SCHOLARSHIP
APPLICATION GUIDE
2015
We appreciate your interest in applying for scholarships
administered by the BBPA National Scholarship Fund
(NSF). Take a moment to carefully read this application
guide before completing the 2015 online scholarship
application form.
DEADLINE TO APPLY
Your online application must be received by,
Monday, June 1, 2015
While the application form must be submitted online, we require
supporting documents (teacher’s letter, community supporter’s
letter and a copy of your academic transcript (if available), to
be submitted in PDF format via a separate email to the NSF
([email protected]). We also require one hardcopy original
copy of your academic transcript be mailed/delivered to:
The BBPA National Scholarship Fund,
180 Elm Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5T 3M4.
ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIPS
Established in 1986, the BBPA National Scholarship Fund is a national scholarship program and eligible candidates from any part
of Canada may apply. In 2014, scholarships were granted to recipients attending colleges and universities in Nova Scotia, Ontario,
Quebec and the UK. Brief descriptions of some scholarships are currently posted to the BBPA National Scholarship Fund’s website at
www.bbpa.org . The list of scholarships is subject to change. In 2014, over 50 scholarships, valued at approximately $200,000., were
granted. As you prepare your 2015 scholarship application, consider the following definitions:
Scholarship: Financial aid provided to a student in order to
fund his/her academic studies. Unlike a loan, a scholarship does
not require repayment.
Non-Renewable Scholarship: This type of scholarship is
awarded for one year only. Most scholarships offered by the
BBPA NSF are non-renewable.
Renewable Scholarships: A scholarship is called ‘renewable’
if its duration spans more than one year. Each year, the recipient
must meet the university/college’s criteria for academic
progression in order to continue receiving the scholarship.
The following BBPA NSF scholarships are renewable: The TD
Financial Group Scholarships, and The Dentons Canada LLP
Scholarship.
WHO SHOULD APPLY
To be considered for a scholarship, you must be:
1: a member of the Canadian Black community (i.e. a Black
person of discernible African ancestry and you self identify as
Black/African- Canadian/African-Caribbean/African-American);
2: a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada,
3: a maximum 30 years of age at the start of the 2015-16
academic year, and be
4: enrolled as a full-time student in the academic year 20152016 at an accredited post-secondary institution (as determined
by the NSF).
SELECTION CRITERIA
The decision to grant a scholarship is based on the following
criteria:
1: high academic achievement,
2: financial need,
3: recognized contribution to the Black community, and
4: additional criteria that are established by the donor (e.g.
subject being studied; attendance at a specific university; etc.)
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BBPA NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
BASIC SELECTION PROCESS –
BASED ON FOUR SELECTION CRITERIA
The basic process for evaluating applicants and awarding
scholarships is as follows:
STEP 1: Three Standard Selection Criteria:
All applicants are evaluated by assessors based on the following
three standard criteria:
i) High Academic Achievement. This is based on your academic
transcript, and by testimony to your scholarly excellence that
is provided by a letter of recommendation by a teacher. See
Section C of your application form.
ii) Financial Need: This is based on the financial information that
is furnished in Section D of your application, by information
provided by your letters of recommendation, plus any reinforcing
narrative you provide.
iii) Contribution to the Black Community: This is based on
information presented in Section E of your application form, by
information provided by your letters of recommendation, plus
any reinforcing narrative you provide.
STEP 2: A Fourth Criterion Which is Donor Determined:
Step 2 applies the fourth selection criterion as noted in Section
F of the application form. These donor-prescribed criteria may
include (i) enrolment in a particular field of study, (ii) personal
attributes and achievements such as leadership, (iii) special
community service or volunteerism, (iv) residence in a specific
geographic area, or (v) other distinctive criteria. Most donors do
not specify unique criteria. Here are some examples of unique
donor-driven selection criteria:
- The TD Financial Group Scholarships require recipients to be
enrolled in business and be available to intern at the bank during
summers.
- The Dr. Anderson Abbot Scholarship requires enrolment at the
University of Toronto.
- The Dentons Canada LLP Scholarship requires enrolment in
law.
- The Lucille May Gopie Scholarship requires the recipient be
from a home headed by a sole-support parent.
- Some scholarships may target candidates who reside in
buildings managed by Toronto Community Housing Corporation
(TCHC).
STEP 3: Decision Making:
Decisions regarding which candidates are assigned specific
scholarships are made based on assessment of information
gathered in Steps 1 and 2. Donors who request participation in
the final decision for their particular scholarships are party to the
decision.
