ANSWER
Yes, some Menlo scholarships and grants can help with room and board, but many are tuition-only and Menlo says institutional aid cannot be applied to student fees or insurance costs. The most direct current exceptions are awards or programs that explicitly include housing or can be used for housing, and Menlo also says the total of grants and scholarships cannot exceed the full cost of tuition, housing, and meals.
YOUR NEXT DECISION
Turn the answer into your next step
- Identify the exact scholarship or grant name.
- Ask Menlo Financial Aid whether it can be applied to room and board.
- Check whether the award is tuition-only or package-based.
- Confirm whether the scholarship would change your housing balance.
- Submit FAFSA or CADAA if you need grant consideration.
What Menlo says scholarships can cover
Menlo’s financial aid page says most Menlo merit-based scholarships and grants pay tuition only and do not cover housing unless the scholarship package says so. Menlo also says some awards can be applied to housing, and the Office of Financial Aid decides how a scholarship is stacked and whether it can be used that way.
- Menlo merit-based scholarships and Menlo grants pay tuition costs only and may be reduced by policy or regulations.
- The combination of all grants and scholarships cannot exceed the total cost for tuition, housing, and meals.
- Housing awards may be reduced if they would create a credit balance on the room-and-board portion of the account.
A current example that does include room and board
Menlo’s Rising Scholars Program lists a participant fee of $195 that covers room and board, supplies, and off-campus activities, and the fee is applied to the student’s Menlo account. That is a program-specific charge structure, not a general rule for all scholarships.
- The program fee is explicitly described as covering room and board.
- This is tied to the Rising Scholars Program, so it does not prove all scholarships work the same way.
- Check the program’s current eligibility and account posting details before relying on it.
How to verify your own award
If you want to know whether a specific scholarship can pay for housing near Menlo, the official step is to contact the Office of Financial Aid and ask whether that award is stackable and whether it can be applied to room and board. Menlo also says recipients should complete FAFSA or the California DREAM Act Application to be considered for grants.
- Ask Financial Aid whether the award can be stacked and whether it can be used toward housing.
- Confirm whether the award is tuition-only or includes housing in the package.
- Use FAFSA or CADAA if you still need grant consideration.
Sources
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