For information on the programs outlined below and all types of financial aid available to students in Florida, including scholarships, grants, work study, loans, and loan forgiveness programs, contact:

Office of Student Financial Assistance

Florida Department of Education

325 West Gaines Street

Suite 1314

Tallahassee, FL 32399

850-410-5200; 888-827-2004

E-mail: ofsa@fldoe.org

floridastudentfinancialaid.org

Many of the grant programs listed below are decentralized state of Florida programs, meaning that the participating postsecondary institutions determine their own application procedures and deadlines and establish their own eligibility requirements. Awards are dependent on available funding, with individual award amounts determined by the awarding institution.

Students interested in these programs are advised to contact the institution’s financial aid office for information or additional application materials or the State Scholarship and Grant Programs division of the Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA).

Benacquisto Scholarship Program

Eligibility – a Florida high school graduate who receives recognition as a National Merit Scholar.

Awards – an award, which is equal to the institutional cost of attendance minus the sum of Bright Futures and the National Merit award. 

Participating schools are: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, Florida State University, New College of Florida, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of Miami, and University of South Florida.  An initial application is not required.

Bright Futures Scholarship 

Eligibility – Florida high school graduates who demonstrate high academic achievement and who enroll in eligible Florida postsecondary institutions. Recipients are required to have performed community service ranging from 30 to 100 hours depending on the type of award received.

Awards – Bright Futures recipients receive a fixed cost per credit hour award based on their award level: 

Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) are students who graduate from high school with a minimum 3.5 GPA. Florida Academic Scholars will receive an award amount equal to 100 percent of tuition and applicable fees at a public postsecondary institution, or comparable amount at a nonpublic institution. 

The applicable fees for both FAS and FMS recipients include the activity and service fee, health fee, athletic fee, financial aid fee, capital improvement fee, campus access/transportation fee, technology fee, and tuition differential fee. 

Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) are students who graduate from high school with a minimum 3.0 GPA. FMS  scholars will receive an award to cover 75 percent of tuition and applicable fees.

Gold Seal Vocational Scholars (GSV) are students who graduate high school with a minimum 3.0 GPA. Award amounts range from $39 to $48 per semester hour.

William L. Boyd, IV Effective Access to Student Education Program

Eligibility – Florida residents enrolled in an eligible private, non-profit college or university in Florida for a minimum of 12 credit hours.

Awards – participating institution determines application procedures, deadlines, and student eligibility. Minimum 2.0 GPA required for renewal.

Students enrolled in upper-level courses in quality, high-demand programs, such as Teaching, Nursing, Allied Health, Agriculture/Vet Science, Cyber Security and Digital Arts/Computer Graphics, may qualify for an additional stipend in conjunction with the regular EASE grant award amount. Students may contact the financial aid offices of eligible Florida postsecondary institutions for more information regarding the award amount per term.

First Generation Matching Grant (FGMG)

Eligibility – Florida residents who qualify as a first generation college student, attend a state university, and take a minimum of 6 credit hours per term. To be considered “first generation” neither of the student’s parents can be recipients of a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Awards – the amount is based on student’s need assessment after all other scholarship and grant aid has been applied.

Florida Farmworker Student Scholarship (FFSS)

Eligibility – need-based merit scholarship that provides financial assistance to a maximum of 50 eligible students who are farmworkers (or children of farmworkers), as defined in Florida Statutes who attend a public postsecondary institution. 

Awards – an award equal to the amount required to pay tuition and specified fees. 

Florida First Responder Scholarship Program

Program is created to assist in the recruitment of law enforcement officers, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and firefighters within the state.

Eligibility – be enrolled in an approved training program at a Florida College System institution.

Awards – first-come, first-served basis; amount equal to tuition and fees necessary to complete the qualifying training program.

Florida Student Assistance Grant (FSAG) 

Eligibility – undergraduate Florida residents who can demonstrate substantial financial need and are attending an eligible postsecondary institution in Florida on a full- or part-time basis.

Awards – based on need and type of institution the student is attending. Award amounts vary per year. Minimum award is  $200. Award amount depends on institution and the student’s enrollment status. Additionally, high school students graduating in the top 20 percent of each senior class are eligible for the Talented Twenty Program in which they are guaranteed admission to one of the eleven state universities in Florida and receive priority funding.

Florida Work Experience Program (FWEP)

Eligibility – undergraduate Florida residents who demonstrate financial need, are enrolled for a minimum of six credit hours per term or 180 clock hours at an eligible Florida postsecondary institution including career centers operated by a school board, and who seek work experience to complement and reinforce their educational and career goals.

 Awards – determined by institutional financial aid office based on financial need and number of hours the student works. Students receive award funding directly from the employer.

The Randolph Bracy Ocoee Scholarship 

Eligibility – The Randolph Bracy Ocoee Scholarship Program was created by the 2021 Florida Legislature to provide student financial assistance for a maximum of 50 eligible students who are either (1) a direct descendant of victims of the Ocoee Election Day Riots of November 1920, or (2) current African-American residents of Ocoee, Florida. Applicants must provide proof of ancestry or proof of residency to the Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) for initial eligibility consideration. Eligible students must attend a state university, public state college, or public postsecondary technical center in Florida.

Awards – will receive an amount up to $6,100 annually, not to exceed the amount of the student’s tuition and registration fees. 

Funds for the program are contingent each year upon the appropriations made available by the Florida Legislature.

José Martí Scholarship Challenge Grant

Eligibility – students of Hispanic origin who will enroll full-time in an eligible Florida college or university and who were born in or have a natural parent who was born in Mexico, or a Hispanic country in South America, Central America, or the Caribbean. Minimum 3.0 GPA is required. Renewal and high school students receive priority over graduate students. 

Awards – up to $2,000 per year, renewable for eight semesters. 

Mary McLeod Bethune

Scholarship (MMB)

Eligibility – Florida residents who are high school seniors with a 3.0 cumulative GPA who will attend Florida A & M University, Bethune-Cookman College, Edward Waters University, Florida University, or Florida Memorial University who demonstrate financial need. 

Awards – each participating institution determines application procedures, deadlines, student eligibility and award amount.

For application and information contact the financial aid offices at the participating institutions.

Minority Teacher Education Scholarship Program

Eligibility – Florida resident enrolled in a teacher education program at a participating postsecondary institution who has not earned more than 18 hours of upper-division-level courses in education at the time of application and maintains at least a 2.5 grade point average, and belongs to one of the following racial groups:  African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian American/Pacific Islander or American Indian/Alaskan Native. 

Awards – $4,000 per academic year. Upon graduation, recipient is required to teach in a Florida public school one year for each year award money was received.

For information contact Florida Fund for Minority Teachers, ffmt.org.

Rosewood Family

Scholarship Fund

Eligibility – undergraduate, full-time students who are direct descendants of affected African American Rosewood families and are enrolled in eligible Florida public postsecondary institutions. A maximum of  50 eligible  students will receive financial assistance. 

Awards – not to exceed $6,100 annually. 

Scholarships for Children and Spouses of Deceased or 

Disabled Veterans

Eligibility – Florida residents who are dependent children (age 16­–22) or unremarried spouses of deceased or 100 percent disabled veterans, or children of an individual classified as POW or MIA, who are enrolled in an undergraduate degree or certificate program for a minimum of six credit hours, 180 clock hours, or the equivalent, per term at an eligible participating postsecondary institution. 

Awards – equal to the amount of tuition and required registration fees.