What is Sarbanes-Oxley Act

What is Sarbanes-Oxley Act Free Online Research Papers Sarbanes-Oxley Act has been implemented since 2002. It main purpose was to regain the confidence in the capital market by forcing mandatory standards and rules for companies. This paper studies the reasons for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the positive and negative impact that Sarbanes-Oxley Act has placed on companies. Reason for SOX The reason for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 came about because of Kenneth L. Lay, CEO of Enron Corp. Enron began in 1986 but originally was Houston Natural Gas a gas pipeline operator in 2001 Enron was the number one energy trader in the world. Enron direct competition was Duke Energy, El Paso, and Williams Companies to name a few. However, in 2002, Enron filed for bankruptcy and Lay was involved in one of the biggest accounting fraud crimes. Lay hide sales of the company’s shares and said that he was buying more shares (Henry, 2006). No one ever questioned Lays acts and never questioned or investigated the trading rules for someone trading within an organization. In that time, executives did not have to report their transactions with their companies the end of a company’s fiscal year and after 45 days and some times it they could take up to 12 months (2006). â€Å"Congress clamped down and directed the Securities Exchange Commission to require reporting of tra nsactions within two business days, effective Aug. 29, 2002. At the time, recalls then-SEC Chairman Harvey L. Pitt, regulators didnt even know companies were backdating options grants† (Henry, 2006, pg.38). As result of Enron’s scandal and public bankruptcy of such a well recognized corporation. Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 known as the Sarbanes-Oxley Corporate Accountability Bill. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires for all public companies that have business in the United States must have an accounting framework (Nelson Staley, 2006). Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, made it mandatory for all public companies to contain internal financial auditing controls and to present the results in annual assessment their internal financial auditing control efficiency. This must be reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in an annual basis. Also, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 required for all public companies to have an external auditor and the external auditor would have audit and test on the company’s internal control reports of management and the company’s financial statement (Baker, Bealing Jr, Nelson Staley, 2006). Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 The following provides an overview of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in which public company are required to comply. Title I of the Act – established the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). Title I which was given broad oversight over public accounting firms who perform audits of publicly traded companies. According the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board states, section 103(a)(1) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that Board establishment and their responsibilities and to establish auditing standards and rules. In addition, this Board defines the ethics standards for the audit reports that registered accounting firms must prepare and submit (Baker, Bealing Jr, Nelson Staley, 2006). Title II of the Act – established the Auditor Independence which pro services. The Securities and Exchange Commission adopted amendments to its existing requirements regarding auditor independence to enhance the independence of accountants that audit and review financial statements and prepare attestation reports filed with the Commission. In addition, these rules and standards affect the foreign accounting firms that perform audits of foreign subsidiaries and affiliates of U.S. issuers, as well as of foreign private issuers. According to Baker, Bealing Jr, Nelson, Staley: Many of the modifications to the proposed rules, such as those limiting the scope of partner rotation and personnel subject to the cooling off period, have the added benefit of addressing particular concerns raised about the international implications of these requirements. Moreover, additional time is being afforded to foreign accounting firms with respect to compliance with rotation requirements. The release also provides guidance on the provision of non-audit services by foreign accounting firms, including the treatment of legal services and tax services (2006, p.5) Title III of the Act – established the Corporate Responsibility which imposed public company audit committees. It defined the corporate responsibility for financial reports. It defined the improper influence on conduct of audits. It clearly points the penalty of certain bonuses and profits. In addition, section 302 is one the most important sections of the SOX Act. Established the Corporate Responsibility for Financial Reports it demands