We’ve talked before about how expensive college is getting, and it remains a pressing concern on the minds of many parents and students. Scholarships do exist, though finding them is often a challenge in itself, especially with how busy students are during the college admissions season.
In this article, therefore, we’re going to continue our trend of bringing you great scholarship opportunities. Today, we’re going to discuss the Terry Foundation Scholarship, which is the largest private scholarship provider in the entire state of Texas (where everything is already reportedly bigger). We’ll cover what this scholarship is, who qualifies, and how you can apply. Let’s get started!
The Terry Foundation
Founded in 1987, the Terry Foundation was created to repay a scholarship its founder, Howard Terry, received to attend UT Austin to play football. Funded and chartered in perpetuity, the foundation has significant investments, which it uses to provide the scholarship funds.
The point of the scholarship is specifically in partnership with public universities in Texas. Specifically, they have partnered with 11 universities, and only provide scholarships to them. Note that this used to be 13, but has since contracted; see the notes below. These universities are:
- UT Austin
- Texas A&M
- University of Houston
- Texas State University
- UT San Antonio
- UT Dallas
- University of North Texas
- Texas Tech
- Texas Woman’s University
- UT Arlington
- UT El Paso
- Sam Houston State University (Note that they have paused funding for new scholarships at this school)
- Texas A&M Galveston (Note that they have paused funding for new scholarships at A&M Galveston)
So, What is the Terry Foundation Scholarship?
The scholarship itself is a full-ride last-dollar scholarship. Full ride means that students do not pay out of pocket for university expenses. Last dollar means that the scholarship funding is applied after all funding sources and scholarships the student has. If, for example, you receive a $10,000 honors college scholarship from University of Houston, then the Terry Foundation will pay the remainder of the outstanding cost.
This scholarship covers up to eight semesters of tuition, so the standard four years of undergraduate education. While a transfer scholarship used to be available, this ended in 2020.
Who Qualifies for the Terry Foundation Scholarship?
The scholarship is intended for students from Texas, and has the following eligibility criteria:
- You must graduate from an accredited Texas high school, though homeschooled students in Texas are also eligible
- You must be a US citizen or permanent resident, and meet Texas residency requirements
- You must qualify for in-state tuition, and for federal financial aid assistance
- You must demonstrate financial need, and must complete the FAFSA in order to demonstrate this need
- You must apply to one of the affiliated schools, and commit to living on campus in the Terry-associated residence hall for at least your first year (housing is covered by the scholarship).
In addition to these requirements, in order to actually be awarded the scholarship, you must get into one of the universities, and commit to attending immediately following graduation, without taking a gap year. You must also be nominated for an interview with the foundation by the university in question; applications are not done to the foundation directly, but through each affiliated university.
This scholarship is both need and merit based. They are looking for students who demonstrate their leadership and character through their extracurriculars; students with great academic potential as demonstrated by their grades, and students with demonstrated financial need. You must meet all three criteria to qualify.
How to Apply for the Terry Foundation Scholarship
Applications for the scholarship are handled by each individual university. Students apply through the school, and they review these along with their base application. The schools then nominate students they believe are qualified to the Foundation, who interview the student.
The application itself varies by school; we’ll use Texas A&M as an example. They require you to apply through the Common App, and to complete the supplemental scholarship essay to be considered. You must also complete the FAFSA. This is the prompt for that essay:
- In approximately 500 words, describe an example of your leadership. Be sure to describe your actions and the actions of those around you and to explain what you accomplished.
You can find the application requirements for each partner school conveniently linked on their affiliated universities page. These do vary slightly, but are quite similar; a supplemental essay meant to see how well you fit with the stated values of the scholarship, which combined with your application to the school will let them evaluate your potential for the scholarship.
There are GPA minimums to keep your scholarship, and you must be a full time student in good standing as well, taking most of your classes in-person at the university, rather than online (though taking a required online course is permitted).
The Interview
The scholarship requires a panel interview, where you are asked questions by six current and former Terry Scholars about your background. This is an informal interview, and takes around 30 minutes. You are encouraged to dress professionally for this. You will have a chance beforehand to get any questions you might have answered, so asking questions is not generally part of the interview process.
For more on the interview, see their website here. For guidance on preparing for interviews generally, check out our article on the topic.
Final Thoughts
If you are a Texas high school student, the Terry Foundation Scholarship is one of the best ones available to you. Hundreds are awarded each year, and students who receive it generally graduate college completely debt-free, which is a major boon when beginning your post collegiate life. We hope this article has done a good job explaining the scholarship to you, and outlining how you can apply for it.
Of course, you still need to get into college in the first place, an increasingly challenging prospect as admissions rates continue to decline at many schools. If you want advice on this, or to otherwise hear how we can help you, schedule a free consultation today. If you are worried about affording our services, check out our pro-bono program. Either way, we look forward to hearing from you.
