TAMPA, Fla. — The University of South Florida plans to provide $20 million to help students who are experiencing financial hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The university wants students to graduate on time despite the hardships created by the pandemic.
"We just decided to be proactive and try to put some financial aid assistance out to encourage students to continue their plans to enroll full-time," said Billie Jo Hamilton, the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Planning & Management.
The university started awarding the "We Got U-SF Scholarship and Waiver" to nearly 22,000 eligible undergraduate and graduate students to encourage full-time enrollment in the fall semester.
Eligible students must be enrolled full-time in the Fall 2020 semester.
To qualify, undergraduate students must not have their full cost of attendance covered or their financial need fully met with other need-based financial aid. In addition, students receiving a state-mandated or USF approved tuition waiver will not be eligible.
"Even if you did not qualify for this or if you need more than what we're offering, we really encourage families to reach out and let us have these conversations with them because other opportunities may be available," said Hamilton.
Students who qualify will receive an email. Scholarship amounts will vary.
"It varies depending on if the student is paying in-state tuition or out-of-state tuition and whether they're undergraduate or graduate students so the amount varies from $750 to just over $2,000," said Hamilton.
The University of South Florida plans to resume more on-campus operations and some face-to-face courses in the fall.
In the fall, USF will deliver classes using a flexible hybrid approach that includes a mix of fully face-to-face courses, fully online courses and blended courses that are partially in-person and partially online.
For more information on USF's financial help, click here.
