Guide to Tuition Rewards

This guide is meant to give you, the student, an overview of the Tuition Rewards program, how it works, and what you’ll need to do as you get closer to going to college.

• What Are Tuition Rewards?
• Important Dates and Deadlines
• Submitting Tuition Rewards to Member Colleges
• Four scenarios showing how a college can apply the rewards
• The "fine print"

What are Tuition Rewards?

Through Tuition Rewards we bridge the gap between students that want a private college education, but don’t think they can afford one, and private colleges and universities that offer guaranteed tuition discounts.

Your Tuition Rewards Points represent the guaranteed minimum amount of institutional financial aid (i.e. scholarships and/or institutional grants) that a participating college will award you. You may receive more financial aid than the rewards points represent, but you will not receive less! For example, if you redeem 30,000 points, we guarantee that you will receive at least $30,000 in financial aid, spread equally over 4 years (5 if you’re in a co-op program) of undergraduate education.

Colleges may elect to blend Tuition Rewards in with other financial aid (including scholarships), or stack (add) Tuition Rewards on top of other financial aid.

Important Dates and Deadlines

Earning and Receiving Tuition Rewards

The last day that you can earn rewards directly, including bonus points, is August 31st of the year that you begin 12th grade. This is also the last day that sponsoring family members can transfer rewards to you. Please make sure that all sponsors are aware of this deadline.

Submitting and Redeeming a your Tuition Rewards

Your, or a sponsoring family member must submit an electronic Tuition Rewards Statement of your account at the time of the your application to any participating college. Ideally, the statement will be submitted within a few days of your application.

If the you have multiple Sponsors only one would need to submit the statement. Not all statements need to be submitted at once (if you apply to more than one college over several months, you or a sponsoring family member would just need to submit the statement at the time of application to each college). Do not submit a statement weeks, or months, early or late. Also, please only submit statements to schools that you have, or will, actually be applying to.

Account Overview

Upon successfully signing in to your account you will be presented with your account overview page. Pay special attention if you see the “Important Alerts ” menu choice on the top navigation menu. This page will contain important date sensitive information about your account.

The top portion of your account overview page shows your current FastTrak score. Below that is “Your Total Available Tuition Rewards”, which is the total amount of Points in your account — both earned directly by you, as well as Points allocated to you by sponsoring family members.

Submitting and Redeeming Tuition Rewards

Beginning mid-summer between 11th and 12th grades, you will be able to submit (redeem) your Tuition Rewards. Look for "Redeem Your Rewards" under Account Navigation on the main navigation menu.

You need to submit the rewards within ten (10) days of the your actual application to the college. You do not have to submit to all colleges at once if you apply to more than one over several weeks or months.

Submitting rewards is easy! Simply select “Redeem Your Rewards” from the main menu. Pay attention to the 4 scenarios of how a member college can use the rewards. Once you've read and understood those, indicate agreement by checking the box and then proceed to the list of member colleges.

A special note about submitting rewards prior to August 31st

If you, or any family member sponsoring you, submit a Tuition Rewards statement prior to August 31st, this will lock your account as if the August 31st deadline had passed. Please make sure that all of your sponsors, have transferred the desired amount of Tuition Rewards to you prior to submitting rewards to any member college.

Please only submit Tuition Rewards to colleges that you have actually, or will be, applying to.

Four scenarios showing how a college can apply the rewards

In each scenario, we use the example of 30,000 Tuition Rewards points being submitted at the time of application.

1. The college awards you no scholarships or institutional grants. In this scenario, the college would be obligated to provide a scholarship or discount of at least $30,000.
2. The college awards you $20,000 ($5,000 per year for four years) in institutional aid such as scholarships and/or grants. In this scenario, the college would be obligated to increase the institutional aid offered to at least $30,000.
3. The college awards you $30,000 ($7,500 per year for four years) in institutional aid such as scholarships and/or grants. In this scenario, the college has met its obligation (to provide a scholarship or other institutional aid of at least the amount of Tuition Rewards) and is not required to increase the financial aid award.
4. The college awards you $40,000 ($10,000 per year for four years) in institutional aid such as scholarships and/or grants. The college has fully met its obligation since the amount of aid offered meets or exceeds the amount of rewards redeemed. Colleges may "stack" rewards on top of other aid, or "blend" Tuition Rewards into their financial aid package; colleges do not need to show Tuition Rewards separately in the financial aid offer.

The “fine print”

This section will give you a brief overview of other important aspects of the Tuition Rewards program. It is not meant to replace the full Tuition Rewards Terms and Conditions, but rather to give you synopsis of the program's terms.

• Tuition Rewards® are not awarded in cash. Your Tuition Rewards Points represent “guaranteed minimum scholarships” redeemable for discounts off the “list price” of undergraduate tuition at participating 4-year private colleges & universities. 1 Point = $1.00. Points must be submitted at time of application for the freshman year. Participating colleges reserve the right to include Tuition Rewards as part of any financial aid package. Tuition Rewards are limited to a maximum per student of up to one year’s tuition, spread evenly over 4 years, or as contractually agreed.
• The Tuition Rewards discount is spread equally over four years, and is valid for first-time, full-time incoming freshmen only. Colleges with five year co-op plans may elect to spread rewards equally over five years.
• Colleges reserve the right to include Tuition Rewards as part of other institutional awards (“blending”). Tuition Rewards are not required to be added on top of (“stacked”) other awards. Even if the rewards are blended into other institutional aid, they are considered to have been used and cannot be refunded.
• Failure to add students, assign rewards and submit rewards by the listed deadlines may make your Tuition Rewards points unusable.
• New colleges that may join are not obligated to honor Tuition Rewards for currently matriculated students, or for students who have begun the application process.