Scholarships

SMCCCD Scholarships

Each year, the three colleges of the San Mateo County Community College District (SMCCCD) -- Cañada College, College of San Mateo, and Skyline College -- award institutional scholarships to new, continuing, and transfer students. The scholarship awards are based on academic achievement, financial need or specific interests such as clubs, athletics, and service.

Funding for our scholarships comes from contributions to San Mateo County Community Colleges Foundation which ensures that quality, affordable higher education is available to every member of our community. Visit the San Mateo County Community Colleges Foundation website to learn more.

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Skyline College Scholarships

 

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Please Note: External scholarships have their own terms and conditions. The donor determines which academic costs are covered by their scholarship. For example, some scholarships require the cost of books and supplies appear on a student's college invoice and they don't cover items purchased outside of the bookstore. It's important that you review the Terms and Conditions of your scholarship. The Financial Aid Office is a third party, we assist with the disbursement of these funds and follow the requirements set by the donor. We don't have the authority to override these requirements.  

 

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Palo Alto Rotary Vocational Scholarship 2023 - 2024

 

The Rotary Club of Palo Alto vocational scholarships are intended to provide financial assistance to students who will enroll in an accredited career program or vocational program at one of the following community colleges: Cañada College, College of San Mateo, De Anza College, Foothill College, and Skyline College. These scholarships are named in honor of Dr. Robert Smithwick, a founder of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District and long-time Rotarian. Dr. Smithwick was active in community service and devoted to improving health and education locally and abroad.

Eligible students will enroll in a program leading to a certificate or degree, and will plan to go directly into employment in that field upon completion of the program. Examples of vocational programs include but are not limited to: automotive technology, accounting, child development, dental hygiene, fashion design, graphic design, medical assisting, and many others. The scholarships are primarily need-based rather than grade-based. The scholarships are not intended for general academic pursuits, for students intending to transfer to four-year colleges, or for graduate degrees.

Up to ten (10) scholarships will be awarded typically in amounts varying from $1000 to $3,000 for full-time students and lesser amounts for part-time students.  The award will be paid to the student upon confirmation of enrollment: it is intended to support the vocational educational goals of the recipient and may be used for tuition or other expenses incurred in pursuit of the educational program.

_ELIGIBILITY

Eligible applicants include:

• High school seniors who will graduate in June, 2023 and will enroll in a career/vocational program in fall of 2023
• Students currently enrolled in an accredited career/vocational program described above, and continuing in that program in fall of 2023.
• Returning students: individuals with high school degrees who have been out of school and are returning to pursue a career/vocational education.

All applicants must enroll in no fewer than 6 units in an accredited career/vocational program in fall of 2023, and must intend to remain enrolled in 6 units or more for the full 2023-2024 academic year.

_{SCHEDULE OF APPLICATION & REVIEW}

Schedule of announcement and application process:

• Friday, April 14, 2023—Application Deadline
• Friday, April 21, 2023—Applicants notified if they will be interviewed
• Thursday, May 4 & Saturday, May 6, 2023 —Applicant Interviews via Zoom (Date/Time will be assigned based on availability)
• Friday, May 19, 2023—Notification of decisions

Application Process: Application forms may be obtained from our website:  www.rotarypaloalto.org, by clicking on the Vocational Scholarships link. Save the form to your files, fill it out and save the completed form to your files.

_{INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION OF APPLICATION}

• E-mail your completed application as an attachment to: parscholarship@gmail.com or printed and mailed to the address below.

_{INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION OF LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION:}

One letter of recommendation must also be sent to support your application, preferably from a current or former instructor.  You should send this page of application instructions to the person who will be writing a recommendation for you. It will help them understand the intent of the scholarship, and the procedure for them to submit their recommendation.

• Letters of recommendation should be e-mailed to: parscholarship@gmail.com    

Or, applications and letters of recommendations may be mailed to:

Palo Alto Rotary
Vocational Scholarships
P. O. Box 592
Palo Alto, CA  94302

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Children of Fallen Heroes Scholarship

To qualify for the scholarship, students must be:

• Pell-eligible
• Have a Pell-eligible EFC
• Must be less than 24 years of age
• Or enrolled at an institution of higher education at the time of his or her parents or guardians death

 For purposes of the Children of Fallen Heroes Scholarship, a “public safety officer” is:

• An individual serving a public agency in an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or chaplain;
• An employee of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) who is performing official duties of the agency, if those official duties:
• are related to a major disaster or emergency that has been, or is later declared to exist with respect to the area under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act; and
• are determined by FEMA to be hazardous duties;

Check Children and Fallen Heros Scholarship Act for more information regarding this scholarship and to view definitions.

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External Scholarship Opportunities

There are plenty of scholarships available to apply for outside of the district. See a list of scholarships we recommend looking into based on your personal background, interests, and goals.

External Scholarship Opportunities

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Additional Scholarship Resources