for CEO and CFO to review all financial reports. The financial reports must not have any fabrication or faulty information. It also directs the responsibilities to the companies CEO and CFO for the internal accounting controls. The CEO and CFO have the obligation to report any leakage in internal accounting controls. In addition, CEO and CFO must report any management of the audit committee for fraud actions or participation. They must point out any internal accounting controls information modification. Title IV of the Act – Established Enhanced Financial Disclosure. Section 401 Disclosures in periodic reports conflict of interest provisions. Section 402 Enhanced conflict of interest provisions. Section 403 Disclosures of transactions involving management and principal stockholders. Section 404 is another most important section of the SOX Act of Title IV. Section 404 established Management Assessment of Internal Controls this demands for management that all annual financial repots must have an Internal Control Report stating that management is responsible for an â€Å"adequate† internal control structure. Any shortcomings in these controls must also be reported. In addition, registered external auditors must attest to the accuracy of the company management’s assertion that internal accounting controls are in place, operational, and effective. Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 (SOX 404) requires a security management process to protect against attempted or successful u nauthorized access and use with system operations. Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 also involves security management for disclosure, modification, or interference with system operations. Section 405 is defines the exemption to the TITLE IV. Section 406 is the Code of ethics for senior financial officers. Section 407 is the disclosure of audit committee financial experts. Section 408 is the enhanced review of periodic disclosures by issuers. Section 409 Real time Disclosures states that must disclose information on material changes in the financial conditions or operations of the issuer on a rapid and current basis. Section 409 is another most important section of the SOX Act of Title IV. However, section 409 is the only section that is not currently in effective. This section is Real Time Issuer Disclosures meaning companies are required to disclose on almost real-time basis information concerning material changes in its financial conditions or operations. Title V of the Act – established the Analyst Conflicts of Interest. Section 501 the treatment of securities analysis by registered securities associations. The national securities exchanges and registered securities associations must adopt conflict of interest rules for research analysis who recommend equities in research reports. Title VI of the Act – established the Commission Resources and Authority. Section 601 is the Authorization of appropriations. Section 602 is appearance and practice before the commission. Section 603 is Federal court authority to impose penny stock bars. Section 604 Qualifications of associated persons of brokers and dealers. Title VII of the Act – established the Studies and Reports. In section 701 is GAO study and report regarding consolidation of public accounting firms. Section 702 is commission study and report regarding credit rating agencies. Section 703 is the Study and report on violators and violations. Section 704 is the study of enforcement actions. Section 705 is the study of investment banks. Title VIII of the Act Corporate and Criminal Fraud accountability. In section 802 are criminal penalties for altering documents. Section 803 Debts non-dischargeable if incurred in violation of securities fraud laws. Section 804 is Statute of limitations for securities fraud. Section 805 is review of Federal Sentencing Guidelines for obstruction of justice and extensive criminal fraud. Section 806 is Protection for employees of publicly traded companies who provide evidence of fraud. Section 807 defines the criminal penalties for defrauding shareholders of publicly traded companies. Title IX –White-Collar Crime Penalty enhancements. Section 902 is the attempts and conspiracies to commit criminal fraud offenses this section is another of the most important section of the SOX Act. It states that any person who attempts or conspires to commit any offense under this chapter shall be subject to the same penalties as those prescribed for the offense, the commission of which was the object of the attempt or conspiracy. Section 903 states criminal penalties for mail and wire fraud. Section 904 is criminal penalties for violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. Section 905 is the amendment to sentencing guidelines relation to certain white-collar offenses. Section 906 states it is corporate responsibility for financial reports. Title X of the Act – established the corporate tax returns. Section 1001 Sense for the Senate regarding the signing of corporate tax returns by chief executive officers. Title XI