Customer Testimonial

I started working at the financial aid office at USF in 2013, and we started using AwardSpring as our scholarship management system after it took over our previous software. Since transitioning into a new role, I’ve had the opportunity to work more regularly with AwardSpring over the past year.

We’re a big school with over 50,000 students and around $8 million in scholarship funds to award yearly, so having organized, easily-referenced data is key to our success. AwardSpring integrates with our Banner student information system, eliminating the need to cross-reference every single applicant’s information across platforms. Just being able to pull the data directly from a centralized source makes it a lot easier for everybody involved in awarding scholarships across departments.

I also like how easy AwardSpring is to use. I was able to figure out how to do everything without much guidance, and I can find any data I need using the many search bars within AwardSpring—they always yield helpful results whether I’m searching for a student, another user, or a scholarship. 

On the foundation side of things, we utilize AwardSpring’s review groups to organize our committees. I know our reviewers  find the software easy to use and that it streamlines our scholarship review process.

We use also use AwardSpring for recruitment—two of our biggest programs that both live in AwardSpring are our Latino Scholarship Program and Black Leadership Network. To encourage students to apply, we send out postcards with a QR code leading right to the application form. I think it’s been really helpful; a lot of students seemed really engaged with it. 

Anytime we have a question about AwardSpring, the customer service team answers it right away. Everyone on the team is so nice and helpful, and that’s a big deal not only when you’re implementing a new system but in the upkeep of it as well. AwardSpring has a dedicated team set to communicate and work with customers to get them back up and running quickly. AwardSpring’s customer service would definitely tip it over the edge compared to competitors. 

___

Kathryn Swisher

Scholarship and Stewardship Officer, Foundation Scholarships