Texas Scholarships Home -> Applying -> Entering Freshman Students -> Scholarships FAQ
Entering Freshman Scholarships FAQ
Skip to section. Q1:  I am an Entering Freshman and would like to apply for scholarships at UT Austin. How do I begin the process?

Skip to section. Q2:  How do I apply for departmental or college-specific scholarships?

Skip to section. Q3:  Am I required to be admitted to UT Austin before I can access the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application?

Skip to section. Q4:  Am I required to fill out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) if I want to apply for scholarships at UT Austin?

Skip to section. Q5:  Can I apply for scholarships for the Summer sessions?

Skip to section. Q6:  Is there a deadline to submit recommendation letters and any documentary materials?

Skip to section. Q7:  What if my test scores arrive at UT Austin after the December 1 application deadline?

Skip to section. Q8:  I did not take the SAT but I did take the ACT. Can I still apply and be considered for scholarships?

Skip to section. Q9:  If I can still access the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application after December 1, does that mean I can still submit it?

Skip to section. Q10:  I submitted my ApplyTexas Scholarship Application. How can I check its status?

Skip to section. Q11:  How can I update information on my ApplyTexas Scholarship Application after it has been submitted or after the deadline has passed?

Skip to section. Q12:  I am an international student. Can I apply for scholarships using the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application?

Skip to section. Q13:  I am a non-resident student. Can I apply for scholarships and will I be given equal consideration as Texas residents?

Skip to section. Q14:  Questions 29-32 of the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application ask for Parent Total Annual Income. Is this before or after taxes?

Skip to section. Q15:  Question 17 of the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application asks me to list AP/IB High School Coursework. Can I include Pre-AP and/or Honors coursework?

Skip to section. Q16:  How do I report my AP honors course credit when I only receive half a credit?

Skip to section. Q17:  The instructions say that any information I enter into the ApplyTexas Admission Application will get transferred automatically into the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application. What information gets transferred?
 
A:  First, you must begin an ApplyTexas Freshman Admission Application. We strongly recommend that you complete at least the first six pages of this application. Even though you'll be able to start your ApplyTexas Scholarship Application after completing and saving only the first three pages, completing the first SIX pages is preferable. It will keep you from having to retype data unnecessarily. Remember that once you start your scholarship application, the two applications will cease to be linked. You will then have to enter any new data in two places.
You can begin a scholarship application by logging in to your profile page, selecting the "My Applications" tab at the top of the page and then selecting "New" under "Scholarships" to create a new application.
By completing this scholarship application, you will automatically be considered for the majority of scholarships awarded by the Office Student Financial Services for the following academic year. This application is made available in September of every Fall semester and is used to award students for the following academic year. The priority deadline for submission is December 1.
NOTE: Completing the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application does not necessarily make you eligible for specific departmental scholarships. Contact your prospective academic department for information about their scholarship procedures.
 
A:  In most cases, each academic department or college manages its own scholarship awarding process. In some cases, an academic department or college requires in-coming students to fill out the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application, in addition to their own scholarship application. Contact your prospective academic department for information about their scholarship procedures.
 
A:  No, you do not have to be admitted to complete the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application. In order to access the scholarship application, however, you will have to at least start the admission application. The scholarship application will be accessible to you after you complete the first three pages of the the admission application. However, we strongly recommend that you complete the first six pages. Doing so will keep you from having to retype data unnecessarily. Once you start a scholarship application, the two applications will cease to be linked and you will then have to enter any new data in two places.
 
A:  The University requires students to complete the FAFSA if they wish to be considered for any need-based financial aid, including scholarships offered through the Office of Student Financial Services. Students who wish to be considered only for merit-based scholarships are not required to complete the FAFSA, but are still encouraged to do so. Many merit-based scholarships also have a financial need component, and it is therefore always advantageous to complete the FAFSA. UT Austin's priority deadline for the FAFSA is March 31 for students applying for the Fall and/or Spring semesters and February 15 for the Summer sessions.
 
A:  The Office of Student Financial Services does not award scholarships for the Summer sessions. Contact OSFS for information about alternate forms of financial assistance, such as grants and loans. Contact your prospective academic department to find out if they offer scholarship support during the Summer.
 
