Minot State / Financial Aid / Hometown Pride Scholarship
Financial Aid Office

Hometown Pride Scholarship

Hometown Pride $1000 Scholarship

The Hometown Pride Scholarship at Minot State University offers $1,000 awards to incoming freshmen, transfer students, and local school employees from select counties. This scholarship provides financial assistance to help students pursue their education while strengthening their connection to the community.

Incoming Freshman

The $1,000 Hometown Pride Scholarship is our way of giving back to you, a student from the local communities that have supported us for so long. Shape your future through a memorable experience at Minot State.

Experience Hometown Pride

The Hometown Experience at Minot State University offers exclusive perks like Priority Class Registration and On-Campus Room Selection, Wellness Center benefits, an MSU Bookstore discount, and Limited-Edition Hometown Pride memorabilia.

In order to be eligible for the Hometown Pride Scholarship, you must meet the following criteria:

  • 2026 high school graduate from a high school within the counties listed below. Homeschooled students living within the outlined counties are also eligible.
    • Counties: Benson, Bottineau, Burke, Divide, Dunn, Eddy, Foster, McHenry, McKenzie, McLean, Mercer, Mountrail, Oliver, Pierce, Ramsey, Renville, Rolette, Sheridan, Towner, Ward, Wells, and Williams.
  • 2.5 unweighted GPA or higher on your final, official high school transcript.
  • North Dakota University System (NDUS) core requirements met
  • Admitted to Minot State University for the Fall 2026 semester by February 15, 2026.

Once the above criteria are met, students must do the following to receive their Hometown Pride Scholarship in $500 increments during the fall and spring semesters of the 2026-2027 academic year:

  • Be enrolled in 12 or more Minot State credits (full-time courseload) by the end of the 100% refund period for the 16-week semester (Financial Aid census date) both the fall and spring semesters of 2026-2027.
    • Collaborative classes are not eligible in the 12-credit enrollment minimum and do not count as completed credits for the award.

The scholarship will be applied to your account on top of any other waivers, scholarships, or aid you are receiving up to the cost of attendance.

You must submit all required application materials by February 15, 2026 to be considered for the Hometown Pride Scholarship. If all required materials are submitted by the deadline and you meet the eligibility standards above, you will receive the $1,000 Hometown Pride Scholarship.

There is no additional scholarship application for the Hometown Pride Scholarship. Your application for admission to Minot State will be used to automatically award you the scholarship if eligible.

Transfer Students

No matter where you started your college career, we're excited to welcome you back home. In gratitude for our neighbors, we're giving you, transfer students who graduated high school from Minot and surrounding communities, a $1,000 automatic scholarship.

In order to be eligible for the Hometown Pride Transfer Scholarship, you must meet the following criteria:

  • Transfer with a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • Fulfill all standard undergraduate admission requirements without provisions
  • Be a graduate of a high school located in Minot or the surrounding ND counties listed here:
    • Counties: Benson, Bottineau, Burke, Divide, Dunn, Eddy, Foster, McHenry, McKenzie, McLean, Mercer, Mountrail, Oliver, Pierce, Ramsey, Renville, Rolette, Sheridan, Towner, Ward, Wells, and Williams
  • Admitted to an undergraduate program for the Fall 2026 semester by August 1, 2026

Once the above criteria are met, you must do the following to receive the Hometown Pride Scholarship in $500 increments during the fall and spring semesters of the 2026-27 academic year:

  • Be enrolled in 12 or more Minot State credits (full-time courseload) by the end of the 100% refund period for the 16-week semester (Financial Aid census date) for both the fall and spring semesters of 2026-27
    • Collaborative classes are not eligible to be included in the 12-credit enrollment minimum
  • The scholarship will be applied to your account in addition to other financial aid you are receiving up to the cost of attendance

  • You must submit your application and all supporting documents for admittance to Summer or Fall 2026 semesters by Aug. 1, 2026.
  • There is no additional application for the Hometown Pride Transfer Scholarship. Your application for admission to Minot State will be used to automatically award you, if eligible.

Local School Employees

Minot State offers a $1000 scholarship for all K-12 school employees who qualify for graduate admission and enroll in a graduate program full-time (9 or more credits). Students who enroll part-time (fewer than 9 credits) may receive a $500 scholarship. To qualify, you must be new graduate student enrolled in a certificate, master’s, or specialist program and currently employed at a K-12 school from a qualifying county.

In order to be eligible for the Hometown Pride Scholarship, you must meet the following criteria:

  • Employed in a school within the Hometown Pride Region counties.
    • Counties: Benson, Billings, Bottineau, Burke, Burleigh, Divide, Dunn, Eddy, Foster, Golden Valley, McHenry, McKenzie, McLean, Mercer, Morton, Mountrail, Oliver, Pierce, Ramsey, Renville, Rolette, Sheridan, Stark, Towner, Ward, Wells, and Williams.
    • Eligible recipients include all K-12 employees who are qualified for graduate school admission.
  • Admitted to Minot State University Graduate School for the Fall 2025, Spring 2026, or Summer 2026 semester and enrolled in a certificate, master’s or specialist program at Minot State.

Eligible full-time admitted students must do the following to receive their $1,000 Hometown Pride Scholarship in two $500 increments during the first two semesters of attendance:

  • Be enrolled in nine or more Minot State credits (full-time courseload) by the end of the 100% refund period for the 16-week semester (Financial Aid census date).
    • Collaborative classes are not eligible in the nine-credit enrollment minimum and do not count as completed credits for the award.

Eligible part-time admitted students must do the following to receive their $500 Hometown Pride Scholarship.

  • Be enrolled in at least three Minot State credits (part-time courseload) by the end of the 100% refund period for the 16-week semester (Financial Aid census date).
    • Collaborative classes are not eligible in the three-credit enrollment minimum and do not count as completed credits for the award.

The Hometown Pride scholarship will be applied to your account on top of any other waivers, scholarships, or aid you are receiving up to the cost of attendance.

To be considered for this scholarship, please complete THIS FORM and send a letter from your principal or superintendent confirming your employment at the K-12 institution to graduate@minotstateu.edu.

  • Deadline to apply for the scholarship and to submit verification of employment:

    • For fall semester start: August 1
    • For spring semester start: December 1
    • For summer semester start: May 1

To be considered for this scholarship, please complete THIS FORM and send a letter from your principal or superintendent confirming your employment at the K-12 institution to graduate@minotstateu.edu.

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