February 2000

Society Explains Scholarship Selection Process

The NYSSCPA receives hundreds of applications each year for its Excellence in Accounting Scholarship. To help students and Society members understand the selection process, The Trusted Professional spoke with Kathleen Brown, chair of the NYSSCPA Scholarship Awards Committee.

Brown explained that the process begins with a financial aid counselor reviewing the financial aid section of all applications. Last year, Nancy West, assistant financial aid director at Baruch College, reviewed all applications, and she and the committee checked to see which students had the most financial need.

To ensure geographic distribution of awards across New York state, the Scholarship Awards Committee, which includes representatives from all 11 Society chapters, selects recipients from each chapter area based on the students' home addresses. The Society allocates the number of scholarships awarded in each chapter based on the number of NYSSCPA members residing in that area.

The committee takes one full day to review all applications, as members discuss and debate each one to determine whether the student meets certain criteria. The Society awards scholarships of $1,500 per academic year for full-time students (12 credits or more per semester) and $750 per academic year for part-time students (at least six credits per semester), presenting payments in separate equal installments, one each semester. Students must be New York state residents majoring in accounting at a college or university in the state. Recipients can renew the awards each year provided they continue to meet all eligibility requirements.

"The committee looks for accounting students who have the most financial need and those students who have the strongest academic record," Brown said. "We feel it is important to encourage and reward those students who have a good academic background and also have financial need, and we hope the scholarship can help them reach their goal of becoming a CPA."

The application process for this year's scholarships is now under way. The deadline is April 1. Students can pick up an application from their accounting department chairs, accounting clubs, or financial aid offices or print a copy from http://www.nysscpa.org. For more information, contact Joyce Lewis at (212) 719-8379, (800) 633-6320, or jlewis@nysscpa.org. *