Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholarship Program for 2009-2010.

/Home/Student Loan Information by State/Connecticut Student Loans

The U.S. Department of Education has announced that
scholarships will be available under the Robert C. Byrd
Honors Scholarship Program for 2009-2010.

The purpose of this program is to promote student
excellence and achievement and to recognize
exceptionally able students who show promise of
continued excellence. Byrd Scholarships will be
awarded to selected high school seniors for full-time
study at colleges located in the United States.

Selection
This program is highly competitive. Each applicant is
assigned a composite score based upon high school
rank in class and SAT or ACT scores. Rank in class
has a value double the value of SAT or ACT scores.
Applicants with the highest composite score in each
county of the State are selected for scholarships.
If selected for a scholarship, the recipient may take the
scholarship to any accredited college in the United
States.

Grant Amounts for 2009-2010
Grant amounts for 2009-2010 are anticipated to be
$1,500, the same as they were for 2008-2009. Awards
are renewable contingent upon federal funding. Award
amounts may be adjusted if the recipient is receiving
other federal aid and if the total aid exceeds the annual
cost of attendance. If a scholarship recipient has
already been tendered a college financial aid package
which includes a federal loan and if the college must
adjust the aid package because of this scholarship,
the portion of the aid package which must initially be
reduced is the federal loan.

Eligibility Requirements
An applicant must:
1. be a legal resident of Connecticut;
2. be a U.S. citizen or a permanent
resident alien, or a national, or be in the
process of applying to be a U.S. citizen;
3. receive a secondary school diploma in
June 2009, and;
4. rank in the top 2 percent of his or her
JUNIOR year class, OR have a
combined score of 2100 or better on the
Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), or a
composite score of 32 or better on the
ACT;
5. have applied or been accepted for
enrollment to any accredited college in
the United States;
6. submit a completed application form by
April 1, 2009 to the Robert C. Byrd
Honors Scholarship Program, c/o the
Connecticut Department of Higher
Education, 61 Woodland Street,
Hartford, CT 06105-2326.

Award Notification
All 2009-2010 applicants will receive written notification
prior to July 1st concerning the status of their application.
Award Disbursement
Awards are sent directly to colleges for deposit into student
accounts. Half of the award is sent in the fall after the
college confirms a student's eligibility. The balance is sent
to the college in the spring following enrollment
confirmation.