Guide 1 of 5 · Sorting · 5 min
Gifts, earned and borrowed: sorting any aid offer into three piles
Offers mix very different things under one heading. Three piles make them readable.
1Why three piles
An aid offer might list a grant, a scholarship, work-study and a loan one after another, with a total at the bottom. Adding them together hides the most important fact: what you will have to repay and what you will have to work for. Sorting each line into one of three piles shows it at once.
2Pile one: gifts
Grants and scholarships usually go here. They are generally not repaid, as long as you meet the rules attached. Write the amount, who gives it, and what it asks of you to keep it.
3Pile two: earned
Work-study is a part-time job whose pay helps with costs. It is not credited up front. You earn it by working scheduled hours, so it only helps if you can take the job and fit the hours around classes.
4Pile three: borrowed
A loan is money you borrow and repay. Check who the lender is, how interest works, and when repayment starts. Accepting a loan is a choice. If you are unsure, ask the aid office what happens if you accept only part of it.
5Add them up separately
Total each pile on its own line. A letter that shows “$18,000 in aid” looks very different once it reads “$9,000 in gifts, $2,000 earned, $7,000 borrowed.”
General information only. Scholento is not a school, lender, scholarship provider, or financial aid office, and this is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Programs, rules, and dates vary and change; check with your school’s financial aid office or the official program website. Updated October 30, 2026.