Scholarships

Your grades, achievements, and activities during high school typically determine the scholarships for which you are eligible. Often, the organization or individual donor providing the scholarship wishes to reward or encourage certain characteristics or behaviors such as strong academic credentials, leadership or community service activities, or plans to enter a certain profession.

Search for scholarships continually

Scholarships come from a variety of sources. Some are available through Illinois State University. Our ScholarshipFinder can also help you find awards within the University. Professional organizations, social clubs, employers, community organizations, and individual donors provide many more. Each scholarship provider determines when and how they will select the recipient, whether or not the award is renewable year after year, when the money will be awarded, and how it should be used. The more often you are searching and applying for scholarships, the less likely it is you will miss something for which you could have qualified.

Understand the timeline and process

Most scholarships are awarded on an annual basis. Usually that means applications are accepted in the fall or spring, winners are notified a few weeks to a few months later, and the actual awards are made the next fall. Unfortunately, because of this timing, if you are trying to cover an outstanding bill you have right now, scholarships are unlikely to help. Find out how the process works when you receive a scholarship.

Scholarships Available Now

Alumni Engagement Office Scholarships for the 2020-2021 academic year

By completing the online application, you may apply for one or all of the following scholarships offered by the Alumni Engagement Office:

Alumni Association Scholarship
Student Alumni Council/Marian H. Dean Legacy Scholarship and the Donald L. and Marie E. Dillow Family Memorial Scholarship
Redbird Family Partial Tuition Waiver

The application for these scholarships will be available from January 2, until February 15, 2020. Scholarships will be disbursed during the 2020-2021 academic year.

All applicants must:

Be currently enrolled, as a full-time undergraduate student at the sophomore, junior, or senior level at Illinois State University
Be in good academic standing
Have a minimum ISU GPA of 3.00 at the end of the fall 2019 semester
Submit the required essay. Essay must be 125 word minimum / 300 word maximum: List three leadership and/or civic engagement activities you are currently involved in and discuss why they are important to you.

Some of the scholarships offered by the Alumni Engagement Office have a requirement and/or a preference to applicants with an ISU Legacy. Please see the scholarship application for scholarship specific requirements.

For questions, please contact Alumni Engagement via email at Alumni@IllinoisState.edu or call them at (309) 438-2586.

2019-2020 Robert & Michelle Howell Scholarship

The Robert & Michelle Howell Scholarship was established to assist physically disabled Illinois State University students who have a financial need. Additional information about the scholarship and the application process can be found at the Robert and Michelle Howell Scholarship page.

Higher Education License Plate (HELP) Program

The number of grants made through this program, as well as the individual dollar amount awarded, are subject to sufficient annual appropriations by the Illinois General Assembly and the Governor. There is no specific application - students who complete the FAFSA, meet the listed requirements, and demonstrate financial need will considered.

Any student, faculty, staff, alumni, or parent can order these license plates. For each original plate issuance, renewal, or transfer of plates, the University will receive $25 for student scholarships. Visit the Alumni Office Web site for more information on purchasing a collegiate license plate.

In order for a student to receive scholarship money from this fund, the student must be:

A US citizen or eligible non-citizen
A resident of Illinois
Enrolled at Illinois State University
Able to demonstrate financial need with the completion of the FAFSA
Maintaining satisfactory academic progress as determined by the institution (for renewal applicants only)
An undergraduate student and have not received a baccalaureate degree
If eligible, you may receive this grant for the equivalent of 10 semesters or 15 quarters of full-time enrollment.

The Higher Education License Plate (HELP) Program provides grants to students who attend Illinois colleges for which the special collegiate license plates are available. The Illinois Secretary of State issues the license plates, and part of the proceeds are used for grants for undergraduate students attending these colleges.

The availability of grants is contingent on the number of license plates sold and the annual appropriation.

2019-2020 Talkington Family Endowed Scholarship

The Talkington Family Endowed Scholarship was established by Joe E. Talkington in October 2016 to provide financial support to employees working full time or part time at Westminster Village in Bloomington, IL. Joe retired from Illinois State University in June 1991 having served the University with distinction as Department Chairperson and professor in the Department of Technology (formerly the Department of Industrial Technology) for more than 29 years. He has been a resident of Westminster Village since September 2012.

Scholarship criteria:

Must be accepted for enrollment or enrolled as student in good academic standing at Illinois State University
Must be an employee (part-time or full-time) of Westminster Village in Bloomington, IL
Must have a demonstrated financial need as determined by filing and completing the 2019-2020 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
Employment status must be verified by the Human Resources Department at Westminster Village in Bloomington, IL
Complete the online application

This application is only open to students who have not already received the Talkington Scholarship during the 2019-2020 academic year.

Application for Senior Citizen Courses Act Tuition Waiver

Senior Citizen Courses Act (110 ILCS 990): Permits senior citizens, over the age of 65 who are accepted to the institution, to enroll in regularly scheduled credit courses at public institutions of higher education without payment of tuition. Does not include payment of any fees. Must be age 65 or older with an annual household income below the threshold amount provided in the statute.

http://policy.illinoisstate.edu/fiscal/7-7-8.shtml )

Get more information

Our blog can help you:

Federal Student Aid also provides a good explanation of how scholarships work.

For questions regarding scholarships, please call (309) 438-2740 or email Scholarships@IllinoisState.edu.

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