STEP 4: Conditional Offers of Scholarships:
Candidates selected in Step 3 will be emailed a conditional offer of
scholarship. They will be asked to provide additional information
(e.g. validation of enrolment in the 2015-16 academic year, etc.)
by a given deadline. Should they respond in a timely way with the
requested information, the conditions will be removed and they
will be awarded a scholarship
STEP 5: Confirmation of 2015 Scholarship:
With all conditions met, scholarship recipients will be officially
advised by email of their award. As a courtesy, applicants who
are unsuccessful in the 2015 scholarship program will be notified
by email.
STEP 6: Scholarship Awards Ceremony:
This ceremony is scheduled for the first week of October and will
be located at York University, Toronto. All scholarship recipients
and their families and friends will be invited. An applicant’s
inability to attend the awards ceremony in person will not impact
on his/her eligibility for a scholarship.
QUESTION 1:
WILL I BE CONSIDERED FOR ALL SCHOLARSHIPS?
You will be considered for all scholarships for which your
candidacy makes you eligible. Of course, if you do not have a
donor’s specific requirements you will not be considered for that
donor’s particular scholarship. In the end, you will be assessed
for eligibility for many of the available scholarships.
QUESTION 2: WHO SHOULD I CONTACT FOR
HELP WITH MY APPLICATION?
To ensure you do your best work in preparing your application, we
recommend that you consult all the resources available to you. If
in high school, consult your parents, your guidance counsellor, a
community mentor and/or any teacher who has been particularly
supportive of your development. The same may be said if you
are currently in a college/university, but additionally, you may
consult staff in your institution’s financial aid and awards office or
a person familiar with your school work or employment record.
SECTION A – YOUR PERSONAL PROFILE
Item 8: Email Address: Since communication with you will
be primarily by email, you must provide an active and frequentlymonitored-by-you email address. You must be the owner of the
email account. We will not accept the email address of a third
party as the means for communicating with you.
Item 9: Current Citizenship Status: Scholarships will
be awarded only to applicants who are citizens of Canada or
permanent residents of Canada.
- A Canadian citizen is a person who possesses Canadian
citizenship by birth or through the naturalization process under
the Canadian Citizenship Act.
- A permanent resident is someone who has been given
permanent resident status by immigrating to Canada, but is not
a Canadian citizen. Permanent residents are citizens of other
countries. A person in Canada temporarily, like a student or
foreign worker, is not a permanent resident.
Item 10: Permanent Canadian Address: Your permanent
address is where you permanently reside and the reliable default
address for postal contact with you, even if you are temporarily
living elsewhere (for purposes of attending school, etc.). This
must be a Canada-based address
Item 11: Mailing Address: Your mailing address and your
permanent address may be the same. However, it is possible
they could be different, with your mailing address being a
temporary address to which hardcopy mail may be delivered to
you. This mailing address could be your student residence or an
off-campus apartment or a temporary out-of-country address.
SECTION B:
YOUR SCHOOL/PROGRAM/CAREER PROFILE
Item 13: Your University/College: This refers to the
university or college you will be attending in the academic year
2015-16. Provide the name and address of the university/college
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and the particular campus that you will be attending.
BBPA NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Item 15: Your University/College Program:
Give the full official title of the program you will be enrolled in
during the academic year 2015-16 and include your subject of
major interest. Refer to the institution’s official documents for
official program titles. For example:
- Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.), majoring in Accounting
- Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.), majoring in Biochemistry
We should be able to find your program in your school’s website
and all your documentation should be consistent with this
program. In stating your ‘subject of major interest’, consider the
following: A subject of major interest is essentially a “major” or a
specialization within a more general degree program. For example,
a university may offer a Bachelor of Arts degree program. Within
this program you may specialize in a number of areas such as
Economics, Political Science, English, French, Sociology, History
or Drama.
Item 16: The Level of Your University/
College Program:
Consider the following definitions when completing this section:
Certificate or Diploma: These are non-degree programs offered
primarily by colleges, and some universities, and normally span
one to three years. These programs generally lead to employment
in an occupational field.
Associate Degree- The designation granted upon completion of
an educational program of at least 2 but less than 4 years of
college work.
Bachelor’s Degree: The degree customarily granted upon
completion of a program of study normally requiring three, four, or
five academic years of university (or combined college/university)
work. The bachelor of arts (BA) and bachelor of science (BS or
B.Sc.) are the most common bachelor’s degree.
Master’s Degree: This is customarily the first graduate degree in
the liberal arts and sciences and usually takes one to two academic
years of study beyond the bachelor’s degree to complete. The
master’s of arts (MA) and master’s of science (MS or M.Sc.) are
the most common master’s degrees.
