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Menu
 * Solutions
   * Recognition Awards
   * Scholarships
   * Grants
   * Call for Entries
   * Fellowships
   * Competitions/Contests
   * Board Nominations
   * Alumni Awards
 * See a Demo
 * Pricing
 * Resources
   * Reviewr Knowledge Base
   * See a Demo
 * About Us
   * Get in Touch
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CREDIT UNIONS GUIDE TO ENGAGING MEMBERS THROUGH SCHOLARSHIPS


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THE CREDIT UNIONS GUIDE TO SCHOLARSHIPS


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INTRODUCTION

In today’s rapidly evolving financial landscape, credit unions stand at the
forefront of community engagement and support. Among the myriad strategies
employed to foster deep connections and support local communities, scholarship
programs emerge as a beacon of hope and opportunity. “The Credit Union’s Guide
to Scholarships” delves into the transformative power of these programs, guided
by the innovative solutions provided by Reviewr, a leader in scholarship
management software. In this guide we dive into the benefits for credit unions
offering scholarships, the optimal scholarship management workflow, and the core
elements to ensure an engaging, fair, non-bias, and compliant scholar selection.

Benefits of offering a scholarship program

 * Increase membership and asset growth while differentiating from other
   lenders.
 * Rejuvenate member engagement, especially in younger demographics.
 * Build community trust and impact.
 * Ensure regulatory compliance.
 * Provide the digital transformation to match the desires of the modern
   consumer.

Scholarships serve as a flagship marketing campaign for credit unions to enhance
member engagement. With the average credit union member age of 53 years old,
scholarships provide a unique opportunity to engage the younger demographic
which presents a significant challenge to the long term sustainability to credit
unions. In doing so, we are also creating a pipeline for future financial
products, boosting financial literacy, building community trust and awareness.

CHAPTER 1: ENSURING A TRANSPARENT PROCESS

Everything starts with a proof of process statement. This statement is publicly
facing and outlines the entire scholarship application and selection process so
applicants and the public can transparently see the process as well as set
expectations. Of course, scholarship providers need to put their money where
their mouth is and back up their workflow by adhering to this process. By using
a scholarship management software like Reviewr, we can ensure that every element
within the proof of process will correspond with dedicated features that make
sure the process is adhered to.

Example proof of process:

 * Dates and deadlines
   * Application open date
   * Application close date
   * Data review and cleansing period
   * Phase 1 review
   * Phase 2 review
   * Final selection
   * Announcements
 * The Submission process
   * Details on the portal being used to collect applications
     * Note: this portal must be a dedicated, proven, scholarship management
       software with SOC2Type2 compliance. 
     * This sets the expectations and reputation of the scholarship provider.
       Imagine outlining a proof of process or running a scholarship through
       online web forms, downloadable documents, emails, spreadsheets, etc.
       Besides the administrative nightmare of managing this complexity, it
       almost certainly makes managing the program in a compliant, fair, and
       equitable manner impossible.
   * Showcase the questions that will be asked
     * Note which questions will impact the review and selection, why, and how.
     * Note which questions will be blinded to the review team.
     * Note which questions are considered private and confidential.
   * Showcase the reference request template
     * This allows applicants to see what references will be requested to
       submit.
   * Outline data security and privacy protocols
     * Reviewr has this covered on behalf of clients with full SOC2Type2
       documentation, audits, etc.
 * The Review and Selection Process
   * Outline the scholarship application software that will be used for review
     and selection – similar to the scholarship application process imagine a
     compliant review process using spreadsheets, web forms, file sharing,
     emails, etc.
   * Details on how many phases of review will occur
   * Insight into how many evaluators will review each scholarship application
   * The submissions will be assigned to evaluators randomly
   * Each evaluator will leverage a scoring rubric for a quantitative evaluation
   * Outline the exact scholarship evaluation criteria that will be used
   * Private and confidential data will be blinded from the review team
   * Any information not relevant to the review and selection will be blinded by
     the review team
   * Reference answers will be taken into consideration, but not letters – only
     answers to the template questions for data consistency.
 * Post Scholarship process
   * Notify both scholarship recipients and non-recipients
   * Provide access back into the scholarship management software that powered
     the scholarship program
   * Grant access to both the scoresheets that were used for evaluation as well
     as any comments/feedback left for applicants
     * Transparency
     * Self-development
     * Showcases that the process was followed (Proof of Process)