of the Act – established the corporate fraud and accountability. Section 1102 is the tampering with a record or otherwise impeding an official proceeding. Section 1103 is temporary freeze authority for the SEC. Section 1104 is the amendment to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. Section 1105 Authority of the Commission to prohibit persons from serving as officers or directors. Section 1106 is increased criminal penalties under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Section 1107 protects whistler blowers section 1107 is the retaliation against informants. The Impact of Sarbanes-Oxley Act The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has applied positive effect to companies. The public companies are forced to compliance with the Act and ensure that their accounting operations are up to standards with SOA. However, private or non profit organizations are being exempt from this Act. â€Å"Still, many such entities are finding that certain aspects of the act can benefit their overall operations and are cherry-picking those parts that will do them the most good† (Savich, 2006, pg. 71). In addition, many private organizations are taking advantage of only select the sections of the Act that beneficial. Why would these private organization voluntary adopt SOA knowing how public companies struggle to comply with the SOA standards? One reason why private organization would want to comply with SOA standards is if the private organization is planning to merge with a public organization. Then they have advantage of preparing for the cost and sufficient time to prepare to meet those required for Sarbanes-Oxley Act. A second reason for an private organization to voluntary adopt SOA would be if the private company knows that is going to become public then they adopt the Sarbanes-Oxley Act since they know it will be mandatory (Savich, 2006). Another reason would be if a private company is forecasting a IPO within next years it would be benefit for them to start compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley guidelines earlier than later to avoid any delay and expect cost (Savich, 2006). Even non-profit organizations are volunteering to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley provisions. â€Å"In California, for example, the Nonprofit Integrity Act of 2004 requires charitable organizations with over 2 million in gross revenues to have an audit committee, which also approves non-audit services, and audited financial statements† ( Savich, 2006 ). Private organizations are in position that they adopt the sections that they want with advantage of not having to spend excessive amounts of money to set up for an auditors assessments of internal controls. Instead, their company can intake the benefits of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act without incurring significant costs (Bednarz, 2006). Congress intended for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to apply only public companies. But a national study by Foley Lardner LLP, showed that Sarbanes-Oxley Act took another path. It has been revealed that these private and nonprofit organization continue to adopt provisions of the act as best practices with out have obligation. The study concluded nonprofit organization was more impulsive to adopt the Sarbanes-Oxley standards, while private companies have been steadily adopting Sarbanes-Oxley standards but not as much as nonprofit organization. In addition Nonprofits organization are more likely to implement or plan to implement whistle-blower procedures, board approval of non-audit services by auditors and restrictions on executive compensation, among other changes. According to study findings of Foley Lardner LLP: Private companies tend to adopt the least expensive reforms, as opposed to more costly initiatives such as section 404 audits of internal controls. Some 84% of private organizations responding to the survey believed corporate governance reform was about right, an increase over the 78% who had responded that way in 2005. Survey respondents estimated an average annual price tag of $105,000 for corporate governance procedures, a 26% increase over their estimated costs before Congress Foley Lardner surveyed 56 private entities in January 2006-20 nonprofit organizations and 36 for-profit private companies enacted Sarbanes-Oxley (Savich, 2006) In another study named Voluntary Compliance survey conducted by CEO’s of â€Å"fast-growing† private companies. 27% said their companies had adopted Sarbanes-Oxley best practices in areas such as governance and transparency. 73% opposed any future federal or state regulations that would impose Sarbanes-Oxley provisions or entities other than public companies. 