The Terry Scholarship for incoming freshmen is a four-year, "last-dollar" scholarship for Texas high school graduates. Accounting for other scholarships that students may receive and their financial information, the Terry Scholarship is individually adjusted for each academic year to cover the full cost of attendance, which includes tuition, fees, books, on-campus living expenses.

Further information about the Terry Foundation may be found on their website. Please note that the Terry Foundation does not accept applications directly from students.

The UNT Terry deadlines for freshmen applications are as follows:

Student deadline: January 7th, 2025 at 5pm (CST) for students to submit their application and transcripts

Recommender deadline: January 10th, 2025 at 5pm (CST) for recommenders to submit the letter of recommendation. Recommenders will receive the recommendation submission instructions upon the student's submission of the UNT Terry application.

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Eligibility

To be considered for the Terry Scholarship as an incoming freshman, you must:

  • be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
  • be a Texas resident.
  • be a graduate of a Texas high school or be homeschooled while residing in the state of Texas and receive a Texas high school diploma or equivalent.
  • have a high school graduation date in Spring 2025 and be an incoming freshman college student for the Fall of 2025.
  • be admitted to UNT as a full-time student for the 2025-2026 academic year.
  • have a record of leadership in school and community.
  • demonstrate strong academic abilities, as evidenced by grades.
  • demonstrate financial need AND complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by March 2025.

Selection Criteria

The University of North Texas will review all applications and nominate a select number of candidates to the Terry Foundation, which will review the nominations and interview candidates before making awards. The University of North Texas serves as a nominating body only; the Terry Foundation makes all final decisions regarding scholarship awards.

The selection criteria used by the Foundation include financial need, academic achievement, and demonstrated leadership potential. Although financial need is an important factor in the selection process, a student need not qualify for federal assistance in order to meet the Terry Scholar selection criteria. Nevertheless, all applicants must file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

The Terry Foundation will award scholarships to approximately half of the UNT nominees, with the number of awards likely not exceeding 24. Students who are selected for the UNT Terry Scholarship must live on-campus in a designated Terry Scholar living-learning community during their first year at UNT.

Application Summary and Deadlines

  • Before applying for the UNT Terry Scholarship, students must gain admission to UNT. To facilitate this sequence, applicants for the UNT Terry Scholarship are encouraged to apply for admission to UNT no later than Dec. 2nd, 2024.
  • Applicants must submit a completed UNT Terry Scholarship application with their transcript(s) by 5:00 pm (CST) on January 7th, 2025. There will be no exceptions to this deadline.
  • Recommenders must submit one letter of recommendation by 5:00 pm (CST) on January 10th, 2025. There will be no exceptions to this deadline. Recommenders will receive the recommendation submission instructions upon the student's submission of the UNT Terry application.
  • File a FAFSA online by March 2025

Selection Timeline and Applicant Notification

The UNT Terry selection process spans the academic year. A general timeline is outlined below:

  • UNT Terry applications open in October and close in January.
  • Applicants will receive notification of their application status in March.
    • A select number of applicants nominated by UNT will be contacted by the Terry Foundation to schedule an interview.
    • Applicants who will not be moving forward will receive email notification from the UNT Terry Scholarship Program.
  • Terry Foundation interviews typically occur in late-March to early-April.
  • Students who interview with the Terry Foundation will receive final notification from the Terry Foundation before May 1st (subject to change).

Terry Foundation Freshman Application Instructions

Applications must be completed to merit review. Completed applications are composed of the following components: Application, transcript(s), and one letter of recommendation.

To access and save the application (updated 10/08): Students will access the UNT Terry application by logging in with their UNT email address and associated UNT password. When students save the application, the link for continuing the submission will be sent to their UNT email address.

To be able to log into the UNT Terry application, students must first activate their UNT account at this webpage using their PIN from the office of admissions. More information about the UNT email address can be found here. More information about the UNT password can be found here.

Applications must be completed to merit review. Completed applications are composed of the following components: Application, transcript(s), and one letter of recommendation

  • Application — Students must complete, digitally sign, and electronically submit the UNT Terry application by the upload deadline (Jan 7th 2025, 5pm CST). Applicants should be filled out completely. Applicants will be unable to edit or change their application after submission and are thus advised to review their application carefully before officially submitting.

    Applicants should be prepared to answer questions about the following information:

    • Student information
      • This section will include questions about UNT EUID, UNT student ID number, and residency information
    • High school Information
      • This section will include questions about current GPA and class rank
    • Pre-AP, Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate Program (IB), or Dual Credit (DC) Coursework Taken in High School
      • This section will include questions about number of college credit hours earned
    • Employment, Internships, Summer Activities, Extracurricular Activities
    • Leadership Positions and Community and/or Volunteer Service
    • Awards, Special Honors, and Distinctions
    • College Plans, Future Plans, and Prospective major
    • Financial Information
      • This section will include questions about student income, parent/guardian gross income from Form 1040/1040A for the year 2023, government assistance, and college savings information
    • Other scholarships that the student has applied for and scholarships that the student will receive for the 2025-2026 academic year
    • Essay 1: In approximately 500 words: Tell us your story. What unique opportunities or challenges have you experienced throughout your high school career that have shaped who you are today?
    • Essay 2: In approximately 500 words, describe an example of your leadership. Be sure to describe your actions and the actions of those around you and to explain what you accomplished

    • Applicants should have the following documents prepared to upload within the application:

      • Digital copies of high school transcript
      • Digital copies of transcripts from dual credit institution(s), if applicable
      • Picture or copy of permanent resident card, if applicable

  • Transcripts — Students must upload, within their digital application, a copy of their transcript from every high school and college (dual credit institutions) that they have attended. The transcript(s) should be the most recent version that is currently available to the student. Screenshots of grades should not be uploaded in the place of a transcript.

    Applicants who have completed any hours of dual credit at the time of application are also required to submit a copy of their transcript from the institution(s) from which they received those credit hours.

    It is the applicant's responsibility to request a copy of their transcript(s) far enough in advance to have those before the upload deadline (Jan 7th, 2025, 5pm CST). Late or missing transcripts will disqualify applicants.

  • One Letter of Recommendation — One letter of recommendation should be submitted by one of the applicant's teachers and should speak to the applicant's academic and leadership abilities.

    Applicants will be required to enter the email address of their recommender into the application. At the time of the application submission, an automatic email from noreply@formresponse.com will be sent to the recommender's email address, as entered in the application, requesting a letter of recommendation for the applicant. The recommender will submit their letter by following the instructions in that email. Letters of recommendation must be received by the recommender deadline (Jan 10th, 2024, 5pm CST). It is the applicant's responsibility to check with their listed recommender, in advance of the deadline, to confirm the status of the letter. Late or missing letters of recommendation will disqualify applicants.

REMEMBER: The application must be filled out completely to be considered. A completed application with transcript(s) must be received by the 5pm CST January 7th, 2025 student deadline. One letter of recommendation must be received by the 5pm CST January 10th, 2025 recommender deadline. There will be no exceptions to these deadlines.

Apply Now

Contact us: TerryScholars@unt.edu or 940-565-4914

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