Chapter 2: Safeguarding Applicant Information

Click here to see a sample application process

It’s essential that scholarships are managed through dedicated and proven
scholarship management software. Not only do these platforms save scholarship
managers hundreds of hours in management energy, but they also include dedicated
features to ensure an engaging experience for all parties involved as well as
mechanisms for scholarship compliance. Scholarships are high-impact programs and
should be treated as such. Scholarship programs should never utilize tools that
were not developed to manage the sensitive nature of scholarships such as online
form and survey tools, emails, spreadsheets, file-sharing sites, etc.

 * Data Encryption
   * All data, especially PII (Personal Identifiable Information) and student
     information should be encrypted both in transit and at rest.
 * Compliance with global standards
   * In an ever-changing, dynamic environment, compliance standards must be
     constantly reviewed. This includes things such as GDPR, FERPA, California
     Personal Information Act, etc. Softwares such as Reviewr that maintain the
     gold standard for data protection such as SOC2Type2 are always ahead of the
     curve and take the guessing game out of the equation – as well as the
     headache and time requirements that scholarship managers do not have.
 * Audits and Certification
   * Saying a scholarship program is compliant and ensures data security and
     privacy is one thing – proving it is another. 
   * Ask your scholarship management software for their Soc2Type2 report (Gold
     Standard).
   * While many scholarship management application may be compliant in their own
     right, they lose scholarship compliance when used in conjunction with other
     tools. For example – collecting scholarship applications through a tool
     like JotForm may be a secure and reliable method, but once those forms are
     exported and moved into other tools the scholarship compliance goes out the
     window.
   * This is why it’s critical to utilize a full scholarship lifecycle
     management software.

Chapter 3: Reference collection

Often an afterthought, yet critical to get right, is the collection of
references. When an external variable such as references is added to the
scholarship application and selection process we must ensure this too follows
both proper protocol for data security, but also best practices.

 * Avoid reference letters
   * Historically references were collected in a letter format but this is now
     an outdated and risky method.
   * Letters create a barrier for references.
     * Hard to write
     * Takes time and effort
     * Multi-step to create, write, and send back.
     * Not all references are created equal – some are better written than
       others, some had more time put into it, etc. Is this a fair
       representation of the scholarship applicant?
     * Hard to blind PII in a letter.
 * Leverage reference templates
   * Outline 3-5 questions that each reference should answer.
   * Lowers the time and effort barrier for references.
   * Creates data consistency amongst all applicants.
   * Creates consistency in the review process with defined data sets.
 * Use Reviewrs automated reference collection process
   * Scholarship applicant will enter the name and email of the reference
   * Triggers an email notification to reference
   * Reference clicks on a link that brings them to a reference template
   * Reference simply fills out the template with the ability to save, log out,
     and work at their own pace.
   * Visibility to both scholarship program managers as well as to applicants on
     the progress of references.
   * Actual reference content can be blinded from the applicant.
   * Upon submission, the reference template is automatically attached to the
     applicant profile.
   * Reference data can be blinded more easily by the review team.

Chapter 4: Impartial Review Distribution

All human variables that may lend themselves to bias must be removed from the
scholarship management equation. This includes how scholarship applications are
assigned to review committees. While many scholarship programs are committee
based with all members reviewing all scholarships, may opt to deploy a process
where not all committee members review all submissions.

