I won the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship this year, but I also snagged a few other big awards, including a full ride with a presidential scholarship from my university. So, my tuition and other educational costs are covered completely.
However, the $9,000 check from Amazon is made out to my school, so I have to send it to their financial office. If any of you have won this scholarship before, do you know if that $9,000 will be refunded to me or if Amazon will take it back if it’s not used? Thanks for any info!
It probably depends on the school. You should check with your financial aid office to see how they’ll handle it. For reference, my child is a 2024 AFE recipient, and her $9k was applied directly to her bill.
This isn’t specific to Amazon (my son didn’t win), but we’re dealing with a similar situation with another scholarship. My son’s community college has a separate scholarship department that works with financial aid. He earned $30k in scholarships this year, but only needs $15k. He recently got two checks for $6k and $10k, but each scholarship required that any unused money be returned.
To make sure he doesn’t lose what he earned, his college applied the funds to his second semester (the first one is already paid). When registration for fall 2025 opens, they’ll roll the funds over to cover that semester. The head of the scholarship department promised to keep track and ensure they follow the scholarship guidelines while trying to avoid losing the money.
Make sure to find out who manages scholarships at your school and have thorough discussions with them. Some scholarships allow for refunds to students, and the order in which they’re applied can also matter.
Now would be a great time to check in with your financial aid office and ask how it works. You might be able to use the funds for books or other expenses.