Presidential Scholarship Lecturer
Dr. Gerald Mast, Professor of Communication, will speak on the 2020-21 Civic Engagement Theme of "Cultivating Modern Minimalism: Planet, People, and Popular Culture."
Presidential Scholarship Competition
High-achieving high school students are invited to campus on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, or Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021, to compete for one of two
Full-Tuition Presidential Scholarships
These scholarships are valued at more than $135,800 through the four years of undergraduate education at Bluffton.
Participants receive a $1,000 annual scholarship just for participating in the Presidential Scholarship Competition.
To be eligible for the scholarship competition, participants must meet the following requirements:
- Earn a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale
- Score a minimum 24 ACT/1160 on the SAT (critical reading and math)
- Register for the competition
- Applied and accepted to Bluffton University
All eligible students are welcome to participate in this competition.
Competition format
- Participating students prepare for the competition by completing an assigned reading that is chosen by the faculty lecturer for the competition.
- Once on campus for the competition, students will attend a 45-minute presentation from the Presidential Scholarship Lecturer. Students are encouraged to take notes during this lecture.
- After the lecture, participants will have approximately 90 minutes to write an essay
in response to a question provided on the topics of both the reading and the lecture.
Students may use the assigned reading and notes taken during the lecture as reference
when writing their essay.
Choosing a winner
The two Presidential Scholarship Competition winners are chosen based on 3 criteria:
- Essay scored by two Bluffton University faculty members
- GPA
- ACT/SAT
Remember, all students that participate in the competition will receive an additional $1,000 annual scholarship to Bluffton. This is a total of $4,000 over four years.
Register to participate
All students wanting to participate in the Scholarship Competition must meet the minimum eligibility requirements.
Register today!
Schedule
Due to COVID-19, participants will be divided into small groups and each session will be given a specific arrival time. During each session, participants will listen to the featured lecture, have a 90 minute writing period and receive a scholarship certificate from President Wood. Please be prepared to participate between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. You will receive a detailed email with your arrival time closer to the date of the competition.