Scholarship checks made out to you or to the school
Private sponsors pay scholarships in different ways, and the name on the check decides what you do next. Learn who a check may be made out to, which campus office handles it and how the money turns into a credit on your account.
Who the check names
Many sponsors make the check out to the college and mail it to the bursar or student accounts office, with your name and student ID on the memo line or in a cover letter. Some make it out to both you and the college, which means you may need to sign it before the school can deposit it. A few pay the student directly, often for a book award or when the sponsor wants the student to control the money.
Sponsors usually ask for your student ID number, the college's mailing address for scholarships and the term the money is for. Give those details exactly, since a check without a clear name and ID can sit unapplied in a campus office.
What the campus office does with it
Once the bursar receives a check, it posts the money to your student account, often split between terms if the sponsor asked. The aid office records it as outside aid and may adjust your offer. If the payment and your other aid exceed what you owe the college, the school issues the extra as a refund on its usual schedule.
Some sponsors pay only after the college confirms that you are enrolled, so the check may arrive weeks into the term. If the bill is due first, ask the bursar whether it can note the expected payment or allow a short delay.
Give those details exactly, since a check without a clear name and ID can sit unapplied in a campus office.
When the check comes to you
A check made out only to you is still an outside scholarship, and the aid office still needs to know about it. Read the sponsor's letter to see whether the money must pay for a specific cost, such as tuition or books, and keep receipts that show how you spent it. Those records help if the sponsor asks for a report, and again at tax time.
If a check that names both you and the college arrives at your home, contact the bursar to ask how to sign and deliver it. A check written to both parties needs the college's endorsement as well as yours, so the campus office usually handles the deposit.
Steps to take this week
- Ask the bursar for its mailing address for scholarship checks
- Give each sponsor your student ID and the term
- Report a check made out to you to the aid office
- Keep receipts for money a sponsor paid to you directly
Who decides
Your college's bursar or student accounts office
The name on a scholarship check decides who deposits it, and the aid office needs to know about every one.