67% of those considering going public said the cost of Sarbanes-Oxley compliance was a potential barrier (Savieh, 2006) Many public companies are struggling to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley because of the high costs and implementations complexity. Even larger companies like: General Electric, Lockheed, and Emerson Electronic are struggling to meet the Act standards. In meeting held in Washington, D.C. the Executives of these corporations emphasis the challenges they face to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley Act. (Bednarz, 2006) Executives stated, that cost for comply with Sarbanes-Oxley does compensate for benefits of having Sarbanes-Oxley. The cost for implementing software that complies with Sarbanes-Oxley Act is very expensive. This is affecting smaller public companies that do not have the funds to implement these softwares. According to Robilliard, In the recent study of IT managers in the US, the Aberdeen Group found that most companies plan to leverage their existing software tools to fill any gaps to comply with the Act, (Ismail, 2005, p 4). Critics of regulation argue that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has raised the cost of being a public company so much that it is unreasonable to impose this burden on smaller public companies. The critics main concern is Section 404, which deals with internal control audits. These critics assert that the high cost of being a smaller public company will stifle economic growth and ultimately hurt U.S. competitiveness (Hermanson, 2006). According to Hermanson, For honest corporate officers, this is classic governmental over-regulation-a dagger aimed at the heart of the U.S. economy. . . . The most dangerous aspect of this regulatory overkill is a further inclination by corporations to hold onto money rather than put it into productive investment, thereby threatening to stifle economic growth. Even the SECs advisory committee concluded, after hearing testimony from various parties, that Section 404 is a burden for smaller public companies. In an August 18, 2005, letter to SEC Chairman Cox, The committee stated, The costs of implementing Section 404 have been far more expensive than originally forecasted and these costs are disproportionately larger for smaller companies. (200 According CPA Journal survey by Financial Executives International reported that small companies are projected to spend $824,000 in order to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley Act. In addition, the average cost for all companies is $4.3 million estimates. However, public companies are estimated to spend $6.1 billion in order to implement Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Koehn DelVecchio). The Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Security Exchange Committee rules can impact internal auditors in numerous ways. One way is internal auditors probably will be asked to expand their internal control evaluation and testing work in order to provide assurance to upper management when they attest to the relative strength of their internal control system (Aldhizer III, Cashell Savlyor, 2003). Pricewaterhouse Coopers in a discussion document stated, that good internal controls are no longer just a best practice, but are now reinforced in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act as a critical component of good corporate governance (Aldhizer III, Cashell Savlyor, 2003). Upper management and the audit committee are depending on internal auditors to help them comprehend difficult financial reporting issues and their impact on the quarterly and annual report (Aldhizer III, Cashell Savlyor, 2003). If the Sarbanes-Oxley Act increase internal auditors responsibilities companies take the risk of this having an impact on the current level of services provided by internal auditors. Many organizations may be unwilling to increase internal audit resources to the level required to completely fulfill both existing and new responsibilities. If this occurs, internal audit departments will have to decide either which services to cut or how to continue providing the same level of service with fewer resources (Aldhizer III, Cashell Savlyor, 2003). Audit fees are arise because of the need to present more in depth audit work in order to gain the necessary information and the loss of income from higher-margin consulting work are affect the higher costs. Eventually, it will affect the relatively few companies that were involved in the accounting frauds, but all companies and consumers (Gifford Howe, 2004). According to a recent Financial Executives International (FEI) survey conducted, it reported that the first-year compliance costs ranging from $2 million to $5 million. (Gifford Howe, 2004) consulting firm The Johnsson Group has estimated total 2004 costs to run upwards of $15 billion, with many large companies seeing thousands of hours diverted from staff support and research activities to compliance work. Many of the smaller companies are affected by this because they do not have money to obtain staff support and necessary requirements. Another provision that may notably increase audit fees relies in the Sarbanes-Oxley Acts to far-reach authority. The act affects any firm that audits a publicly traded U.S. company (Gifford Howe, 2004)). For example, any foreign subsidiaries or affiliates of public accounting