Campus scholarship if you register for regional campus courses unless you are also enrolled for a minimum of 12 credit hours in Kent Campus designated courses that same semester. 

I only need 2 courses this semester to graduate and I have one semester of scholarship eligibility remaining. Am I eligible for my Kent Campus scholarship? 

You may appeal to use your scholarship, for less than full-time enrollment, if it is your last semester of enrollment prior to graduation.  View scholarship appeal forms. Please note, your scholarship may be prorated if you are not enrolled full-time.    

Will I be eligible for Kent State scholarships if i will have a faculty/staff/dependent tuition waiver benefit?

Many Kent State scholarships can be applied only to tuition instructional and general fees.  Therefore, if the student will use a Tuition Waiver Benefit, these types of scholarships will be cancelled.  Affected scholarships include, but are not limited to, the following incoming freshman and incoming transfer student scholarships awarded by Admissions, Student Financial Aid and the Honors College:

• Academic Achievement Award
• Founders Scholarship
• Honors Distinction Award
• Oscar Richie Memorial Scholarship
• President Achievement Award
• Transfer2Kent Scholarship
• Transfer in a Flash Scholarship

If cancelled due to a Tuition Waiver Benefit, these awards will NOT be replaced with funding to be used towards living expenses, books, or other educational-related expenses.