Scholarship Information - Western Region

The application begins:     March 1, 2008
The application deadline:   May 31, 2008 Post Marked Date (There will be no exceptions.)
Announcement of Awardees:  August 8, 2008 Winners List
Award Ceremony:             September 8, 2008 (in Los Angeles, CA)
Award Amount:          $2,000 or higher

Application Submission Process is now Closed for 2008.  All applicants will be notified regarding their status via US Mail. 

Application Criteria:        

Qualifications for the scholarship   

1. Will be a full time student at a school in one of the designated Western states according to the KASF’s delineation of regions during the 08 – 09 school year. (Go to www.kasf.org for the states in the Western Region)
2. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
3. Be able to demonstrate need for financial assistance.

One’s category depends on what your status will be during the 08 – 09 school year

1 High School Students, 9th thru 11th:  Achievement Award  
2

High School seniors, planning to attend college in 08 – 09.  The chosen college must be within the western region.  You must include a copy of your acceptance letter from a school that is within the western region according to the KASF.  You will be disqualified if the school that you are planning to attend is outside of the designated states.  

3 College Students (currently a fr, soph, jr):  The school you are attending must be within the western region.  
4 College Students (currently a senior):  You are not qualified to apply for this scholarship unless you will be attending Graduate School in the western region during the 08 – 09 school year.  You have to submit a letter of acceptance either from a graduate or professional school.  
5 Graduate students:  You must be continuing your studies in the 08 – 09 school year at a school within the western region
6 A current non-student is eligible for a scholarship by providing documentation (acceptance letter, signed commitment letter, or any document showing commitment to attend) that they will be a full time student in 08 – 09 school year.  

Important Information Regarding Submission of Applications:  

        

You MUST follow all the directions as stated herein. Non-compliance to the stated instructions WILL lead to disqualification.
ALL material must be submitted TOGETHER in ONE PACKET (envelope). PLEASE IGNORE THE INSTRUCTION ON THE RECOMMENDATION FORM AND FOLLOW THE DIRECTION ON THIS PAGE.

 This “PACKET” is to contain an application form, two  self-addressed stamped envelopes, official transcripts (in their own sealed and signed envelope), letters of recommendation (in their own sealed and signed envelope), photo and diskette, financial material and any other material that is being submitted.  Refer to the qualifications and the requirements that are stated below to confirm which materials should be sent for you.  It is your responsibility to submit the correct material.  Then ALL the material MUST be submitted in ONE PACKET.  Any material submitted separately will NOT be accepted.  Exceptions will NOT be made.  If for whatever reason the party preparing a document for an applicant cannot or will not offer the document directly to the applicant, then that party must submit a letter via US mail to KASF address mentioned below, with an explanation why he/she cannot give the sealed and signed letter to the applicant.  Any circumstances will be reviewed on an individual basis.  

As such, ONLY complete application will be reviewed.  An incomplete application will NOT be reviewed.  It is your responsibility to submit a complete application.  It is your responsibility to submit the correct documents. 
The deadline for application submission will be enforced according to the post mark on the PACKET.  THERE WILL BE NO EXTENSIONS TO THE DEADLINE.  Please submit in a timely manner. 
No material will be accepted via facsimile transmission (fax), via email attachments, or any manner other than as stated above.  Only material contained in the PACKET delivered by US mail will be accepted.  Any PACKET that is incomplete will NOT be reviewed, and will not be returned. 
Due to the limited resources of KASF, we are not able to keep track of your application and give you updates.  We cannot accept or return correspondences regarding your application status.  Therefore, it is strongly encouraged that you send all the material (complete application in one PACKET) via certified mail (with which you receive a post card with a signature confirming delivery).  The return receipt with signature, will be your notice that the PACKET has been received. 
We cannot be held responsible for lost or misplaced material. 
Any questions regarding the application process should be sent via e-mail to the e-mail address below.  If you feel the need to talk to someone concerning an issue, please submit your question concerning an issue, along with your phone number at which you can be reached.  You will receive an e-mail or a telephone call.  Any e-mails submitted with a phone number, but without a question or subject, will not be returned. 
The applicant may submit any additional information that they feel is relevant.  However, the foundation cannot guarantee that any additional material (anything outside of what is required) will be reviewed or taken into consideration.  Furthermore, any additional material cannot be a substitute for the required material.  Ergo, any incomplete application will remain incomplete regardless of any additional material.

Application Documents:

College and Graduate Students 

1. Application form with two self addressed stamped envelopes (download MS Word format:  Application form, Adobe PDF format:  Application form)
2. Transcript:  Only an OFFICIAL transcript bearing a seal and signature will be accepted.  Unofficial transcripts, internet grade reports etc will NOT be accepted and the transcript requirement will not be fulfilled.
3. Two letters of recommendation.  You must use the KASF standard forms.  (download MS Word format: Recommendation form, Adobe PDF format: Recommendation form)  The letters need to be in a sealed envelope with a signature across the seal.  Any letters of recommendation that is NOT within a sealed and signed letter will not be viewed and will not fulfill the letter of recommendation letter requirement.  Any letters of recommendation sent separately from the application will not be counted as one of the two required letters.
4.  One passport photo and a digital photo in a floppy disk or CD taken within the past 12 months.
5. For U.S. residents:  a copy of FAFSA SAR report – please file your FAFSA application for the upcoming scholarship year and ensure that our Chapter receives your FAFSA result (Student Aid Report (SAR)) containing SAR’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) number – before our application deadline.  Please note that the FAFSA application deadline may be different from this Chapter’s scholarship application deadline.  (For further information about FAFSA and FAFSA application, please visit http://www.fafsa.ed.gov).

For Non – U.S. residents:  send a copy of parents’ income tax statement from Korea . 

For students on graduate level or in professional schools, you need to submit a FAFSA/SAR report.  Parents’ income tax is not necessary. – Please explain (in the financial section of the application) how much you plan to earn during the upcoming summer and/or the academic year and how much of this you plan to use towards your educational expenses.  If you cannot contribute to your financial needs, please explain why in the financial section of the application.
6.  Student’s essay (use application form):  maximum one page.

High School students (currently seniors that will be attending college during the 08 – 09 year)

Your application is the same as the college/graduate students except that you must include a copy of your acceptance letter from the college that you are planning to attend in the 08 – 09 year.

High School students (currently high school students that are not graduating and will be a high school student again next year)            

1. Application form with two self addressed stamped envelopes (download MS Word format:  Application form, Adobe PDF format: Application form)
2. One passport photo and a digital in a floppy disk.
3. Proof of Achievements in Arts, Music, Science/Engineering, Sports, or Leadership (Send copies of the Certificate(s), Letter(s), Newspaper Article(s), Medal(s), etc.)

 
Then, submit to:

KASF Scholarship Committee
3540 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 920
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Email:  western@kasf.org

 For students who live within 200 miles, it is highly recommended to attend the awardee program.