![\"\"](\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/1811\/files\/2020\/03\/becerragoupy.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nThe college provided a stipend for a team of students to\ndevelop a scholarship application that reflected their priorities. The\napplication is brief, recognizing students have packed schedules and many have\njobs outside of school. Applicants can provide as much or as little detail\nabout their finances as they\u2019re comfortable sharing. And the application allows\nstudents to describe how a scholarship would impact them directly. The\nselection criteria prioritize applicants who are closer to graduation and also consider\nengagement in the honors community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The scholarship covers either the full $1,500 in\ndifferential tuition or half at $750 per year. For the 2019-20 academic year,\nthe Honors College received 198 applications and awarded 54 full and 36 half\nscholarships, 22 of which were donor-funded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With an award rate of 45%, there is still more need for\nscholarships than funds available. However, they are working as intended,\nhelping students like Caitlin Reid, Aarushi Arora and Kate Hultberg remain in\nthe Honors College and complete their degrees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Caitlin Reid: Converting an internship into a leadership opportunity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Caitlin Reid, who is graduating with a degree in bioengineering\nat the end of the winter term, has received the differential tuition\nscholarship for the past three years and says she probably wouldn\u2019t have been\nable to stay in the Honors College without it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reid is paying her own way at Oregon State, having worked\ntwo jobs through high school. After taking her freshman year off to focus on\nadjusting to college, she has held multiple jobs on and off campus ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201dI\u2019ve had to work really, really hard to even graduate in\nthe sense of financially being able to afford to be here,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fortunately, one of those jobs was a paid MECOP internship at\nGenentech in Hillsboro. Reid is continuing to work for the biotech company as a\nremote contractor, plus she has been recruited into its leadership development\nprogram in San Francisco starting in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reid says receiving the scholarship has reduced stress and\nallowed her to stay engaged in the Honors College, where she believes she\nlearns better in the small class environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve loved the experience that I\u2019ve had here,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Aarushi Arora: Focusing on her thesis<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Management major Aarushi Arora says the Honors College was\nwhat drew her to Oregon State, and receiving the differential tuition\nscholarship is making it possible for her to graduate in June with the Honors\nBaccalaureate. As an international student from New Delhi, India, she can only\nwork at an on-campus job, where all students are limited to 20 hours a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor me, the value of the honors experience was definitely\nmore than the $1,500,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m very grateful that this scholarship\nexists.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The scholarship has allowed Arora to cut her work hours a\nbit so she can dedicate more time during the winter term to her honors thesis,\nwhich focuses on the motivations and impacts of corporate social responsibility.\nIt\u2019s a topic she may continue to pursue in graduate school and in her career. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Arora also got to explore the topic through a MECOP\ninternship at Daimler Trucks North America in Portland. In addition to learning\nabout the company\u2019s initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, she worked\nin project management in the transmissions department using up inventory of an\nolder part, a project that saved the company about $1 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kate Hultberg: Preparing for graduate school<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Public health major Kate Hultberg works up to 45 hours a\nweek at two jobs to pay for her education while typically taking 12 to 15\ncredits per term. Most days she has a couple of hours between classes and\nheading to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTime management has been a skill that I’ve had to become\nvery, very good at,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hultberg received the differential tuition scholarship as a\nsenior and says \u201cit makes a big difference. I probably would have found a way\nto stay in the Honors College, but it is a huge benefit this year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hultberg, who is graduating in June, credits the Honors\nCollege with graduate-level research opportunities \u2014 including her honors\nthesis on water-borne diseases after hurricanes \u2014 that have prepared her for a future working in\nenvironmental health and epidemiology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Honors College led me to everything I\u2019ve done to this\npoint,\u201d she says. \u201cI 100% believe that it\u2019s putting me in grad school.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Experience scholarships provide unique learning opportunities<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Oregon State has made experiential learning a priority for\nall undergraduates, and to help students take advantage of those opportunities,\nthe Honors College established a scholarship fund in 2012. In the 2018-19\nacademic year, about 90 scholarships of up to $1,000 were awarded, and about 40\nscholarships totaling $32,000 have been given so far this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Experiential learning opportunities like study abroad or an\ninternship typically have an extra cost that could shut out many students. The\nexperience scholarship can help cover expenses like a plane ticket. Doolen says\nit also helps equalize support for students across disciplines. Although\nresearch in STEM fields often has grant funding that allows students to be\npaid, research and internships in the humanities or with nonprofits and\ngovernment agencies in the U.S. and abroad are typically unpaid. With the scholarship,\nstudents can receive financial support while they focus on topics they care\nabout and pursue opportunities they might not otherwise have, Doolen says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Experiential learning can dramatically shape both a\nstudent\u2019s current path and future, as it did for Carlee Conner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Carlee Conner: Transformed by an international internship<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Psychology major Carlee Conner always knew they wanted to\ntravel abroad while in college. And they also knew it would be financially\nchallenging. With a short, simple application, Conner received a $1,000\nscholarship that helped send them to Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conner joined 10 students and two faculty for a six-week\npublic health internship in Botswana, working with middle and high school\nstudents on sexual and reproductive health. HIV\/AIDS, unwanted pregnancies and\ngender-based violence are all significant issues there, and the team used focus\ngroups and interviews to identify community-based solutions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat trip was just transformative for so many reasons,\u201d Conner\nsays. \u201cI feel like my future prospects now have a global emphasis. This\nexperience was a catalyst that drove me toward public health and community-based\nwork.