Types of Aid

Student loans sometimes get a bad rap, but they can be a very effective tool to help you complete your education in a timely fashion. But, if you over borrow, they can become a real headache after you graduate. There are four kinds of loans you can take out at Lane. Additional steps are required to receive your loan disbursement, see Student Loan Requirements under Get Paid.

Scholarships are a great resource for students because they are free money. In many ways they are like a federal Pell Grant. Perhaps the biggest difference between scholarships and grants is that grants are need based, while scholarships are often merit based. Merit based means that the student has demonstrated they are good student and community member. Scholarships always require an additional application. Below are the typical components of a scholarship application.

Application and GPA

Not every scholarship cares about your GPA, but most of them will require it on the application. That doesn’t mean that you have to have a perfect 4.0. There are plenty of great scholarships out there for students with a 3.0 or in some cases even a 2.5

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation are sometimes tricky to get. You want to ask for a letter of recommendation at or near the end of a class that you have done well in. Ask for letters of recommendation from instructors when you're fresh in their mind, and the letters will always be better than letters that are terms or years later. Try to target instructors who teach in your major. They will be more compelling.

Telling Your Story: The Essay

Many scholarships will ask you to write a short essay response to a question. The question is almost always a version of, “tell us about a challenge you’ve had in your life and how you over came it.” Learning how to tell your story is so very important and is often overlooked by scholarship applicants. What the scholarship donor wants to determine is if you are worth the investment. Get good at writing your story and make sure to get it edited and proofread by at least one other person. 

Finding Scholarships

Beware! There are a lot of scam scholarships out there that will just take your money and never intend to give you a scholarship. Four great resources for safe scholarships are:

• LCC Foundation
• Oregon Student Access and Completion Commission
• Fastweb
• Lanes’ Welcome Center - Scholarship Office - located in Building 1, room 101

Financial Aid determines your budget based on the information you provided on the FAFSA. Your financial aid budget is based on the cost of attendance at Lane and any associated living expenses like rent and food. After your tuition and fees are paid, you may have financial aid money left over. This money can be used to pay your bills and cover your living expenses.

Here is an example of a three term student budget for the 2025-2026 academic year.