Eastern’s new scholarship system hopes to simplify the application process.

The system, called “AcademicWorks,” is one all students who want to apply for scholarships can use.

When they go to Eastern’s AcademicWorks website, students will find a list of scholarships available with brief information about each one’s qualifications. To apply to scholarships, students need to sign into the website with the same NET ID and password used for all of their Eastern accounts. They can then complete a general application and apply for specific scholarships.

After the general application is completed, the system will automatically match the student to all the scholarships they are eligible for based on the information provided.

If there are any other scholarships the student is eligible for, the system will reccommend them, though more steps might have to be taken for those.

Brad Green, director of development services said the mass import of student data is what led to the streamlining service.

“AcademicWorks has the capabilities of importing the student data from our Banner system. The information imported allows our students to apply for scholarships without putting in the information normally requested such as name, address, GPA, major, etc.,” Green said.

Green said now, instead of an entire background questionnaire, students will only have to answer one or two questions for the majority of scholarship opportunities.

The system has also allowed donors easier access to the students who get the scholarships they fund. Green said before, students would come to the Neal Welcome Center on campus and complete multiple tasks to thank their donor, including a student story and card.

The student story and thank you cards would then be sent in the U.S. mail. Now students can complete all these tasks online. This may even lead to new scholarships, Green said.

“We hope that this component will encourage our donors to expand their contributions or support for their scholarships. We also hope that the system will stimulate new scholarship possibilities,” Green said.

Parker Valentine can be reached at 581-2812 or pivalentine@eiu.edu.