A:  The Office of Student Financial Services (OSFS) strongly encourages you to send all supplementary materials required for a particular scholarship on or before the December 1 application deadline. Some scholarships require that documentation be submitted much earlier. Be sure to make note of all appropriate deadlines and act accordingly. OSFS urges you to send all supplemental documentation as soon as possible, but will continue to accept all materials that arrive up to the time each scholarship committee meets to review applications. Typically, this occurs several weeks after the December 1 application deadline.
Please note, the following scholarships have different postmark deadlines for required materials:
  • Ruth M. Martin Unrestricted Endowed Presidential Scholarship - January 4
  • Ronald M. and Marilou D. Brown Endowed Scholarship - April 1
  • Laverne Noyes Foundation Scholarship - April 1
Contact your academic department for specific instructions about scholarships administered by them.
 
A:  Any test scores that arrive through the proper channel (sent directly to UT Austin using Score Recipient Code 6882) after December 1 are processed and accepted until all scholarship and admission committees have made their decisions. The deciding committee will use the highest score on file at the time of consideration. While UT Austin continues to accept additional scores after the December 1 deadline, there is no guarantee that the new scores will be available before the respective scholarship committees meet. For information about reporting test scores to UT Austin, consult the UT Austin Measurement and Evaluation Center (512-232-2662). If you have further questions, please contact the Office of Student Financial Services at 512-475-6282.
 
A:  Yes. UT Austin accepts both the SAT and the ACT to admission purposes.
 
A:  The ApplyTexas Scholarship Application priority deadline is December 1. While you can still submit your application after the December 1 deadline has passed, your application will be given non-priority status. This will reduce your chances of being considered for the maximum number of scholarships at UT Austin.
 
A:  If you have submitted your ApplyTexas Scholarship Application, you may check its status by returning to the ApplyTexas web site where you first accessed the application and use your Application ID to log-on. The Entering Freshman Scholarship Application page on this web site will direct you to the ApplyTexas web site. Once you have submitted your application, it takes a couple of business days for UT Austin to receive the application. UT Austin uses the date you submit the application — rather than the date we receive it — to determine if you submitted your application before/by the December 1 deadline.
 
A:  All application submissions are final. It is vital that you check your application for accuracy before you submit it. The deadline to submit the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application is 11:59 p.m. (CST) on December 1.
 
A:  No, in most cases, international students are restricted from accessing the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application. Sometimes there are extenuating circumstances which will allow an international student to apply for scholarships using a paper version of this application. For more information about scholarships and international students, see International Students.
 
A:  Yes, you can apply for scholarships and yes, you will be given equal consideration as Texas residents. Although there are scholarships that are awarded specifically to residents of Texas, there are a large volume of awards that have no residential stipulation.
 
A:  Questions 29 through 32 of the ApplyTexas Scholarship Application ask for the Gross Annual Income, not the Adjusted Gross Income. The appropriate answer would be the amount each respective parent earns (from all sources in addition to employment) before tax adjustments. Since the FAFSA asks for the Adjusted Gross Income (as reported on the IRS Tax Form), there will be a slight inconsistency in the income amounts reported. The Office of Student Financial Services is aware of the differing amounts and takes both numbers into account when determining financial need.
 
A:  Only coursework that is specifically labeled "AP" (Advanced Placement) or "IB" (International Baccalaureate) and which follows the course descriptions as set by the College Board's policy should be included in Question 17. Pre-AP and Honors coursework should not be listed.
 
A:  In the Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Level Coursework fields, for any course in which you earned half credit, add the phrase "half credit" after the name of the course. In the field where you enter the credit hours, just enter a "1". It should look something like the following:
Senior Level Coursework Credit Hours Final Grade
US Government AP (half credit) 1 A
 
A:  If you completely fill in all of the following information into the admission application prior to starting the scholarship application, it will get transferred into the scholarship application:
  • Your Biographical Information
  • Extracurricular Awards and Activities Information
  • Employment, Internship, and Volunteer Information
  • Personal Essays A & B*
If you do not enter this information into the admission application prior to starting the scholarship application, you will need to complete it in BOTH places.
*Please note that the essays work independently of the two applications, and can therefore, be completed at any stage. The only stipulation is that while the admission application will allow you to SUBMIT the application without completing the essays, the scholarship application will not.