Scholarships
Cuesta College offers a variety of scholarships to help pay for the costs of attending college. Scholarships are awarded to students based on various special qualifications, such as academic achievement, artistic abilities, demonstrated leadership, athletic talents, or to students who are in particular fields of study, members of underrepresented groups, or who demonstrate a financial need.
Scholarships are provided to Cuesta College students by the generosity of foundations, corporations, and individual donors.
You will find useful information about the Cuesta College Scholarship Application and the Cuesta Promise below. Additionally, you will find links to scholarship databases and information about outside scholarships.
A scholarship is free money that can be used to help you pay for school expenses like tuition, books, and housing. That's right, free money that you do not have to pay back.
In addition to the Cuesta Promise, Cuesta College offers over 700 institutional scholarships through the Cuesta College Foundation. To be considered for any of these scholarships, you must submit a Cuesta College Scholarship Application.
The Cuesta Scholarship Application is open from October 1, 2024 - April 2, 2025 for the 2025 - 2026 award year. (*Note: Cuesta Scholarship deadline has been extended to follow the Cal Grant Priority Deadline of April 2, 2025).
IMPORTANT: Although completing a FAFSA or CADAA is not required to submit a scholarship application, we HIGHLY encourage you to submit a financial aid application because some scholarships are based on need.
Questions? Contact Financial Aid at (805) 546-3143 or email finaid@cuesta.edu.
To receive tuition assistance for the first two years at Cuesta College, students must complete all the Cuesta Promise steps by the August 1st deadline and must have graduated within the appropriate time frame. For more details, visit The Cuesta Promise webpage.
Outside Scholarship Policy
Have you been awarded an outside scholarship? Please review the following document for information on how to send the scholarship to Cuesta College:
Outside Scholarship Opportunities
| Scholarship (* new) | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Varsity Tutors | Monthly on the 15th |
| South Bay Women’s Network | Varies |
| The San Luis Obispo County Fire Safe Council Inc. | None |
| Ashley Strong Memorial for Social Justice (NAACP - SLO County Branch) | March 1st (Annually) |
| Paralegal Studies Associate's Degree or Certificate Program Scholarship | None |
| Paralegal Certification Scholarship | None |
| San Luis Obispo County CattleWomen (SLOCCW)* | April 1, 2025 |
| Cambria Community Scholarship Foundation* | March 17, 2025 |
| CalKids | None |
| California Community College's Chief Information Systems Officers Association (CISOA) | March 14, 2025 |
| Central Coast Greenhouse Growers Association | April 22, 2025 |
| Rotary San Luis Obispo Scholarship Application | March 31, 2025 by NOON |
| Actor's Edge Performing Art Scholarship Application | May 2, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo Veterans Scholarship | April 10, 2025 |
Outside Scholarship Databases
| Database | Type |
|---|---|
| The Community Foundation - SLO County | Local |
| Philanthropic Educational Organization | State |
| Poise Foundation - NAACP Scholarships | National |
| Best Colleges | National |
| FastWeb | National |
| Scholarships | National |
| Unigo | National |
| FinAid | National |
| Nursing Journal | National - Nursing Students |
| Affordable College | National - Students with Disabilities |
| Cien Amigos | National - Latinx Students |
| League of United Latin American Citizens | National - Latinx Students |
| Immigrants Rising | Undocumented Students |
| Scholarships A-Z | Undocumented Students |
| eduPASS | International |
| Philanthropic Educational Organization | International |
| Scholarship America | National |