Bright Futures Scholarship Info

Learn about the various Bright Futures Scholarships                                        

  • Florida Academic Scholarship          
  • Florida Medallion Scholarship
  • Florida Gold Seal Scholarship CAPE     
  • Florida Gold Seal Vocational
  • It is important to note, the GPA requirements for each scholarship is calculated based on the student's earned grades in only their core classes (English, Math, Science, Social Studies and Foreign Language).  There will be many instances where the cummulative GPA on the student's report card is different than the cummulative GPA for Bright Futures eligibility.
  • To monitor your "Bright Futures GPA" or any other Bright Futures eligibility criteria, students and parents may inquire by asking the student's school counselor or students and parents can log into the student's Bright Futures account at www.FloridaStudentFinancialAidsg.org by selecting the Login link in the upper right corner. Students can use their User ID and password issued by the Florida Department of Education to log in. If students don't have their login credentials, they can retrieve them using the links provided within the Login menu. Students can also call the Florida Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance at (888) 827-2004 for assistance.

Please be aware that the ACT/SAT test score requirements for both the Florida Academic Scholarship changes for the 2024 Cohort and beyond . 

Florida Financial Aid Application Guide: The Florida Financial Aid Application, also know as the FFAA, must be completed senior year as early as October 1st.  All seniors working towards a Bright Futures Scholarship should complete the FFAA as early as possible even if the full requirements for the scholarship have not been fully met yet.  The submission of the FFAA simply notifies the state that the senior intends on utilizing the scholarship if found eligible.  If a student were to qualify for a Bright Futures Scholarship but failed to complete the application by deadline at the end of 12th grade (If you are a mid-year graduate, your Bright Futres application must be completed no later than December 31st) the student would be perminately inelgible for the specified scholarship.

Complete your Florida Financial Aid Application here. Opens October 1st.

College entrance exams (ACT and SAT):

  • Bright Futures will evaluate your ACT/SAT scores based on the official ACT and SAT scores obtained directly from the two national test companies through the state repository. 
  • In order for your ACT and/or SAT test scores to be sent to the repository, students must first request their official single sitting test scores be sent to at least one of Florida's 12 state public universities.  This applies to all students, even if you are not going to go directly to the university after high school. For example: Sarah expects to qualify for a Bright Futures Scholarship. She plans on attending Pasco Hernando State College for 2 years and then will apply to a university but she does not know which university she will ultimately attend.  In this case Sarah will indicate she wants her ACT and SAT scores sent to the University of South Florida/USF so her scores go into the repository for her Bright Futures Scholarship.
  • Final evaluations for seniors will only consider test dates through July after gradaution.

Additional Information and Resources:

Notification of Eligibility: Early Evaluations (7th Semester) – Postings may begin in March

  • All students whose transcripts are submitted electronically to FDOE for an official early evaluation (based on academic progress in the middle of the last year of high school and test scores for tests taken no later than January 31) will receive an eligibility or ineligibility determination, with the award status notification posted to their online account.
  • •Students cannot lose an award based on early evaluation unless they fail to earn a standard Florida high school diploma from a Florida public or FDOE-registered private high school.

Final Evaluations (8th Semester) – Postings may begin in July

  • All students whose final transcripts are submitted following the student’s last term in high school (with test scores for tests taken no later than June 30th) will receive an award status notification (eligibility or ineligibility determination) posted to their online account.
  • NOTE: Students awarded an IB or AICE Diploma will receive notifications of eligibility determination in early fall after a list of IB and AICE Diploma recipients has been received from these respective organizations.

Notification of Eligibility - FARH

  • The award (or ineligibility) determination will be posted to a student's online Financial Aid Recipient History (FARH) screen and is viewable by the student. The FARH shows the following information:
    • Award status (eligibility determination);
    • Demographic information;
    • Postsecondary institution;
    • Amount disbursed each semester;
    • Spring renewal GPA;
    • Hours remaining for the year and for the scholarship; and
    • Correspondence posted and/or sent from FDOE.Additional Resources
  • Please visit the Florida's "Navigating Your Financial Future" for information as it pertains to paying for college and determining what you can afford.

TIP:

  • When applying to colleges and universities, be sure that your name is the same on the following documents. 
    • Name on your Social Security Card
    • Name on your Springstead Transcript. If not, see Mrs. Rios in guidance.
    • Name on your PHSC transcript (if applicable). If not call PHSC to correct.
    • Name on your university/college application.