Financial Aid & Scholarships

Your first step is to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid – Click Here

Be sure to select the correct academic year. CCC’s school code number is 014468. This number is used for all Central Community College campuses and learning centers.

If you would like help completing the FAFSA, please contact CCC Financial Aid at (308)398-7555 or finaid@305708.com to schedule an appointment.

To be eligible for federal financial aid, you must meet all these requirements:

• Be a U.S. citizen, a U.S. national or eligible non-citizen.
• Have the ability to benefit from a college education as demonstrated by possessing one of the following: (1) a high school diploma, (2) a GED or its equivalent or (3) a home school completion certificate.
• Be working toward a degree, diploma or an eligible certificate program (short-term certificates do not meet the minimum federal requirements).
• Be making satisfactory academic progress – Click Here to find out more.

The U.S. Department of Education requires colleges to verify the accuracy of information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This requirement means that each year a percentage of students who complete the FAFSA are selected for the verification process.

Notifications of information/documentation needed will be emailed to your CCC email and displayed on the Financial Aid section of MyCCC. All requirements must be completed before financial aid is offered.

Documents can also be printed from our Forms page. (link to forms page)

Central Community College is committed to using the Principles & Standards of the College Cost Transparency Initiative in its student financial aid offer. The Official Aid Offer will be available in My CCC for you to view. Once your offer has been generated, an e-mail will be sent to the your CCC email, stating the offer is available to be viewed.

College Transparency Seal

CCC’s Financial Aid Office is here to help you understand your financial aid offer and how it relates to covering your estimated cost. We can discuss with you your estimated costs, how your financial aid eligibility can impact those costs, and if additional resources are needed.

CCC has over 250 scholarships available to our students. Submit just one application to apply for all the scholarship you are eligible for.

The scholarship application opens on October 1st each year with a priority deadline of March 1st. However, if you missed the first deadline there are two additional opportunities for you to apply for scholarships.

ccc.awardspring.com

This federal program provides grants to students to help pay college costs. Amounts awarded to students attending Central Community College during the 2023-24 award year range from $767 to $7,395, depending on enrollment status and expected family contribution (EFC).

The EFC is determined by the results of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

This federal program provides assistance to Pell-eligible students with exceptional financial need as measured by the lowest expected family contribution. Eligible students attending at least half time are awarded $1,000 for a full academic year. All eligible students with completed financial aid files by March 1 will be given priority consideration for FSEOG.

This state-funded program provides assistance to eligible students with exceptional financial need as measured by the lowest expected family contribution. Eligible Nebraska residents attending at least half-time are awarded $1,000 for a full academic year. All eligible students with completed financial aid files by March 1 will be given priority consideration for these grants. NOG awards are subject to approval by the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education.

This federal program provides low-interest loans to students attending college at least half time. Loan applications are certified by the campus financial aid offices and funded through the Department of Education.

Undergraduate students may qualify for subsidized Federal Direct Loans, which are based on need. The federal government pays the interest on subsidized loans while students are attending college at least half time. This subsidy continues for six months from the date a student graduates, drops out or drops below half-time enrollment status.

Students may also qualify for unsubsidized Federal Direct Loans, which are not based on need. The borrower is responsible for the interest under this loan option. 

In some cases, a student may have both a subsidized loan and an unsubsidized loan.

Dependent students in the first year of a program of study may borrow up to $5,500, while second-year students may borrow up to $6,500.

Students are classified first-year for student loan purposes until they’ve earned 30 credit hours toward an eligible program of study. Independent students may have higher loan limits.

First-time loan borrowers must complete a Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling on the US Department of Education’s website. The login and password for this site are the same as the FAFSA website.

Complete your Master Promissory Note and Entrance Counseling

The maximum amounts undergraduates may borrow during their college program are $31,000 for dependent students and $57,500 for independent students. 

Borrowers are subject to a fixed interest rate of 5.50% for both subsidized and unsubsidized loans first disbursed between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024.

The financial aid office will inform student borrowers of the type of loan for which they are eligible (subsidized, unsubsidized or a combination of the two).

Students should contact the Financial Aid Office to make sure they have a clear understanding of their own specific loan situation. 

The financial aid director on each campus may refuse to certify a student loan or certify a loan for less than the requested amount. This must be done on a case-by-case basis according to the guidance provided by federal regulations. The reasons for the decision will be provided to the student in writing upon request.

The PLUS program assists parents of dependent students in paying college costs. Loan applications are certified by the Financial Aid Office and funded through the Department of Education.

Parents are responsible for repayment which begins 60 days after the origination of the loan.

The yearly loan limit is the school’s financial aid cost of attendance minus any other financial aid the student plans to receive.

Borrowers are subject to a variable interest rate with a cap of 9%. This is also recalculated each year and becomes effective on July 1. The current rate is 8.05%.

Over $2 million in aid is awarded annually to Central Community College students through institutional and privately funded scholarships. In addition, the CCC Board of Governors authorizes a number of tuition waivers for each campus. Over $583,000 is awarded annually in scholarships for performance in athletics, the arts and special academic achievement. For more information, contact the financial aid director on the campus you plan to attend.

2024-25 Scholarship Application will open April 15, 2024.

The 2024-25 Scholarship deadline to apply is June 1, 2024. 

You should also investigate scholarships from other sources. There are lots of hidden gems out there! Churches, clubs, employers, local communities and county foundation offices may have scholarships available. Scholarship information is also available through your high school guidance office, public libraries, community groups and scholarship search engines. EducationQuest Foundation has a free scholarship database that you can use as well. 

Please notify CCC’s Financial Aid Office if you receive an outside award. In some cases, we may have to adjust your aid package. These adjustments are made to loans and work-study aid, not grant funds. 

If you plan to register for classes during the summer of 2023 and need financial aid, you will need to have the 2022-23 FAFSA completed. Please keep in mind the following:

1. If you were a full-time student during the fall and spring semesters and used full-time Pell Grant funds during those terms, you will need to register at least half-time in the summer (six credits or more) to be eligible for a summer Pell Grant. If you did not receive full-time Pell funds for the fall and spring semesters, contact the financial aid office at the campus of your choice to discuss your summer eligibility.
2. You must be registered at least half-time to be eligible for student loans (six or more credits).
3. You must be pursuing a degree or diploma from Central Community College to receive financial aid in the summer or in any term of enrollment. If you are only taking summer courses to transfer to another institution, we cannot fund you.

This federal program provides part-time jobs for students demonstrating financial need. Hourly rates must meet or exceed the federal minimum wage. Students must be attending at least half-time and usually work eight to 15 hours a week

Work-study assignments are typically based on the amount of unmet need, lowest expected family contribution, date of application and suitability of skills for the position. Final assignment to a federal work-study position requires an interview with the campus work-study coordinator and the job supervisor.

The majority of these jobs are performed on campus for the college. Additionally, there are community service jobs that may be located either on- or off-campus. At least one of these positions is part of the America Reads Challenge, a reading tutoring program for children in pre-kindergarten through elementary school. Students are encouraged to consider community service work-study jobs whenever possible.