Time to apply for scholarships through YCF

The Arizona Community Foundation online scholarship portal is now live for students in Yuma and around the state.

Together with its affiliates — including the Yuma Community Foundation — the Arizona Community Foundation is Arizona's largest private provider of scholarship funding and offers a system with access to more than 70 scholarship awards with a single online application. The online system automatically matches the applicants with every scholarship opportunity within the system for which they qualify.

High school seniors, current college students and graduate-level students attending schools anywhere in the United States can apply. Scholarships are available for two-year and four-year colleges and universities as well as technical schools. Students should apply early to qualify for the most awards. Some application periods begin closing in February, while others remain open until as late as May.

More than $1 million in scholarships are available for all fields of study. Some awards are given based on merit or financial need, while others are awarded to students in a particular geographic region or with specific demographic characteristics.

Some awards are just for Yuma-area students, including locals who plan to attend Arizona Western College and Northern Arizona University-Yuma. These awards range from $500 to $2,000, and some are geared specifically toward certain degrees and vocations, including health care, education and agriculture.

Visit www.azfoundation.org/scholarships to check out all the opportunities.