First Professional Degree: The first professional degree signifying
completion of the minimum academic requirements for the
practise of a profession. Programs in this category are:
- Chiropractic (DC)
- Dentistry (DDS or DMD)
- Law, General (LLB or JD)
- Medicine (MD)
- Optometry (OD)
- Osteopathic Medicine (DO)
- Pharmacy (Bpharm, PharmD)
- Podiatry or podiatric medicine (Pod.D., DP., or DPM)
- Veterinary Medicine (DVM)
Item 19: Student Category or Time Status:
When enrolled, your college or university will assign you to a
specific time status or student category. This status could be (i)
full-time student in which case you pay corresponding full-time
fees, (ii) part-time status in which case you pay part-time fees,
or (iii) other. To receive a BBPA NSF scholarship you must be
enrolled as a full-time student. However, should you be enrolled
in a graduate program (master’s or doctorate) your status may be
other than full-time and we are prepared to consider variations in
your time status (e.g. half-time/thesis program). Your answer to
Item 16 will allow us to review your situation.
Item 20: Your Career/Occupational objectives:
Use this section to describe your career or occupational
objectives. If your current program of study does not readily
match your stated career objective, clarify this. If you plan on
attending a post-graduate program to pursue your stated career,
indicate this.
SECTION C:
YOUR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
Item 21: Your Academic Transcript (University /
College):
Answer Item 21 only if you were enrolled in a university or college
program prior to the academic year 2015-16. If you answer
Item 21, you must not answer Item 22. Item 21 asks for your
university/college transcript. Since some universities may be
slow in providing this document, we provide a later deadline (i.e.
June 8) for submitting the hardcopy original of this document.
Essentially, Item 21:
- reminds you to submit your scholarship application form by the
deadline of June 1 whether or not your academic transcript is
available, AND
- asks you to submit a PDF copy of your academic transcript (if
available) by email, at the time you submit your other supporting
documents , AND
- requires you to ensure your hardcopy academic transcript is
received by mail or in-person delivery in the BBPA NSF office by
the extended deadline for transcripts which is June 8.
Note that we while we ask for a PDF version of your transcript,
this is for administrative convenience, and you are still required
to provide the hardcopy original version.
Item 22: Your Academic Transcript (High School):
Answer Item 22 only if you were not enrolled in a university/
college prior to the academic year 2015-16. In this case, your
academic record is essentially your high-school record. If you
answer Item 22, you must not answer Item 21. Item 22 asks
for your high-school transcript. If you have difficulty obtaining
this document in a timely way, we provide a later deadline (i.e.
June 8) for submitting the hardcopy original of this document.
Essentially, Item 22:
- reminds you to submit your scholarship application form by the
deadline of June 1 whether or not your high-school academic
transcript is available, AND
- asks you to submit a PDF copy of your academic transcript (if
available) by email, at the time you submit your other supporting
documents , AND
- requires you to ensure your hardcopy academic transcript is
received by mail or in-person delivery in the BBPA NSF office by
the extended deadline for transcripts which is June 8.
Note that we while we ask for a PDF version of your transcript,
this is for administrative convenience, and you are still required
to provide the hardcopy original version.
Item 23: Letter of Recommendation from your
Teacher: You are required to submit a letter (PDF format
only) from a teacher (high school, college or university). This
letter must be submitted, in PDF format only, along with your
other supporting documents (i.e. community-supporter letter and
academic transcript, if available) as attachments in a separate
email to the BBPA NSF Office. See Item 35 below for more
details.
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BBPA NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
SECTION D:
YOUR FINANCES
General: This section explores information that facilitates
assessment of your financial need. If you have applied for
government financial assistance such as the Ontario Student
Assistance Program (OSAP) in Ontario, it is a good idea to
make sure that the information you present in your scholarship
information aligns with information in your government-assistance
application. As well, you may further your case for financial
support in your essay and also have aspects of your financial
status confirmed by your recommendation letters.
Item 24: Financial Aid Application: Indicate if you have
applied for government student financial aid (e.g. OSAP in
Ontario) in the province in which you reside.
Item 25: Parents: This item asks if your family is headed by a
sole-support parent (i.e. your mom or dad). Here, parent refers
to your birth or adoptive parent, step-parent, legal guardian, or
official sponsor.
Item 28: Budget Synopsis for 2015-16
(from May 31, 2015 to April 30, 2016): This item requires
you to construct a budget for the timeframe May 31, 2015 to
April 30, 2016. Ideally, this budget should match the information
you submit if you have applied for financial aid (e.g. OSAP) in
your in to your province. Be as accurate as possible and retain
your working notes. Later in the scholarship cycle, you may be
asked for details pertaining to your answers. In your application
form, provide:
i) The sum of your income for the period.
This should include the following income sources (where
applicable): employment income, government funding or
income support provided directly to you, awards, scholarships,
fellowships, loans, bursaries and grants (e.g. OSAP), selfemployment, co-op placement income, rental income, parental,
spousal or other family contribution, RESP, interest/dividends
earned from investments and in-trust accounts, lottery winnings,
monetary gifts from a source other than parents and spouse, and
court-ordered spousal support alimony payments.
ii) The sum of your expenses for the period.
