10 Minnesota Scholarships to Save You Thousands on College
What’s Covered:
Are you a Minnesota student looking for scholarships? State-specific scholarships can be very lucrative, as your competition pool is much lower than national scholarships. As a student in Minnesota, you’re likely to be an ideal candidate for the scholarships on this list. Read up on them, see what suits you, then we’ll go over some tips for applying to any scholarship.
Check out these scholarships specifically for students in the North Star State.
10 Best Scholarships for Minnesota Students
1. Minnesota Masonic Charities Scholarships (Signature Scholarship)
Amount: $6,000
Deadline: April 30
Eligibility: Must be a Minnesota high school student with an unweighted GPA of 3.9 or higher, an ACT Composite score of 29 or higher, and enrolled or planning to enroll in a four-year college or university.
Application Requirements: An essay of 300 words or less, two letters of recommendation, a high school transcript, and a resume.
The Minnesota Masonic Charities offer six of these awards yearly to eligible high school students. A student does not have to have an affiliation with the Masonic organization, but it is asked about on the application. Students may only apply for one scholarship based on their eligibility. The Masonic Scholarship Committee looks for a well-rounded student to represent the organization through this award. That individual should be a good student, demonstrate good character, be involved in school and the wider community, and have clear educational goals.
2. ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship
Amount: $1,000
Deadline: April 29
Eligibility: Must be a high school student or their parent who is a legal US resident, resident of Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, or Wisconsin, and planning to attend an eligible college in the fall.
Application Requirements: Complete the registration on the company’s website.
The Iowa Student Loan Education Lending company offers ten of these scholarships to eligible Midwestern students every year. Students do not have to be enrolled in or planning to enroll in an Iowa college and can use the award as a part-time or full-time student. It can also be used to help with community college expenses. Following your registration, ISL will send you emails containing even more tips on planning and paying for college, along with notifications about the status of the scholarship.
3. Vincent L. Hawkinson Foundation Scholarships
Amount: $3,000-$5,000
Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Must be a resident of or currently attending school in Minnesota, have graduated high school, and be available for a virtual interview.
Application Requirements: Applicant information, scholarship essay, name and contact information for a nominator, and a current academic transcript.
The Hawkinson Foundation awards this scholarship every year to students who demonstrate a commitment to peace and justice. While this award is targeted toward undergraduate students, December high school graduates are eligible to apply. Having extra time is beneficial towards becoming a strong candidate as well! Past recipients have worked on “peace and justice” in various ways, including international healthcare, LGBT+ equality, Native American rights, and more.
4. Minnesota Academic Excellence Scholarship
Amount: At public institutions, the award may cover full tuition and fees, and at private institutions, the award may cover either the actual tuition and fees charged by that school or the tuition and fees in comparable public institutions.
Deadline: Depends on the school you wish to apply the scholarship to.
Eligibility: Must be a high school student who will graduate and enroll in a full-time program at the University of Minnesota, a Minnesota state university, or a Minnesota private, baccalaureate degree-granting college or university.
Application Requirements: Depends on the school you wish to apply the scholarship to.
The Minnesota Academic Excellence Scholarship is awarded to students who have shown a high level of achievement in English, fine arts, foreign language, math, science, or social science attending a participating Minnesota school. In order to apply, you must contact the school you wish to apply the scholarship to and first, make sure they participate, then inquire as to their process for applications.
5. PFund Foundation Scholarships
Amount: $1,000- $12,000
Deadline: March 15
Eligibility: Must be 17 years of age or older after June 1 of the application year, be enrolled in an academic program or institution in the fall/spring of 2022/2023, live in or attend a program in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, or Wisconsin, and be part of the LGBT+ community.
Application Requirements: Completed online application form, and two letters of recommendation.
PFund Foundation is a regional group centered on the upper Midwest LGBT+ community. They firmly believe that dedicated, connected, and supported LGBT+ youth are vital to the community, and as such use these awards to support LGBT+ students. Scholarships are awarded based on commitment to leadership within the community and beyond. The Scholarship Committee is made up of LGBT+ and allied volunteers who use a community-driven process to identify and recognize leaders. Students do not have to be enrolled in a university but should plan to attend one.
6. Page Education Foundation Grant
Amount: $1,500- $2,500
Deadline: April 1
Eligibility: Must be a student of color, graduate from a Minnesota high school, enroll in an accredited Minnesota post-secondary educational institution, and register and maintain full-time status throughout the academic year they are awarded the grant.
Application Requirements: Completed application information, two recommendations, school information, employment and internship information, essay questions, and financial information.
The Page Education Foundation believes that Minnesota’s students of color should be encouraged to pursue post-secondary education, and seeks to help them do so through grants. Page Scholars must make a commitment to volunteer and tutor young children in kindergarten through eighth grade in a clearly-defined Service to Children Project. The goal of this project is to encourage the next generation of learners to do well in school, maintain a positive attitude about education, and see college as a realistic goal for their lives.
