Step 1: Fill out your general application.
Step 2: Verify your email address and check your inbox for updates.
Step 3: Discover which state-managed scholarships you qualify for.
Step 4: If interested, use this portal to apply for your qualifying scholarship(s).
Step 5: Watch your inbox for updates, clarifications about your application(s), and notice of your award status.
Step 6: If selected, you must officially accept your scholarship award. This signals your intention to attend an in-state, accredited institution and maintain the academic rigor specified by the scholarship(s) you are receiving.
Step 7: Funds will be distributed to the college you are attending. Your financial aid award letter will include your scholarship.

Yes. Submitting a general application is the first step of the application process for all state-managed scholarships. Rather than students submitting the same information multiple times, the general application allows applicants to enter their details just once. Then applicants are matched with any/all qualifying scholarships.

You are not eligible for scholarship programs unless you graduated from an Idaho high school, home school, or its equivalent (GED/HSE taken in Idaho).

Don’t give up the search. There are so many opportunities available to students willing to seek them out. Start by exploring Unique, National, Micro, Trending, and Targeted scholarships.

You are not eligible for scholarship programs unless you graduated from an Idaho high school, home school, or its equivalent (GED/HSE taken in Idaho).

It is not. The GPA requirement is set in Administrative Code and we are unable to make exceptions.

The Idaho Opportunity Scholarship and Tschudy Family Scholarship deadlines cannot be extended. There is no deadline for Postsecondary Credit Scholarship. If the Governor’s Cup Scholarship deadlines are extended, the change will be reflected on this site.

New awardees cannot put their scholarship on hold until they have attended at least one semester. If a recipient wants to put their scholarship on hold, they must submit a Leave of Absence form to the Office of the State Board of Education 60 days before the semester they want their leave to begin.

At this time, no state-managed scholarships are eligible for graduate work except the Tschudy Family Scholarship.

Yes. The Tschudy Family Scholarship has a FAFSA deadline of February 15. The Idaho Opportunity Scholarship has a FAFSA deadline of March 1. Applications without a FAFSA or with a passed-deadline FAFSA submission will not be considered. It is a good idea to submit your FAFSA as soon as possible once it opens on October 1, in case there are issues with your application.

• Idaho Opportunity/Idaho Opportunity Adult Learner: up to $3,500/year and renewable for up to four years.
  • Opportunity Adult Learner can be prorated to half time (6-8 credits) enrollment. The amount may fluctuate between $850-$1,750 per semester, depending on enrollment.
• Idaho Postsecondary Credit: dependent on the amount of dual credits earned and the amount of the matching scholarship.
• Tschudy Family Scholarship: $2,500/year, renewable for up to five years and an additional two years for graduate school, if desired.
• Idaho Governor’s Cup – Academic: $3,000/year and renewable for up to four years.
• Idaho Governor’s Cup – Career/Technical: $3,000/year and renewable for up to three years.

You can as a backup plan but state scholarships can only be used at the following institutions:

• Boise State University
• Brigham Young University – Idaho
• College of Idaho
• College of Southern Idaho
• College of Western Idaho
• College of Eastern Idaho
• Idaho State University
• Lewis-Clark State College
• North Idaho College
• Northwest Nazarene University
• University of Idaho
• Western Governors University

Some programs are even more limited: Tschudy can only be used at BSU, ISU, LCSC, and UI.

• Idaho Opportunity/Idaho Opportunity Adult Learner: up to $3,500/year and renewable for up to four years.
  • Opportunity Adult Learner can be prorated to half time (6-8 credits) enrollment. The amount may fluctuate between $875-$1,750 per semester, depending on enrollment.
• Idaho Postsecondary Credit: dependent on the amount of dual credits earned and the amount of the matching scholarship.
• Tschudy Family Scholarship: $2,500/year, renewable for up to five years and an additional two years for graduate school, if desired.
• Idaho Governor’s Cup – Academic: $3,000/year and renewable for up to four years.
• Idaho Governor’s Cup – Career/Technical: $3,000/year and renewable for up to three years.

The Idaho Opportunity Scholarship is need-based, which means 70% of the score given to a student’s application is based on the EFC (Expected Family Contribution) according to their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and 30% is based on a student’s GPA. A final score is calculated based on the need score and the merit score. Applications are ranked from highest score to lowest score. The number of scholarships offered is based on how much funding has been allocated that year.
Note, applicants must meet all eligibility and deadline requirements to receive a score. The Idaho Legislature votes, annually, to approve the budget for the Idaho Opportunity Scholarship fund(s).

When you apply for scholarships through the Office of the State Board of Education (OSBE), you must provide an email address. This email will be used to communicate your application’s status, flag missing information, and announce any award notifications. Please read all emails from OSBE carefully. If necessary, add OSBE email addresses to the verified white-list or safe-list in your email provider’s settings. Look for the osbe.idaho.gov handle to verify the sender.
Note for high school students: It is important that you provide an email address that you 1) check regularly and that you 2) will have access to even after you graduate from high school.
Students will be notified about their awardee status by mid-April. If more than 2 months have elapsed since the close of the scholarship application window, login to your scholarship account or call 208-332-1576 for details.