 * Depending on volume, sometimes it can be overwhelming to ask review team
   members to evaluate all scholarship applications. 
 * If evaluators are overwhelmed, their review and selection process is often
   degraded, leading to potentially inaccurate and unfair reviews and
   selections.
 * Instead, start with a survey of the review team to define how many applicants
   they can provide 100% of their energy towards. This becomes the target.
 * However, scholarship review members being assigned only a subset of the total
   application pool adds a risk element to who is reviewing who.
 * Leverage Reviewr automation where an exact number can be entered (Assign each
   evaluator 9 submissions, assign each evaluator no less than 5 but no more
   than 7, I want every applicant reviewed 7 times, etc).
 * Reviewr will then automatically, and randomly, distribute submissions to
   reviewers based on the input. By removing the human element of deciding which
   applicants are reviewed by which staff members, we can ensure compliance.

Chapter 5: Promoting Objective Reviews

The only way to ensure truly objective reviews is to blind private information
from the review team to promote merit-based scholarship review and selection.

 * Blind PII from the evaluation team
   * Not only is it important to remove personal identifiers from the review
     team to avoid a biased, non-equitable, review but it is also a data
     security risk sharing PII with external users.
 * Blind “non-critical” information
   * Often times scholarship applications include essential bookkeeping and data
     but it’s not essential for the actual review in the selection process –
     meaning the data collected will not be used in making scholarship selection
     decisions. In this use case, the data should be blinded from reviewers so
     as to also provide an engaging and non-overwhelming experience for them.
 * Dedicated scholarship management software
   * While it is impossible to completely eliminate the possibility for review
     team members to export, screenshot, or save information – using a dedicated
     scholarship management system such as Reviewr does make it significantly
     more challenging to ensure that data collected in Reviewr stays in Reviewr.

Chapter 6: Quantitative Selections

Click here to see a sample evaluation workflow.

The last piece to a compliant, fair, non-biased, and equitable scholarship
management process is leveraging scoring rubrics for a quantitative selection.
By using scoresheets we can avoid comparison bias amongst applicants and let the
merits of their entry and scoresheet tell the story.

 * Scorecards should match the scholarship application and scholarship
   provider’s guiding vision and principles.
 * The Proof of Process lays out why specific scholarship questions are being
   asked – the scoresheet needs to mirror those.
   * Example, volunteer experience GPA, family needs, etc.
 * This allows the review team to side by side review the scholarship
   application and references with a scoresheet that follows along. The review
   team simply plugs in their answers as they read the application.
 * Consider weighted scoring
   * While the scoresheet should mirror the questions answered in the
     application, some scholarship application questions are in more alignment
     with the scholarship provider’s mission than others – these should be
     weighted to reflect.
     * For example: If a plumbing trade association is offering a scholarship
       but that trade association specializes in pipefitting – then those
       students who are pursuing that career would get weighted higher for
       answering that question.
     * Other examples include weighting volunteer activity over grades, grades
       over intangibles, or essay writing.
 * Use a scholarship management system such as Reviewr to auto-result tabulation
   and leaderboards.
   * It’s critical to remove potential human error when tabulating scholarship
     results on a quantitative basis. Leverage Reviewr automation which
     calculates the quantitative results based on the scorecard input by the
     review teams. This will then outline non-bias, and fair, rankings.

Chapter 7: Tie it all together

The keyword in “Proof of Process” is “Proof”. This means when the scholarship
program is complete, provide transparent results that “prove” the process was
followed.

 * Notify both scholarship recipients and those not selected.
 * Grant access back into the scholarship management system.
 * Allow applicants to anonymously review the scoresheets that were submitted
   about them.
 * Empower review teams to leave constructive feedback for applicants. Share
   this back with the applicants for self-development and growth.
   * Imagine a great candidate who didn’t receive your scholarship, but based on
     the feedback of the review team, was able to make changes to a future
     scholarship application and pursue their dreams with funding elsewhere.
 * Provide value to everyone. Not just those receiving the scholarship funding.
 * Collect essential data from scholarship recipients
   * Future Reviewr guides will be written on this topic… but:
   * Ensure programs stay compliant where acceptance letters, fund disbursement
     forms, etc are all powered through the same scholarship management system
     that was used to collect, manage, and review the initial scholarship
     applications.

 

BONUS: SAMPLE APPLICATION FORM

 



























 

BONUS: SELECTION FORM

 






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