CHS Undergraduate Scholarship Application

February 14 is the deadline for submitting the CHS scholarship application. Applications must be received by 5:00 p.m.

In addition to the application deadline, there are other important deadlines to consider:

February 21: Letters of recommendation are due.

February 14: We recommend you submit your FAFSA by this date — or at least by March 1 for priority financial need consideration (otherwise, it can be turned in up to June 30). The FAFSA is for scholarships based on financial need, so it is optional.

March 1: Income tax return should be completed for priority financial need consideration (when completing a FAFSA).

Letters of recommendation

Letters of recommendation may be required. Review the Letter of Recommendation tab to see if you need to submit a letter/letters of recommendation, to make an online request for a letter of recommendation, and to see the status of your recommendation. More »

Individual scholarship requirements

The College of Human Sciences currently has about 100+ college-level scholarship funds to award from (many funds award several scholarships each year). Each scholarship has its own criteria that donors have required their recipient to match. This can include, but is not limited to: financial need, specific majors, student status, academics, leadership, character, state/county residence, involvement in specific activities/organizations, etc. When you submit the College of Human Sciences application, we match each recipient to the correct scholarship based on set criteria.

In general, letters of recommendation are required of:

• Incoming freshmen (direct from high school)
• Incoming transfer students
• Current students in some departments

When you complete your scholarship application, you can check the Letters of recommendation tab to see if you are required to submit letters of recommendation.

How letters of recommendation work

When you click on the Letters of recommendation tab and learn that you are required to provide a letter/letters of recommendation, you make requests of your recommender(s) by doing the following for each request:

1. Completing the "recommender"  information fields.
2. Clicking the Send email now button.

An email will be sent to your recommender asking him or her to complete your recommendation within one week.

Status: Return to the Letters of recommendation tab/page to view the request status. If any of your recommenders has not responded, you can submit a request for that person again.

Deadline: The deadline for your letter(s) of recommendation is February 21.

Letter of recommendation requests must be made through the scholarship application system.

(Recommenders do not see your application information.)

Before you request

It is best to contact your recommender(s) before completing any requests, so the recommender can be prepared to provide the recommendation and can be expecting the email from the system.

Following up!

It is your responsibility to return to the Letters of recommendation tab/page to make sure each recommender completes the letter of recommendation process by using the email link to provide us with your letter of recommendation.

If your status continues to show "Recommender has not yet completed this recommendation,"  follow up with the recommender to make sure the email was correct and the recommender is aware that he or she needs to respond to the email by clicking the link in it and completing the online form. You can submit a request multiple times, but it's best to also follow up to make sure the email was correct.

Who should be a recommender?

References for freshmen and transfer students should address your enthusiasm for your intended major, academic and leadership qualities, character, and/or financial need. Recommenders can be a teacher, instructor, coach, adviser, minister, club leader, etc. (Letters should not be from a family member or friend.)

What is FAFSA?

Students seeking scholarships because of financial need are urged to submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and request that a report of the FAFSA be sent to Iowa State University so that your “estimated need” will be available as soon as possible.

Why is FAFSA important?

• Some scholarships offered by the College of Human Sciences are based partially on financial need. If you have financial need and would like to be considered for such scholarships, please be sure to submit the FAFSA for the year.
• The CHS Scholarship Committee recommends that students complete the FAFSA even if they do not think they will have financial need.
• If financial information is not available when applications are reviewed, applicants will be considered for scholarship aid on the basis of academic and other achievements.

Deadline. The FAFSA must be received by the processor by March 1 for priority financial need consideration. We recommend that in order to meet this deadline you mail your FAFSA on or before February 14. If you are not submitting for priority financial need consideration, FAFSAs can but submitted up until June 30.

Income taxes. If your taxes have not been completed by March 1 (for priority financial need consideration), we urge you to estimate tax information in order to meet the deadline.

Form. The FAFSA forms are available online for the fastest processing.

Paper copies are available at the Office of Student Financial Aid, Room 0210 Beardshear Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011; however, submitting a paper form takes considerably longer to process.

FAFSA. Submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form (FAFSA) for the year. The CHS Scholarship Committee recommends that students complete the FAFSA even if they do not think they will have financial need.

Proofread your responses. Avoid mistakes in grammar, spelling, and language. Remember, your application is reviewed and scored by a committee. For this reason, the CHS Scholarship Committee strongly recommends that you draft your application answers in advance.

What if I'm graduating in the fall, studying abroad, or going on internship – do I still get a scholarship?

As long as you are enrolled full-time and are paying tuition to Iowa State University, you are eligible for scholarships within the College of Human Sciences.

To remain eligible for an awarded scholarship, you must continue to be enrolled in the College of Human Sciences. It is your responsibility to notify the CHS Dean's Office if you change majors or colleges in order to determine your continued eligibility

The amount of the award is based on your anticipated graduation date. This amount will be split equally and credited to your university account during the fall and spring semesters. If you change your graduation date, the award amount is subject to change.