Scholarships for Students
Bay Federal Credit Union’s Education Scholarship is for students who are pursuing education and career training opportunities after high school.
Application Deadline: March 16, 2025
Bay Federal Credit Union’s Education Scholarship is for students who are pursuing education and career training opportunities after high school. Up to three individual winners will be awarded $1,500 to pay for expenses directly related to their continuing education. Those who wish to be considered for an award must meet all eligibility requirements below and submit a completed 2025 Education Scholarship Application and all required documents described in this document by no later than March 16, 2025. Winners will be notified by April 30, 2025.
Eligibility Requirements
To apply for this scholarship, you must meet the following requirements:
Membership Requirements
Applicants must be a Bay Federal Credit Union (“Bay Federal”) member in good standing. This means:
- You must have a Bay Federal Membership Savings Account in your name with a balance of at least $5. Membership criteria is available on the Bay Federal Credit Union Joining FAQs.
- You cannot have caused Bay Federal a financial loss, either from a charged-off deposit or a charged-off loan.
- You cannot have loans with past-due payments/charged-off loans or lines of credit.
Academic Requirements
By August 1, 2025:
- You must be either a high school graduate, a high school senior scheduled to graduate with the Class of 2025, or you must have completed and passed a high school equivalency exam. High school seniors who are concurrently enrolled in college classes are eligible to apply as long as they meet the above graduation requirements.
- You must also be accepted and/or enrolled as a part- or full-time student for the Fall 2025 quarter, semester, or session at any postsecondary school, college, university, or trade certification program that is accredited by any of the nationally recognized accrediting agencies listed on the U.S. Department of Education website, with classes beginning no later than October 1, 2025.
Current Bay Federal Credit Union employees, officers, and volunteers are not eligible for this scholarship; family members of current employees, officers, and volunteers are eligible to apply.
Required Documents
Applicants must submit the following documents to Bay Federal by no later than March 16, 2025:
-
A 2025 Bay Federal Education Scholarship Application, completed and signed.
-
Proof of enrollment or letter of acceptance from the school or education program you plan to attend in Fall 2025, or a written statement explaining why you are unable to provide proof by the submission deadline. Scholarship winners must provide proof of enrollment to Bay Federal Credit Union on or before October 1, 2025, or their scholarship award will be forfeited.
-
An essay that meets the topic and formatting requirements provided under “Essay Topic And Requirements” (see below).
Essay Topic and Requirements
Essay Topic:
How has technology impacted financial literacy and money management for your generation? Describe what improvements you would make to these educational resources to make them more broadly accessible and useful for young adults and others in your community.
- The essay must be your original work, and you must cite the sources you use for information about the topic. Use one of the following citation styles for your citations and bibliography: APA, MLA, or Chicago.
- Your essay should be creative, engaging, and thought provoking, and should demonstrate your use of critical thinking skills. Please proofread your essay to find and correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Reading an essay aloud to yourself may help.
- Your essay must be typed on an 8.5”x11” page using normal margins, double spacing, and a 12-point font, and should be no fewer than 3 pages and no longer than 6 pages long (not including a bibliography).
- Inappropriate content and/or plagiarism will result in the applicant’s immediate disqualification.
Judging
A panel of judges will review and score each eligible applicant’s submitted materials based on the following criteria:
- Applicant’s eligibility and adherence to the instructions contained in this document.
- Clear, thoughtful expression of ideas, beliefs, opinions, and/or arguments in the essay that demonstrate the applicant’s critical thinking skills.
In addition, proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar are expected. Plagiarism is not allowed under any circumstances; use of another person’s written or spoken material without proper citations will immediately disqualify the applicant.
After all materials have been judged, up to three of the top-scoring, eligible applicants will be chosen to receive scholarship awards. In the event of a tie for one of the three highest scores, judges will reexamine the submissions of all top-scoring submissions to select three winners.
Deadline & Submission Instructions
To apply for the scholarship, you must complete the online application and upload all required documents prior to the deadline of March 16, 2025.
Winner Notification
Winners will be notified via phone call and/or email by April 30, 2025.
Forfeiture
In the event that Bay Federal Credit Union is unable to contact a winning applicant by May 31, 2025, or determines that a winning applicant is ineligible for an award based on the requirements and conditions set forth in this document:
- The applicant will be disqualified and forfeit any and all awarded funds and recognition related to this scholarship.
- The applicant with the next highest score will be chosen as a winner.
Ownership of Documents and Materials
All documents and materials submitted for consideration of this scholarship will become the sole property of Bay Federal Credit Union, with an irrevocable, non-exclusive, worldwide license to reproduce, translate, communicate, distribute, edit, adapt, copy, and otherwise use for any purpose, including but not limited to the promotion of any product, service, or program owned or offered by Bay Federal Credit Union or an affiliate organization with permission from Bay Federal Credit Union. Documents and materials may include but are not limited to: applications, resumes, letters, transcripts, essays, and videos. If you would like Bay Federal Credit Union to return original documents and/or materials to you, please include a written request with your application.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. If you are on track to earning your high school diploma or general education development (GED) certificate by August 1, 2025, you can apply for the scholarship.
Yes. Undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students are eligible to apply as long as the school you will be attending in the Fall of 2025 meets the accreditation guidelines set forth in this document.
Yes. Individuals who plan to attend community college or a career/technical training program can apply as long as the school meets the accreditation guidelines set forth in this document.
Yes. Students who are attending or planning to attend an accredited, professional training or certificate program to further their education after high school are encouraged to apply for the scholarship.
As long as you have earned a general education development (GED) certificate or equivalent by August 1, 2025, you can apply for the scholarship.
No. As long as you meet all eligibility requirements, you can apply for the scholarship.
Absolutely, yes! Please review the eligibility requirements.
No, but their family members can apply.
No. As long as you meet all eligibility requirements, you can apply for the scholarship no matter where you live.
Our scholarship program is a benefit offered to Bay Federal members. If circumstances beyond your control make it difficult to join Bay Federal, please send an email to scholarship@bayfed.com.
You can become a member by opening a Bay Federal Membership Savings Account with a deposit of at least $5. Information about opening an account can be found in “Eligibility Requirements” and on the Join FAQs. The amount of money in your savings account above $5 will have no effect on your chances of winning the scholarship; however, you may be required to maintain a minimum account balance to avoid a monthly service charge. For complete details regarding accounts, minimum balance requirements, and potential service charges, see the Truth In Savings Disclosure and the Consumer and Business Fee Schedule at www.bayfed.com/disclosures.
Scholarship winners will be notified via phone call and/or email by April 30, 2025.
While Google online tools can be used to create documents for submission, Bay Federal is unable to open documents shared with scholarship@bayfed.com.