This should include the following expenses (where applicable):
mandatory tuition fees, mandatory ancillary fees, text books,
residential/shelter fees, cell phone, Internet, travel/commuting
fees, food, miscellaneous equipment and supplies, and other.
iii) Net Income for 2015-16 (subtract total expenses from total
income)
Consider the following:
- Mandatory college/university fees and ancillary fees: This refers
to all compulsory fees charged by your university or college for
the academic year - including tuition and non-tuition fees.
- Text books: This refers to anticipated expenses for textbooks
and/or course guides that are required by your courses. Provide a
‘researched estimate’ if this information is not readily available.
- Travel /Commuting: This refers to expenses incurred for daily
commutes between your residence and college/university, as
well as scheduled trips between your school-related residence
and your permanent address (assuming you are living away from
home). Provide a ‘researched estimate’ if this information is not
readily available.
- Residential/Shelter Fees: If you are residing with family and/
or friends and are not charged a fee/rent, your expense for
residential/shelter fees is zero.
SECTION E:
YOUR RECORD OF COMMUNITY SERVICE
Item 30: Community Service: Community engagement,
particularly contribution to the development and well-being of
the Black community, is a criterion that supports our belief that
scholarship selection is ‘more than good grades’. In this section,
you may showcase your contribution to the community. It’s not
enough to say you were a member of a school club. We want
you to provide information regarding the specific role you played
in a service organization or community-service initiative. Did you
have a leadership role or other pivotal role within a community
organization or group? Have you given your knowledge, skills and
talents to any community endeavour that is given to improving
the lives of others or benefitting the community? Have you had
a significant volunteer or paid experience with a community
organization? Tell us about it by listing the organization, and by
describing the role/activity you undertook.
Item 31: Letter of Recommendation from a Member
of Your Community: You are required to submit a letter
from a community supporter. This letter must be submitted, in
PDF format only, along with your other supporting documents
(i.e. teacher’s letter and academic transcript if available) as
attachments in a separate email to the BBPA NSF Office. See
Item 35 below for more details.
SECTION F:
DONOR-DETERMINED SELECTION CRITERIA
Items 32: Special Donor Selection Criteria: This section
provides you with the means to guide our assessors in considering
you for scholarships with donor-determined criteria. We ask that
you flag a maximum of THREE criteria in Item 32.
SECTION G:
SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION:
Please read these instructions carefully. Section G provides
detailed direction regarding how to submit your 2015 scholarship
application.
34: Preparing and Submitting Your Application: Once
you start the online scholarship application form, you must
complete and submit it in one step. The application does not allow
you to save data in a partially completed form and to complete it
at a later date. This one-step approach requires careful planning
on your part. One approach is to be identify areas where you
are required to provide ‘essay responses’. Prepare these essay
responses in a Word document, and then paste the Word
document into the online application form. The items which require
‘essay responses’ are: Item 29 (financial need), Item 30 (record
of community service), and Item 33 (special donor criteria).
Submit your online application form by the deadline of Monday,
June 1, 2015. Do so knowing that you still have remaining steps
to complete the applications process. See Items 35 and 36
below.
Item 35: Electronic Submission of Supporting
Documents: Immediately after submitting your scholarship
application, you must send an email to the National Scholarship
Fund ([email protected]) with the following documents
attached in PDF format:
i: A Letter of Recommendation from your Teacher: PDF format
ii: A Letter of Recommendation from a member of your
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BBPA NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Community: PDF format
iii: Your Academic Transcript: PDF format. Should you experience
a delay in obtaining your hardcopy original transcripts, we will
extend the receipt (by the NSF) of your transcript to a June 8
deadline.
Note: The subject line of your email must include your name
(Surname, Given Name...e.g. MAKEBA, AMOYE), and so too
must all other email correspondence you send to the NSF
Office.
37: Communicating with the National Scholarship Fund:
i: Email Address: [email protected]
ii: Postal Address:
The postal address of the National Scholarship Fund is:
The Board of Trustees
The National Scholarship Fund
180 Elm Street,
Toronto, Ontario,
M5T 3M4.
iii: Phone: 416 504 4097
36: Submitting Your Hardcopy Original Transcript:
You must submit a hardcopy original of your academic transcript
to the NSF Office no later than Monday, June 8, 2015. It must be
SECTION H– TERMS AND CONDITION
received by the NSF by June 8. Refer to Items 21 and 22 of this
General: Please read the terms and conditions section on the
application form for details about your academic transcript. (See
application form. To be a candidate for a 2015 scholarship you
the NSF’s address in Item 37)
must first accept the NSF’s Terms and Conditions. We advise
that you print a copy of these Terms and Conditions for your
records.
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