Trustee Scholarship

Trustee Scholarship Qualifications

The Trustee Scholarship selection process involves participation in one of two exclusive events:

• Thursday-Friday, January 23-24
• Thursday-Friday, February 6-7

If you meet the qualifications outlined below, you will receive an email with a link to register for the Trustee Scholarship Event weekend. We invite you and up to two parents or guests to join us in meeting the selection committee, University leaders, and faculty members in your areas of interest.

Plan to arrive on Thursday evening between 4-5 p.m. for check-in, followed by a special welcome dinner and reception. On Friday, you will have a full day with us, including your interview and academic appointments. Please note that professional attire is required for the interview portion only.

If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact us at admissions@harding.edu or reach out to your counselor directly.

To be eligible for the Trustee Scholarship, you must meet ALL of the following criteria:

• Have a 31 or higher ACT composite score or super score, 1390 or higher SAT combined Critical Reading and Math score or 100 or higher composite CLT score
• Have a 3.5 high school grade point average (based on 4.0)
• Complete the trustee scholarship application and submit all required items no later than Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 for the January Trustee event and January 20, 2025 for the February Trustee event.
• Be a first-time college student excluding CLEP, Advanced Placement credit and dual/concurrent enrollment credits
• Be officially accepted to Harding University before your interview

Once awarded, to remain eligible for the scholarship, Trustee Scholars must meet the following criteria:

• Be enrolled full-time (12 hrs. minimum)
• Maintain a 3.25 cumulative GPA
• Live on campus in a residence hall or apartment
• Accept membership and participate as an Honors Scholar in the Honors College.

The Trustee Scholarship is valid for a maximum of eight semesters of undergraduate tuition and may not be combined with other Harding-funded scholarships or discounts.

Notifications of scholarship decisions will be made on or before March 1, and students must accept awards on or before April 1.

TRUSTEE SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

All applicants for the Trustee Scholarship will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

1. Academic Excellence: Beyond performing well on exams and in classes, applicants demonstrate intellectual curiosity and a commitment to learning. Further, applicants envision how they can use their knowledge to benefit others.
2. Mission-Driven Focus to Vocation: Applicants have reflected on how their faith in Christ compels them to pursue a specific purpose in life. Even if applicants are undecided on their specific major or eventual profession, they reflect on how their career pursuits or explorations are aligned with the mission of Christ.
3. Contribution to Harding: Applicants can describe their vision for how they can contribute to the Harding community through participation, service and leadership during their time as a student.
4. Resilience Amid Adverse Experiences: Applicants demonstrate an awareness of how they have grown from challenging life experiences. In moments where the applicants encountered adversity, they demonstrated both persistence toward achieving their goals and compassion toward self and others.

Applicants will have the opportunity to demonstrate how they meet the criteria through the application process. The application for the Trustee Scholarship consists of the following components:

• Resumé: The applicants should submit a resumé that lists prior experiences in school, church or other aspects of community involvement that speak to the four criteria of the scholarship. Specifically, they should include:

  • Any formal information about their participation in high school preparation.
  • Any relevant extra-curricular or co-curricular experiences.
  • Any relevant volunteer services afforded through church, school or other community involvement.
  • Any relevant work experience.

The resumé must be no more than one page, single-spaced, with a minimum font size of 11 point (Times New Roman) or 10 point (Arial). If the resumé exceeds these limits in any way, it will not be reviewed.

• Letters of Recommendation: The applicants should request three letters of recommendation from those who can speak to how the applicant meets any scholarship criteria. We understand that a single letter may only address one or two criteria, and we encourage applicants to ask for letters from three individuals who can, as a whole, speak to all of the criteria for the scholarship.

The letters must be no more than two pages, single-spaced. If a letter exceeds these limits in any way, it will not be reviewed. Recommendation letters may be sent directly to the applicant for submission.

• Statement of Purpose: The applicants shall produce a statement that addresses their purpose in pursuing an education at Harding University and addresses how they demonstrate the four criteria for the scholarship. A high-quality statement would point to specific, personal examples from lived experiences that support their statements.

The statement should be written as a cohesive, singular essay (double-spaced), ranging from 750 to 1,000 words. The essay must be originally composed by the applicants in their own words. While we encourage the applicant to seek feedback in constructing the essay, another individual, ChatGPT, or other AI-powered software may not generate any written statement in the essay.

• Interview: Applicants will participate in an interview with two interviewers. In this interview, they should prepare to speak about how they demonstrate the scholarship criteria. Dress for the interview will be traditional business attire, and guidance for dress may be found here: liveabout.com/what-is-business-attire-1918075

• Submission: All application components must be submitted no later than midnight on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 for the January Trustee and Monday, January 20, 2025 for the February Trustee event. All items must be saved as a PDF, attached to an email, and sent to admissions@harding.edu. All items must be submitted in one email. Please include “Trustee:”, your full name and date of birth in the subject line (i.e. Trustee: John Smith 01/01/2005).