The Dedicating Resources to Educationally Advance More Students (DREAMS) Scholarship Program provides need-based financial assistance to Pell Grant-eligible students enrolled in undergraduate degree programs at participating University System of Georgia (USG) and Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) institutions. Designed to support students with demonstrated financial need, the scholarship helps make higher education more affordable while encouraging personal and professional development through community engagement.
Process
To be considered for a DREAMS Scholarship award, students must meet all eligibility requirements, including completion of the online financial literacy toolkit available through GAfutures and participation in a minimum of 60 hours of approved work or volunteer service each semester. Because funding is limited, meeting eligibility criteria does not guarantee an award. Scholarships are distributed based on available funding, and award amounts and the number of recipients may vary each year.
Recipients will be selected and notified by the Office of Financial Aid.
Students must be enrolled in six or more credit hours in an associate or bachelor’s degree program at an institution that is part of the University System of Georgia (USG) or Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG).
2. Pell Grant Eligible and Remaining Financial Need
Students must qualify for the Federal Pell Grant and have unmet financial need to be eligible to receive the DREAMS Scholarship.
Unmet financial need is calculated by the Cost of Attendance minus the Student Aid Index minus all other scholarship and grant aid.
3. Academic Eligibility Requirement
Students must maintain:
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), as defined by the college with a minimum 2.0 SAP GPA, and
A Calculated HOPE GPA of 2.0 or higher at the end of each semester.
4. Financial Toolkit Requirement
Students must complete the required Financial Toolkit sessions before the first DREAMS Scholarship award disbursement.
To access the Financial Toolkit sessions, the student must have aGAfutures student accountwith a valid SSN for secure identification (GAfutures accounts are secure and are not shared)
Sign into your GAfutures student account
Go to My GAfutures > DREAMS Dashboard > Financial Toolkit
5. Work Requirement
After receiving DREAMS Scholarship funds for the first term, students must complete at least 60 hours of paid or unpaid work for each following term. These hours must be completed before the next scholarship disbursement.
Work activities may include:
Paid work (with an employer, contracted, or federal/institutional work study)
Following the first term DREAMS Scholarship is awarded, students must:
Report their work (paid or unpaid) hours and
Provide documentation of the work
How to report work (paid or unpaid) hours
Sign into your GAfutures student account
Go to My GAfutures > DREAMS Dashboard > Work Requirement for reporting hours
Upload documentation using the Document Upload
Acceptable Documentation
Type of Work
Documentation
Paid Work
Paystub(s)
Contract Work
1099
Military Service
Military Orders
Internship, Externship, Student Teaching, Clinicals, Practicum or any work not listed above
DREAMS Scholarship Work Requirement Form
Students are encouraged to complete all financial aid and scholarship requirements as early as possible to maximize their opportunity for consideration. In addition to the DREAMS Scholarship, students should explore other funding opportunities through the University of West Georgia Scholarship Application.