firms may conclude that they do not want be involved with a clients operations in its native country because of U.S. regulations. Therefore, U.S. firms would have to conduct the audit for client’s foreign subsidiaries, at the client’s expense. This sufficiently require more time and cost. â€Å"In addition, the move by U.S. regulators to review the work of foreign accounting firms could prompt retaliation by other countries in the form of reviewing the work of U.S. firms that audit U.S. subsidiaries of foreign multinationals† (Gifford Howe, 2004, p. 7) Another reason for fees to arise can the fact that auditor have the obligation to include in the audit report the effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting and managements assessment of it (Gifford Howe, 2004). Although Sarbanes-Oxley Act is not intended for increase of charge fees be based on the auditors evaluation be the basis given the increased political costs and potential legal liability associated with such an assertion, audit firms and management will probably need to spend significantly more time evaluating controls, particularly for engagements or audit areas with low reliance on controls (Gifford Howe, 2004). The expectation that audit firms would accept additional risk without doing additional work, and that they would perform the additional work without increased compensation. Conclusion The Sarbanes-Oxley act has provided negative and positive impacts to companies regardless of the size of the company. However, small companies are definitely being more deeply affected by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in their pockets. The positive impact of compiling with Sarbanes-Oxley Act has provided standards and rules for organization that needed them. Even though Sarbanes-Oxley Act is not mandatory for private and non-profit organizations many are adopt Sarbanes-Oxley Act because of its positive benefits to the organization. Reference Aldhizer, G.R., III, Cashell, J.D., Saylor, J. D. (2003) Ten months later: Internal audit directors assess the impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Internal Auditing, 18(3), 3. Baker, R. L., Bealing, W. E., Jr., Nelson, D. A., Staley, B. A. (2006). An institutional perspective of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Emerald. Retrieved from May 15, 2006, from emeraldinsight.com/0268-6902.htm Bednarz, Ann. (2006, May 15). Sarbanes-Oxley: Too much for too little? Network World, 23(19) 1-2. Gifford, R. H., Howe, H. (2004). Regulation and unintended sequences: Thoughts on Sarbanes-Oxley. The CPA Journal, 74(6), 6-10. Hermanson, D. R. (2006). What to do about smaller public companies’ internal controls? Internal Auditing, 21(1), 41-43. Henry, D. (2006, June 12). A SarbOx Surprise. Business Week. Retrieved May 22, 2006, from http://0-proquest.umi.com.novacat.nova.edu/pqdweb?did=1051235551sid=1Fmt=3clientId=17038RQT=309VName=PQD Ismail, I. (2005, April 7). Raising awareness of Sarbanes-Oxley Act. New Straits Times, pp.04. Koehn, J. L., DelVecchio, S. C. (2006). Revisiting the ripple effects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The CPA Journal,76(5),3. Savich, R. S. (2006). Cherry-Picking Sarbanes-Oxley. Journal of Accountancy, 201(6), 71-74). Research Papers on What is Sarbanes-Oxley ActThe Project Managment Office SystemTwilight of the UAWAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductDefinition of Export QuotasPETSTEL analysis of IndiaUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalCapital PunishmentStandardized Testing

Florida Bright Futures Requirements SAT, ACT, GPA, and More

Florida Bright Futures Requirements SAT, ACT, GPA, and More SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship programs are awesome education funding options for Florida state residents- if you can get through the application process, that is. The scholarships offered are particularly nitpicky and tedious about their eligibility requirements: the official handbook outlining these criteria is its own 14-page book chapter. Not to worry! I’ve outlined all the eligibility criteria for Florida Bright Futures Scholarships (general and specific, for each scholarship, with every single exception or special circumstance) in a way that’s a bit easier to get through. I’ve also included information about when to expect notification about your eligibility. Once you’re considered eligible, you’re one (big) step closer to winning a Bright Futures Scholarship. After you’ve processed all this information, I’ll get to the good stuff- how to increase your chances of winning your own Bright Futures award. What Are the Bright Futures Scholarships? Before we dive into eligibility for Bright Futures Scholarships, let's first briefly go over what the scholarships themselves offer. There are three different scholarship programs, all with different eligibility requirements and award amounts. Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) - This is the most competitive Bright Futures scholarship and the most generous one. It's geared towards â€Å"A students." FAS winners canreceive funding for the entire duration of their course of study. Florida Merit Scholars (FMS) - This scholarship is less competitive than the FAS, but it still has relatively high minimum test score and GPA requirements. It's geared towards "B students." FMS winners canreceive funding for the entire duration of their course of study. Gold Seal Vocational Scholars (GSV) - This scholarship helps students pursuepost-high school vocational and certificate degrees. It's the least competitive award and provides the least amount of funding. GSV winners can receive scholarship funding for up to 72 credit hours of a technical degree program or career certificate program or up to 60 credit hours of an applied technology degree program. General Bright Futures Requirements There are a few different Bright Futures awards, but these blanket requirements apply to all of them (unless otherwise mentioned later on in the post). In order to qualify for one of these awards, you must: Be a Florida state resident and US citizen or eligible noncitizen (noncitizen eligibility is determined by your college) Complete the Florida Financial Aid Application (FFAA) by 8/31 the year of your high school graduation Earn a standard Florida high school diploma or its equivalent from a Florida public high school or a registered Florida Department of Education private school Not have been convicted of (or pleaded no contest to) a felony charge Be accepted by and enroll in a degree or certificate program at an eligibleFlorida public or independent postsecondary institution Be enrolled for at least six (non-remedial) credit hours per term If you meet all of the above requirements, you're on the right track to getting your own Florida Bright Futures awards. Specific Scholarship Requirements The different Bright Futures scholarship awards have slightly different academic eligibility requirements. Use this info to determine which scholarship award might be the best match for you. Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) and Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) Requirements There are certain minimum requirements for high school coursework, GPA, ACT/SAT scores, and service hours that must be met to qualify for either of these programs. You'll have to meet the requirements in all of these domains in order to be eligible for an award. If you've won another academic award, you may have an easier time qualifying for an FAS or FMS award- I'll talk about why and how after discussing allacademic requirements. Coursework We'll start off with the easiest of the eligibility criteria- I've laid out here all the high school classes you need to have taken in order to qualify for an award. The good news is that most high schools require students to take these classes anyways, so barring any special circumstances, you should meet these requirements. This chart outlines coursework requirements for both the FAS and FMS scholarships: High School Course Credits Required Comments English 4 Three must include substantial writing Mathematics 4 Must be at or above Algebra I level Natural Science 3 Two must have substantial lab work Social Science 3 World Language* 2 Must be sequential, and in the same language * A note about the World Language requirements: if you haven't taken the necessary courses, youcan meet this requirement by demonstrating proficiency on credit-by-exam equivalencies or other â€Å"university-approved† means. What this means is if you can test out of your language in college, you’ll probably also meet this language requirement even if you didn’t take two sequential language courses in high school. GPA, ACT/SAT, and Service Hours You'll need to demonstrate a degree of academic and community service excellence in order to qualify for either the FAS or FMS programs. You'll notice, though, that the FMS program is a bit less competitive in its minimum requirements. I've laid all of these eligibility criteria out in one chart so you can easily compare requirements for both programs: SCHOLARSHIP WEIGHTED GPA MINIMUM ACT MINIMUM SAT MINIMUM SERVICE HOURS FAS 3.50 29 1290 100 hours FMS 3.00 26 70 75 hours FMS- Homeschooled students without official transcripts 3.00 27 1220 75 hours A few important notes: You'll only need to submit scores from one standardized test- you don't need to meet score requirements for both the SAT and the ACT The SAT/ACT minimums do not include the writing section. All service hours must be completed by your high school graduation in order to count for the award. Future Changes to SAT Requirements The SAT requirements listed above are only valid for students graduating high school through 2020.Florida legislature recently passed a billthat will raise the SAT minimums for students graduating in 2021 and beyond. It's estimated that the SAT minimum forFAS will be raised from 1290 to 1330 andFMS from 70 to 1200. (The homeschooled FMS SAT requirement will likely be raised as well, but the exact amount hasn't been determined yet.) Here are some alternative options for those