Financial Need Scholarship

Purpose

The Learning Abroad Center’s Financial Need Scholarship provides study abroad awards for University of Minnesota undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need.

This scholarship is intended to:

• ease the financial barrier of study abroad for students with significant financial need.

• provide assurance of funding earlier in the process and encourage early financial planning. Recipients have up to one year to use their award.

• increase representation of economically disadvantaged students on study abroad programs.

The Financial Need scholarship is not merit based and awards are granted based on the strength of a student’s essay.  

Eligibility Requirements

• Applicants must be enrolled as degree-seeking undergraduate students on the Twin Cities or Rochester campuses. 
• Students planning to study abroad after graduation can apply for a scholarship while still a degree-seeking student and use the award for a program during the term immediately following their graduation term, i.e. apply during fall semester to go abroad winter break or spring semester, or apply during spring to go abroad during May or summer.
• Applicants must be participating in a credit-bearing study abroad program.
• Nonaffiliated and directed study programs are eligible as long as the Learning Abroad Center nonaffiliated program application process or the directed study application process is completed before the program application process deadline.
• Applicants must demonstrate financial need by having a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on file. For the purpose of this scholarship, “financial need” is defined as being eligible for subsidized loans during the academic year you plan to study abroad. Eligibility can be based either on your current on campus costs OR on the estimated cost of participation in your study abroad program. To determine if you are eligible for subsidized loans, follow these instructions or schedule a financial aid preview meeting.  The Learning Abroad Center verifies eligibility with Onestop for all potential awardees. 
• You can apply apply for any or all of the Learning Abroad Center scholarships (Study Abroad, Diversity, and Financial Need) for which you are eligible. If you are awarded either the Diversity or Financial Need scholarship, you cannot also receive the Study Abroad scholarship.  It is possible to be awarded both the Diversity and Financial Need scholarships.

Essays will be evaluated based on:  

• how thoroughly you answer the specific essay questions

• how well written your essay is, in terms of grammar, punctuation and organization

Essay Questions

This application is comprised of 2 separate essay questions:

1. General study abroad essay (required)
2. Financial need essay (required)

Essay Question #1

1) What motivated you to select your particular study abroad program? Address any academic, career, and/or personal goals that were part of your decision, and expand on one or more of them*. (350 words maximum)

• “Academic” goals do not need to be related to your major; we are looking for you to describe how the program coursework and/or components are relevant to your goals. 
• Regardless of what type of goal(s) you are focusing on, explain how your goal(s) enhances intellectual learning.

Essay question #2

2) Students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds often have a different undergraduate experience than the wider student body. Based on your financial need, why is it important that you receive this particular scholarship to support your experience?  Elaborate on the specifics of your financial circumstances that impact your ability to study abroad, and how you plan to supplement this scholarship with other work, scholarship, loans, and funding opportunities.  (300 words maximum)

Visit the Learning Abroad Center Scholarship Portal to learn more about specific essay questions and requirements.

Deadlines & Award Amounts

You can apply to the scholarship up to a year in advance. If you do not receive the scholarship the first time you apply, you can apply again.

Apply for the deadline based on the Education Abroad Term found on the Apply section of your Program page. Contact Kelley Redmond if you are unsure of your program term or have any questions. 

The award can be used for any term listed for the application cycle during which you apply.  If you change terms later your award amount may be adjusted. If the term you change to is shorter than the term you received the scholarship for, your award amount will decrease. If the term you change to is longer than the term you received the scholarship for, your award amount will remain the same.

Scholarship notification emails will be sent to all applicants' UMN email accounts 4-6 weeks after the deadline. 

 Award Amounts

The number of scholarships awarded by deadline may vary depending on the pool of applicants and the funding available.
How to submit your application: 

• Check the scholarship deadlines for the term you will be studying abroad.
• Begin filling out your scholarship application and essay and submit via the Learning Abroad Center Online Scholarship Portal. Applications must be submitted by 11:59pm on the application deadline date, no exceptions. Once in the portal you have to 'SIGNUP' for an account every time you start an application for a different scholarship. Use the 'LOGIN' to access an application you have already started.

Paper, faxed, or emailed applications will not be accepted