We attend college with the promise of a better life, a career with good pay and social skills that will impact our entire lifetime. Unfortunately for some students, attending college is also a financial burden. Tuition is a large reason for student’s hesitation in continuing higher education. Fortunately, there are many organizations that offer grants and scholarships for college students in Florida, as well as those still in high school.

Submitting your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the first course of action. This will determine what you are eligible for from the federal and state government.

Florida aims to retain promising students within the sunshine state; therefore, the following grants and scholarships are targeted towards Florida residents:

1. First Generation Matching Grant is for those first-generation students whose parents never received a college degree. You must submit your FAFSA application, as this will help determine your eligibility for this grant. Depending on the need basis, you may have your entire tuition covered.
2. Hillsborough County Florida Scholarship is for students between 16 and 24 years old who have a minimum 2.5 GPA, reside in Hillsborough County and have a household income within 125% of the Federal Poverty Guideline. The scholarship may be as high as $5000, depending of the student’s need.
3. The Jose Marti Scholarship Challenge Grant is for Hispanic students whose parents were born in Mexico, the Caribbean or Central or South America. Your GPA must be a 3.0 by the end of high school and applications must be submitted through the Florida Financial Aid Application.
4. The KML Foundation Inc. Scholarship is exclusively for Hillsborough, Pasco or Pinellas county residents. Award amounts are based on factors such as good citizenship, academic ability, career potential and financial situation. This is determined by their select committee.
5. The BHW scholarship is for women pursuing an undergraduate or master’s degree and are majoring in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. For this scholarship, you must submit an essay of 500-800 words on your favorite app and what you like about it or about a time an app played a significant role in improving your day.

There are many other scholarship opportunities available on websites such as,

CollegeScholarships.com, Free-4U.com (who has a specific list of scholarships, depending on your major) and Unigo.com