who like to venture off the beaten path. Other Ways to Qualify for the FAS or FMS Programs If you’ve received academic recognition through some other program, you may be eligible for the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship programs even if you don’t meet a few requirements. This chart outlines the eligibility requirements for scholars who have been recognized by any of the programs listed below. If a box is blank, that means thatyou would be exempt from that particular requirement. Program Florida Scholarship ACT/SAT Score Minimums Service Hours Minimums National Merit/National Achievement Finalists and Scholars FAS 100 hours NM/NA Finalists Scholars FMS 75 hours National Hispanic Scholars FAS 100 hours National Hispanic Scholars FMS 75 hours AICE Diploma FAS 100 hours AICE Diploma FMS 75 hours IB Diploma FAS AICE Curriculum FAS 29 or 1290 100 hours AICE Curriculum FMS 26 or 70 75 hours IB Curriculum FAS 29 or 1290 IB Curriculum FMS 26 or 70 If you have an IB diploma, you're in luck- that diploma is the only way to qualify for the FAS program without an ACT/SAT minimum or service hour minimum. Gold Seal Vocational Scholars (GSV) Requirements The GSV program is a bit less competitive in terms of its academic eligibility requirements than the FAS or FMS programs. Although this makes it a great fit for some students, keep in mind that the GSV award can only be used to fund a career education or certificate program- no four year college degrees. In order to qualify for the GSV program, you must meet all of the following criteria: Must graduate from high school with a standard diploma Must have a minimum unweighted 3.0 GPA in non-elective high school courses Must complete 30 service hours by high school graduation Must take at least three full credits in a single career and technical education program Must achieve a minimum 3.5 unweighted GPA in your career education classes There are also some minimum test score requirements for GSV applicants; if you’ve taken both the SAT and the ACT, you unfortunately can’t mix and match section subscores between the two tests to meet minimums; you can, however, superscore across multiple test dates for the same test (e.g., if you take the SAT twice). All minimums must be met for either the SAT or ACT (but ultimately, you only have to take either the SAT or the ACT!) This chart outlines GSV test score minimums: Exam Subsection Score Minimum ACT English 17 Reading 19 Math 19 SAT Critical Reading 440 Math 440 P.E.R.T Reading 106 Writing 103 Math 4 Want to learn more about the SAT but tired of reading blog articles? Then you'll love our free SAT prep livestreams. Designed and led by PrepScholar SAT experts, these live video events are a great resource for students and parents looking to learn more about the SAT and SAT prep. Click on the button below to register for one of our livestreams today! Special Circumstances: What If You Don't Think You Qualify? Feeling left out of all the scholarship fun? You could still be eligible! As you can see, the eligibility requirements for the Florida Bright Futures awards are quite specific. Perhaps fortunately for you, there are just as many exceptions to these rules as there are actual rules. If you were homeschooled, have a GED, or live out of state, you still might qualify for the award even given the stringent criteria described above. Homeschooled Students If you were homeschooled and don't have a Florida state standard diploma, you still may qualify for a Bright Futures award if: You meet all of the general requirements described at the beginning of this post You were registered in the district where you live for grades -12 GED Students In order to qualify for a Bright Futures award as a GED student, you mustmeet the coursework requirements and GPA requirements outlined at the beginning of this post before taking the GED exam.The processof applying or qualifying for an award won't be much different than that of a student with a standard high school diploma. Just keep in mind thatyour eligibility for a scholarship will be determined in the academic year in which your GED is earned. Out-of-State Students Usually, only Florida residents can qualify for the Florida Bright Futures scholarships (not a huge surprise there).If you earned a high school diploma from a non-Florida school while living with a parent or guardian who was on military or public service assignment outside of Florida, you may still be eligible.Keep in mind, though, that this parent must be a Florida resident. When Do You Learn Whether You're Deemed Eligible for a Bright Futures Scholarship? These eligibility qualifications above are tedious, to say the least. There are a couple of different official steps in place to determining program eligibility- these are implemented in order to make sure you’re checking off all the right boxes. Early Evaluations One option that the Bright Futures scholarship program offers is an early eligibility evaluation. If you submit transcripts and test scores to the Florida Department of Education early in your 7th semester of high school (think late winter your senior year), you’ll receive an â€Å"eligibility or ineligibility determination.