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conner graduates at the end of winter term. They are considering\npursuing a master\u2019s degree in public health in the future, but for now, they\nwant to take a break from being a student and pursue opportunities in the\nprofessional world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know I have a lot of really good skills, and the\nresources provided by the Honors College helped propel me forward from the\nbeginning,\u201d Conner says. \u201cI’m taking away quite a bit of experience, both in\nand outside of the classroom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Donors invest in student access, celebrate student success<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
For the 2019-20 academic year, the Honors College has awarded\n225 donor-funded scholarships totaling $244,000.\nDuring last year\u2019s inaugural Dam Proud Day, a 24-hour online fundraising event\nled by the OSU Foundation, the Honors College raised more than $31,000, most of\nwhich went toward experience scholarships. The next Dam Proud Day is set for\nApril 30, and the Honors College will again focus fundraising on experience scholarships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Doolen says student accessibility matters to many donors. They\nwant to ensure qualified students have access to the unique learning\nenvironment and the transformative experiences offered in the Honors College.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s true for Penny Atkins \u201979 and her husband Gary, who\nhelped establish the differential tuition scholarship fund. A first-generation\ncollege student, Atkins says she was fortunate that her parents could pay for\nher education and wants to help reduce the financial stress on today\u2019s\nstudents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want all students, especially underrepresented students,\nto have a college experience that can make their lives so much more meaningful\nand successful,\u201d Atkins says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wayne von Borstel believes the Honors College experience can\nchange a student\u2019s life \u2014 his daughter and son are proof. Both graduated from\nthe Honors College, and being surrounded by other students who \u201cwere just\nphenomenal\u201d motivated them to achieve as well, he says. Von Borstel and his\nwife Marta established the largest Honors College scholarship, which supports\nstudents from The Dalles, Hood River and Sherman County.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI like to reward excellence,\u201d von Borstel says. \u201cBecause\nwhen we help the best be their best, it might be amazing what this world\nbecomes. And that’s what I believe the Honors College is about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Retired Oregon State physics professor Ken Krane and his\nwife Paula have supported experience scholarships for several years. They\nrecognize college is a unique time in students\u2019 lives and that the experiences\nthey have can direct their paths in unexpected ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cStudents will never have another opportunity like this to\npartake in so many activities without fear of failure,\u201d Ken says. \u201cThis is when\nthey are learning what is important to them.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe’re very happy to be in the position to make the college\nexperience something that they will always remember,\u201d Paula adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kranes, who began giving to scholarships in the 1990s, started\nsmall and have built up an endowment over time, something they encourage other\npotential donors to do. They enjoy meeting the students and seeing where they\ngo in college and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think some of the value is that we are seeing what the\nnext generation can become,\u201d Ken says. \u201cWe want the next generation and the\ngeneration after that to be productive parts of society. A college education is\nstill the best investment we can make for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Every student deserves to be supported and heard. When they are, the benefits extend from them, throughout the honors community and across the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
In Response to the COVID-19 crisis, the Honors College has extended the deadline to complete an Honors College Differential Tuition Scholarship for 2020-2021 to April 12th, 2020. Continuing students can apply through ScholarDollars<\/a> by completing the Honors College application and applying to the \u201cOregon State University Differential Tuition Scholarship.\u201d All continuing students who wish to be eligible for a tuition scholarship from the Honors College in 2020-2021 must apply by April 12th! <\/strong>Incoming students are not eligible for this scholarship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also want to make sure that you are aware of the option of applying for an Honors College Differential Tuition Grant for spring term, 2020. These grants are for students who are experiencing particular difficulties in paying the HC differential tuition. The Honors College does not want inability to pay differential tuition to be the determining factor in whether a student graduates from the college or continues as an honors student. We encourage all students considering withdrawal for financial reasons to submit a grant application here<\/a>. If you have any questions, please direct them to honors.college@oregonstate.edu<\/a> or an HC advisor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By: Gary Dulude, University Marketing<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every student comes to the Honors College with their own unique perspectives, talents and interests, ready to develop and explore. They share experiences through classes, research, the honors thesis and other activities while forging their individual paths. But their financial situations are their own. This year in the Honors College, about 36% of students have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":397,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1205,1163421,82,1306,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4883","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-stories","category-deans-corner","category-features","category-student","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4883","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/397"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4883"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4883\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8710,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4883\/revisions\/8710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4883"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4883"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/honorslink\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4883"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}