The Idaho Opportunity Scholarship is a “last dollars” award, meaning it is supposed to assist in filling in the gap in your cost of attendance after other scholarships and grants. If you have other scholarships and grants that come close to meeting your cost of attendance, your Idaho Opportunity Scholarship will be reduced so you do not exceed your cost of attendance. Keep in mind that Northwest Nazarene University and College of Idaho are required to disclose the average cost of attendance when making awards, which is $22,434 for the 2021-22 academic year.

Current students receiving a state-managed scholarship can complete a Leave of Absence form with the Office of the State Board of Education 60 days before you start your absence. Please log in at https://scholarships.idaho.gov/. Then click on “programs”. The Leave of Absence form is within the Scholarship Management Forms. You can put your scholarship on hold for up to two years. Brand-new recipients must attend at least one semester before requesting a leave of absence. If you are a brand-new recipient who has accepted the scholarship offer(s) but who will not or cannot attend your first semester, you must forfeit the award. You are encouraged to apply for the scholarship(s) again the following year.

Submit a Mid-Year Transfer form as soon as possible to let the Office of the State Board of Education know that you have decided to transfer. Please log in at https://nextsteps.idaho.gov/scholarship-idaho. Then click on “programs”. The Mid-Year Transfer form is under the Scholarship Management Forms.

You cannot use your scholarship outside of the State of Idaho. You can only use scholarships from the State of Idaho at eligible Idaho-based public or private non-profit institutions. Eligible institutions are:

• Boise State University
• Idaho State University
• University of Idaho
• Lewis-Clark State College
• Northwest Nazarene University
• College of Idaho
• Brigham Young University-Idaho
• North Idaho College
• College of Eastern Idaho
• College of Southern Idaho
• College of Western Idaho
• Western Governor’s University

You cannot use your scholarship in these cases. You can only use State of Idaho scholarships for your first bachelor’s degree. However, some students may earn multiple associate’s degrees in the process of working towards a bachelor’s degree and this is allowable.

No. Your scholarship does not automatically renew. You are required to complete a renewal application each year for the following year by March 1, even if you are on a leave of absence. It is a good idea to put a reminder on your calendar and not just rely on reminder emails.

This is not possible. You must complete the required number of credits for your postsecondary institution during the academic year, which is from fall to summer. The required number of credits are as follows:

• 18 credits per year for College of Southern Idaho, College of Western Idaho, Eastern Idaho Technical College, and North Idaho College.
• 24 credits per year for Lewis-Clark State College, University of Idaho, Boise State University, Idaho State University, Brigham Young University-Idaho, Northwest Nazarene University, College of Idaho, and Western Governors University.
• For Opportunity Adult Learner recipients, you must complete the number of credits you were awarded for:
  • 6-8 credits: up to $875/semester
  • 9-11 credits: up to $1,312/semester
  • 12+ credits: up to $1,750/semester
  • If you attend CWI (a community college) in the fall and BSU (a 4-year college) in the spring, you will need to complete at least 21 credits.

Unfortunately, this is not possible. The scholarship is for the next academic year following your offer. For example, if you are offered the scholarship in April, it is meant for the first term after July 1, which is the fall semester. The upcoming summer is within the current academic year.

You can receive a disbursement in the summer if you have not met your $3,500 maximum yearly amount.

A disbursement is when institutions deposit funds to a students’ on-campus accounts. If there are more funds than institutional charges, please refer to the institution’s refund policy.

Funds will be sent to your institution and they will disburse the funds to your student account like other forms of financial aid.

You will receive a scholarship award or “offer” in March or April and you must accept it by the deadline. Once that is accomplished, you may not hear from the Office of the State Board of Education all summer.

Here is why:
Starting in June, lists with the names of students who have received and accepted a State of Idaho scholarship will be sent to colleges and universities. Those institutions will verify GPA, residency, FAFSA data, and other important information. The lists will then be sent back to the Office of the State Board of Education with the amounts awarded for each student. Funds are then transferred to institutions starting in late July.

Colleges and universities will begin adding awards to your financial aid award letter. Some students may not get the awards added until late August, even early September. The funds will disburse to your student account with any other financial aid you have received.

These institutions are required to use the average cost of attendance of the four-year public institutions in Idaho when calculating award amounts, which can be significantly lower than their actual cost of attendance. Many students at these institutions have institutional aid and scholarships up to or even in excess of the cost of attendance they are required to use, which means they are required to reduce the Idaho Opportunity Scholarship to $0. You should still renew your award, since your situation could be very different next year.

Scholarship Help
208-332-1576
scholarshiphelp@osbe.idaho.gov