† These eligibility decisions should be posted starting in March. Although an ineligible determination is not ideal, it may save you a good chunk of time- you won’t have to submit a whole application for a scholarship program that you won’t be considered for. Final Evaluations Once your final transcripts are submitted after your graduate high school, you’ll get an eligibility determination posted to your online account. The scholarship program will begin posting these determinations in July. How Do You Optimize Your Eligibility Chances? Ready to get started? Now that you know all about the Florida Bright Futures eligibility rules, you can start working on maximizing your chances of winning a scholarship.Many of the important eligibility requirements are long-term considerations, in the sense that you’ll have to plan out and work for the requirements starting your freshman year of high school. Here, I'll go through all the award criteria, giving tips and strategies to meet minimum coursework, GPA, test score, and service hour minimums. Coursework Like I mentioned earlier, most high schools require students to take the courses necessary to qualify for the Bright Futures awards. If you’re worried you won’t meet the course requirements criteria, schedule a meeting with your guidance counselor ASAP to see if you can work in extra course credits before graduation. GPA GPA requirements are easier to meet when they’ve been maintained over several years. If you’re just missing the GPA cutoff requirements, you should consider: Whether your GPA is weighted or unweighted.A weighted GPA will be higher than an unweighted one if you’ve taken any advanced or honors classes. Seeing your teachers after class or after school for extra help in your weaker subject areas. Asking your teachers if there are any extra credit projects or assignments you can complete in order to bring up your grades. The GPA requirement is lower for the FMS than the FAS scholarship- if you don’t meet the criteria forthe FAS, you may meet them for the FMS. ACT/SAT Test scores might be a sticking point for many students.The ACT/SAT minimums for both the FMS and FAS scholarship are pretty high- for example, the ACT scores required are at the 93rd and 87th percentiles. Here's what you can do to increase your chances of meeting those minimum scores: Start preparing for and taking the tests early on in high school. There’s no maximum number of times you can take the test in order to qualify for the scholarship. If you’re worried about achieving these test scores, plan on starting your sophomore year if possible. Decide whether you’re better off taking the SAT or ACT. Focus on one test instead of trying to do well on both. Don't have a lot of time to bring up your scores? Check out our ACT and SAT fast prep guides. Service Hours It would not be fun to try to fit in 75-100 service hours in the few months before high school graduation (remember that your service hours all have to be completed before you get your diploma). If you start volunteering as a freshman, you’ll only have to volunteer for an hour every 2-3 weeks in order to meet these minimums; if you start as a senior, however, you’ll have to volunteer 1.5-2 hours every week. So how do you stay on track? Find something that you're passionate about. Are there any interests that you want to explore, especially any related to future career paths? You could gain service hours and professional experience at the same time. Ask friends or family members if there are any service activities that they would recommend. Maybe you could volunteer together! Volunteer at the same time, on the same day, every week. Having a set schedule will help you keep your commitment. Don’t be afraid to switch it up. You have 75-100 required community service hours, but they don’t all have to be at the same place. If you’re losing interest, or if something just isn’t a good fit, it’s okay to try something else. Don’t just switch it up for the sake of switching, though- appearing flaky could hurt potential professional development and even your college applications. Volunteer with an established, legitimate agency. You want an organization that’s reliable enough to provide good documentation of your service hours when asked. Keep your own records of service hours as a backup. What's Next? Need more information on Bright Futures scholarships?Our guide to Bright Futures Scholarship programs answers all the questions you're wondering about. Ready to get started on your Bright Futures application?Follow our step-by-step guide on Bright Futures applications for all the information you need to create a top-notch application. Interested in more community service ideas? Check out our guide to 129 great community service projects. You may alsobe interested in other community service-based scholarships. Want to improve your SAT score by 160points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: