Frequently Asked Questions
Scholarship decisions and offers are made after admission offers are sent to students, beginning in October and continuing through the beginning of the Fall semester. Scholarship funds are extremely limited and highly competitive. Every scholarship committee reviews many applications each year. Unfortunately, many qualified students do not receive awards. Only scholarship award recipients will receive official notification from the committees. The scholarship committees in the Office of Student Financial Services generally make their final decisions and will begin notifying award recipients in early March. Though Recruitment and Financial Aid team award scholarships throughout the calendar year, the office awards the bulk of its scholarships for the upcoming year by the end of August.
The Scholarship Office sends notifications by mail and/or to the students UTRGV email. It is important that our institution has the students’ most current contact information.
Scholarship amounts vary from a couple hundred dollars to several thousand dollars per semester or year. The dollar amounts of scholarships are determined by weighing the student’s documented financial need (as determined by the FAFSA), their scholastic achievements, and any extra-curricular activities.
Yes, but typically UTRGV attempts to distribute its scholarship funds to as many eligible students as possible. Being awarded one scholarship will not necessarily prevent a student from receiving another, however, preference will be given to eligible students who have not been awarded any other scholarship award.
Most college and departmental scholarships are merit-based, but some University offices also consider socioeconomic disadvantage or financial need as derived from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). All students who wish to be considered for scholarships which might have a need-based component are strongly encouraged to complete the FAFSA along with their scholarship application to assist in the consideration process. Scholarship funds are limited and highly competitive. UTRGV’s priority deadline for the FAFSA is March 15.
Some departmental scholarships are automatically accepted when entered to a student’s account at UTRGV. In other cases, students can simply log into ASSIST in my.utrgv.edu and Accept/Decline the award. The deadline will vary by scholarship, deadlines to accept are normally communicated as part of the award notification.
- Log in to: https://my.utrgv.edu (with your username and password)
- Click - ASSIST under My Applications
- Click - Financial Aid from the menu
- Select - Award Year xxxx-xxxx from the dropdown menu
- Click - Award Offer
- Click - Accept from the Take Action drop down menu
- Click - Submit
- After carefully reading the Terms and Conditions click the radio box to acknowledge
- Final Step - Click Accept Award
If you have any trouble accepting your awards, please contact the Scholarship Office at (956) 665-2935 or scholarships@utrgv.edu.
You can use this sample "Thank You" letter as guidance to create your personalized "Thank You" letter.
Link: https://www.utrgv.edu/strategicenrollment/_files/crm-ucentral/sample-thank-you-letter.pdf
After you finish your "Thank You" letter submit it along with your student ID to scholarships@utrgv.edu.
In general, a person is not eligible for a scholarship awarded by an institution if the person is related to a current member of the governing board of the institution or system (i.e., "Regent") administering or originating the scholarship. For additional information visit www.collegeforalltexans.com