7. Korean-American Scholarship Foundation Midwestern Regional Chapter Scholarship
Amount: $500- $5,000
Deadline: June 30
Eligibility: Must have Korean heritage, maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, demonstrate a need for financial assistance, and will be a full-time student at a school in one of the following states during the 2022-2023 school year: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin.
Application Requirements: Personal information, education information, recommendations, essay, and extracurricular resume.
The Korean-American Scholarship Foundation offers qualified Korean-American students assistance in paying for higher education. Applicants are evaluated based on financial need, academic achievement, recommendations, essay, and their commitment to community service. This scholarship has an online application, making it easy to get started.
8. Ernest Morgan Memorial Scholarship
Amount: $5,000
Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Must be a high school senior from Albany/Avon, Annandale, Cathedral High School, Elk River, Foley, Holdingford, Melrose, Monticello, Sartell, Sauk Centre, Sauk Rapids, St. Cloud Apollo, St. Cloud Learning Center, St. Cloud Technical High School, St. Cloud Christian School, St. John’s Preparatory High School, and plan to attend a four-year college or university located outside of Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, or Wisconsin.
Application Requirements: General application questions answered, statement of need and responsibility, essay, list of activities participated in, two letters of recommendation, and electronic transcript.
This scholarship was intended to help students pay for and attend out-of-state colleges and universities. They are encouraged to broaden their horizons, have new experiences, and leave their comfort zone without worrying about the higher cost of out-of-state tuition. This application is all online- yay!
9. Linden Scholarship
Amount: $1,500- $3,000
Deadline: April 29
Eligibility: Must be a high school student who permanently resides in Washington, Dakota, or Ramsey county with a minimum 2.0 GPA and demonstrated financial need.
Application Requirements: Completed application, two reference forms, typed personal essay, financial aid form, and high school transcript.
Offered by the Twin Cities Salvation Army, this scholarship is meant to remove barriers that block higher education from people without the financial resources to pay for it. The Linden scholarship seeks students committed to improving their communities through volunteer service in the spirit of the Salvation Army. Students will need to complete the application and forms and mail them to the Salvation Army at the address listed on the scholarship website.
10. Brian Klinefelter Family and Law Enforcement Scholarships
Amount: $1,000
Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Must be a high school student dependent of local, county, state, or federal law enforcement, firefighter, or paramedic personnel from Sherburne, Benton, Morrison, Stearns, Douglas, Todd, Wright, Meeker, Kandiyohi, or Pope counties.
Application Requirements: Essay, statement of need and responsibility, list of activities participated in, two letters of recommendation, and an electronic transcript.
This and several other scholarships were created to honor Officer Brian Klinefelter, a dedicated police officer killed in the line of duty in 1996. The goal of this scholarship is to assist children of those like Mr. Klinefelter to attain higher education. Students will write an essay explaining what they’ve learned from their law enforcement family member, and how their own leadership abilities have impacted others.
11. CollegeVine Scholarships
Amount: Up to $500
Deadline: Weekly
Eligibility: high school student and US resident
Application Requirements: Create a FREE(!) CollegeVine account
CollegeVine provides weekly scholarships of up to $500! All you have to do is join our free admissions platform and earn karma, the free CollegeVine “currency”. You can earn karma by reviewing essays through our Peer Review tool and answering questions in our Community Forums. After earning that karma, you bid it to enter the scholarship drawing (if you don’t win, that karma will be returned, where you can “spend” it on essay reviews and expert advice). Awards will be paid out directly to students to help them cover any educational costs. Learn more about the CollegeVine scholarships.
Tips for Applying to Scholarships
Applying for scholarships can be a big headache. Now that you just got done applying to college, or in the midst of it, you have a million more applications you need to fill out?!? When it’s for something as important as finances, it can be even more intimidating. We get it. We’re here to help. To maximize your chances of success, try these tips:
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Before you do anything else, be sure to maximize institution-based financial aid and merit scholarships. We mean before even applying to the scholarships in this post! In general, schools have a LOT more money to give than outside organizations. You’ll want to utilize every merit scholarship at your disposal before putting all your effort into outside scholarships. Check out this post on tried and true methods of winning merit scholarships.
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Survey your niche(s). In addition to being a Minnesota student, are you the child of a veteran? A police officer? A firefighter? Were you homeschooled? Do any faith-based organizations you are a part of offer scholarships? Do you play a sport? Were you a member of JROTC? All of these things, and many more, have specific scholarships that YOU can apply for! Go for one niche at a time, craft a killer essay about your experience with it, and apply away.
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Make a list! This list can be as detailed as you want. Open Google Sheets or Excel, and make a column for the name of the scholarship, award amount, deadline, and link to the application. If you want to get really in-depth, you could include columns to check off application materials- transcript, essay, recommendation, and that you’ve submitted it. You could even list which niche each scholarship corresponds to!
- Ask a parent, counselor, teacher, or trusted friend to read over your application materials with you before submission. You want as many eyes on this as possible before it’s in front of the person or people who will decide who gets it! Listen to suggestions, and don’t be afraid of criticism. Anyone who you’re showing it to wants you to succeed. Trust them! Ask questions and be confident when you submit your materials.
