Scholarship FAQs
Find answers to common questions about applying for Houston City College Foundation scholarships, award notifications, deadlines, and how scholarship funds are used.
Find answers to common questions about applying for Houston City College Foundation scholarships, award notifications, deadlines, and how scholarship funds are used.
You can go to the HCC Foundation website (https://site.hccsfoundation.org/scholarship-application/) to complete an online scholarship application, which must be completed and submitted by the annual deadline to be considered for any scholarships. You only have to complete this single application to be considered for all scholarships you qualify for.
You do not have to indicate on your application if you are applying for a specific scholarship. The online scholarship application (found at
(https://site.hccsfoundation.org/scholarship-application/)
will allow you to be considered for all scholarships you qualify for.
A completed FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is not required as part of the HCC Foundation scholarship application. However, some of our scholarships do have a FAFSA requirement. We advise students to complete a FAFSA so that students can receive consideration for all scholarships for which they may be eligible, in addition to financial aid. The FAFSA can be found here:
Applications are available and accepted from June 15 through December 15. Please confirm these dates each year on the HCC Foundation website (www.hccsfoundation.org), as the Foundation may change the application window if circumstances deem it necessary.
Yes. Students who plan to enroll in classes at HCC can apply for an HCC scholarship during the open application period (generally June 15 through December 15). However, a student should be enrolled prior to scholarships being awarded since information a student provides during the enrollment process is often used to determine eligibility for specific scholarship awards. Students are advised to enroll at HCC by July 15 so that they are considered for all scholarship awards for which they may be eligible.
Yes! Some scholarships offered through the HCC Foundation do not have a citizenship requirement.
Yes. You are eligible to apply for HCC Foundation scholarships even if you do not qualify for financial aid. Some scholarships do not consider financial need as part of the eligibility criteria, so we encourage all students to apply during the open application period.
Yes. You may apply for HCC Foundation scholarships even if you are already receiving financial aid. Scholarships offered by the HCC Foundation generally should not interfere with financial aid you may receive from other sources. In some cases, other funding sources may affect how HCC Foundation scholarship funds are applied. If that happens, we will work with you and HCC’s Financial Aid office to help maximize the financial assistance you receive.
Yes! Some scholarships offered through the HCC Foundation do not have a citizenship requirement.
The HCC Foundation will notify all applicants of their status via email during various phases of the process until it is complete.
A scholarship offer will be sent to the email address you used to complete your application. But even if you receive an award offer, you will not receive the funds unless you complete the required steps to accept the scholarship on or before the deadline date outlined in the notification email and meet all criteria for the scholarship offered. Usually, you must: (1) accept and agree to the terms of the scholarship agreement, (2) upload a thank you letter to the donor, and (3) upload one picture of yourself. (Some scholarships may require additional steps, which will be outlined in the award email.) Failure to submit all required information by the deadline will indicate that you do not wish to accept the scholarship offer, and you will forfeit the scholarship funds.
Yes, you will receive an email notification if we are unable to offer you a scholarship. The notification will be sent to your HCC student email address.
Unfortunately, the Foundation doesn’t have enough funds to award scholarships to all applicants, so applying for a scholarship does not guarantee receiving one. Scholarships are not federally funded; instead, they are funded by donations from the community.
The number of scholarships that the HCC Foundation can award will vary from year to year. If the number of qualified applicants for any scholarship exceeds the number of available scholarships for that year, a blind selection process will be used. (The date a student submitted their scholarship application, provided it was within the application window, will not be a factor in any decisions.)
Once the HCC Foundation has awarded all available scholarship offers, we notify students that we cannot award a scholarship to them. If any scholarship funds become available later in the year, the Foundation will send an offer notification to students via email. As with all scholarship offers, those sent later in the year are time sensitive. Failure to formally accept the offer and complete all required post-acceptance items by the deadline listed in the notification email will result in forfeiting the scholarship.
If you receive a scholarship offer, you must complete all required acceptance steps by the deadline listed in your notification email. Usually, students must accept and agree to the terms of the scholarship agreement, upload a thank-you letter to the donor, and upload one picture of themselves. Some scholarships may require additional steps, which will be outlined in the award email.
If you do not submit all required information by the deadline, the HCC Foundation will consider the scholarship offer declined, and you will forfeit the scholarship funds.
Because we usually have more applicants than funds, the HCC Foundation works to re-award scholarships from students who declined or didn’t respond to an offer by their deadline. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that you will receive a second offer within a single academic year, so please carefully monitor the email address you used to complete your application.
Previous scholarship recipients must re-apply for scholarships every year they attend HCC during the open application period (generally between June 15 – December 15). There is no guarantee that you will again be awarded the same scholarship you have already received.
You will receive no priority over applicants who have not previously received an award.
Award notifications generally begin in July and can continue through January or until all available funds have been offered. If you are selected, you must first complete the required steps to formally accept the scholarship. Once the HCC Foundation receives all of your completed acceptance documents, the funds will be electronically applied to your individual HCC student account, typically within two weeks. Please note that scholarship funds cannot be applied to an Eagle Card.
Scholarships are first directed to unpaid tuition and fees. If the scholarship permits, any remaining funds can be used for purchases at any HCC Bookstore. HCC Foundation scholarships do not cover other costs related to your education, such as supplies not available at the HCC Bookstore, transportation, childcare, etc. unless you are specifically told in your award notification that it will cover such costs.
Scholarships awarded by the HCC Foundation are non-refundable unless you are specifically told otherwise in your award notification. Unused funds automatically revert back to the HCC Foundation at the end of each semester.
Scholarships awarded by the HCC Foundation are for use at HCC only. Unfortunately, we are unable to transfer any scholarship funds to another institution. Per agreements with our donors, scholarship funding is only for use at Houston City College.
Questions about Financial Aid, Pell Grants, TPEG, student loans, Impact Scholarships, or Chancellor’s Scholarships?
Contact HCC Financial Aid
Questions about outside/private scholarships?
Contact the organization that awarded the scholarship first.
Questions about HCC Foundation scholarships?