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Why does AAA charge an application fee (in states that allow it)?

October 14, 2019 by admin

Here are the three main reasons that AAA charges an application fee, where allowed:

First, processing scholarship applications is very time and labor-intensive due to the strict accountability demanded to properly administer these state-approved scholarships. AAA is a non-profit organization with a small staff and a limited budget. We rely on humans (rather than machines) to process applications. We pay a living wage plus benefits to our employees. The application fees we collect help offset the expenses incurred for processing tens of thousands of applications annually.

Second, we have learned from experience that charging a small, non-refundable, application fee discourages those people who ALREADY KNOW that they will not be awarded a scholarship from applying. How do they already know? Because we are completely transparent when it comes to the eligibility requirements. As noted above, our staff is small so our capacity to process applications timely is limited. Subsequently, spending our limited resources on applications that have zero chance of being approved is wasteful and slows down approvals for those who are actually eligible.

Third, because the application process is time-intensive, we have to encourage everyone who has applied with us to stick with it to the end. Studies have shown that when people have “skin-in-the-game” they show more perseverance toward reaching the goal. Our experience is that applicants are more likely to respond to additional requests for information and/or documentation when they have paid a fee for the chance to be part of that process.

What we hear time and again is that a small application fee for what is very likely to be thousands of dollars in annual k-12 scholarships is well worth the price!

Filed Under: Blog

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GA: Upon request, AAA will send you a full and fair description of this charitable program and a financial statement which shall be consistent with the financial statement required to be filed with the Secretary of State pursuant to Code Section 43-17-5. O.C.G.A. § 43-17-8. AZ: A school tuition organization cannot award, restrict or reserve scholarships solely on the basis of a donor's recommendation. A taxpayer may not claim a tax credit if the taxpayer agrees to swap donations with another taxpayer to benefit either taxpayer's own dependent. FL: A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE 1-800-HELP-FLA OR ONLINE AT www.FloridaConsumerHelp.com, REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE. FL REGISTRATION #CH38386 NV: A contribution or donation to AAA Scholarship Foundation, Inc. may be tax deductible for federal income tax purposes.

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