Scholarships
Rewarding Achievement, Supporting Potential
Scholarships are a powerful way to invest in your future. At Sam Houston State University, we offer a wide range of scholarship opportunities to recognize academic excellence, leadership, financial need, and personal achievement. Whether you're a first-time freshman, transfer student, or continuing Bearkat, SHSU’s streamlined application process makes it easy to apply and be considered for multiple awards through Scholarships4Kats.
How to Apply for Scholarships
Access the Scholarships4Kats portal.
Click the orange Sign In button at the top right-hand corner.
Fill out all the fields for the General Application and click Finish and Submit at the bottom of the page.
Click the Opportunities button at the top of the page.
Look through the scholarships and click the orange Apply button to apply for them.
Answer any supplemental questions and click the Save and Keep Editing button.
Popular Scholarships
The Bearkat Transfer Scholarship is a single-year scholarship awarded on a first come, first served basis to students who transfer to SHSU. This scholarship awards a total of $2,000 to eligible students ($1,000 in Fall and $1,000 in Spring). The Bearkat Transfer Scholarship is awarded automatically, so no application is required other than applying for admission to Sam Houston State University!
Scholarship recipients will be notified by email with instructions on how to accept the offer. Students must accept the award offer within 45 days. For additional information, contact the Financial Aid & Scholarships Office.
Conditions:
- First-time SHSU student, enrolling full-time in a Fall semester
- Transfer from an accredited community college or university
- Be an undergraduate student, seeking their first bachelor's degree
- Have a minimum of 30 transferable academic credit hours; but less than 90
- Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.75
*Students transferring to SHSU starting in a Spring semester are not eligible for the Bearkat Transfer Scholarship
The National Merit Scholarship is reserved for finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program. The total award amount is $40,000 with the student receiving $10,000 annually over the course of four years.
To qualify students must meet all of the following:
- Be a Finalist in the National Merit Scholarship Program
- Select Sam Houston State University as your first college of choice with NMSC on or before May 31st prior to your first semester
- Complete the National Merit Scholarship application in Scholarships4Kats
Dedicated to providing opportunities to students who otherwise may not have a chance to earn a baccalaureate degree, the Smith-Hutson Scholarship Program is targeted toward individuals with demonstrated financial need and academic potential. The Smith-Hutson Scholarship Program provides educational opportunities for Texas high school graduates pursuing a baccalaureate degree from Sam Houston State University. Additionally, the Smith-Hutson Scholarship program is available to transfer students from a Texas community college who are pursuing a baccalaureate degree at Sam Houston State University. The number of Smith-Hutson scholarships varies year-to-year depending on the number of qualified applicants.
For more information visit the Smith-Hutson Scholarship page.
The Honors Scholarship is distributed over an SHSU undergraduate college career no longer than four years at a maximum of $40,000.
For more information visit the Honors Scholarship page.
OTHER OPPORTUNITIES
The SHSU Local Scholarship was established by SHSU to encourage local Texas high school students to attend Sam Houston State University. Graduating seniors from Grimes, Houston, Madison, Montgomery, Polk, San Jacinto, Trinity and Walker counties are eligible to receive this scholarship.
Eligible first-time freshmen attending SHSU receive $1,000 annually for 4 years.
Complete Scholarships4Kats to qualify!
You could still qualify for resident tuition.
If you are selected for at least a $1,000 Sam Houston State University competitive scholarship1, you may receive a non-resident tuition waiver for the same period covered by your scholarship.
View the Residency website for more information.
1The scholarship funds must come from a single, institutional, competitive scholarship. The $1,000 minimum can not be from the sum of multiple scholarships.
External scholarships are developed and funded by private organizations. They can potentially help students cover the costs of their education and education-related expenses. Student eligibility rules are created by the organization offering the scholarship and can depend on many factors. SHSU is not endorsing any external scholarships, affiliated awards, and/or practices.
Please remember to read all instructions carefully, and never give out any sensitive information (social security number, etc.) or agree to pay any application fees.
External Scholarship Processing
If you receive an award from an external scholarship, the funds should be sent to SHSU for processing. Instructions on submitting an external scholarship award to SHSU are located on the Student Account Services website.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are you a current student? – Only SHSU students can access Scholarships4Kats
- Be sure that you are accessing Scholarships4Kats here, not through Google or any other search engine.
- You will need to complete your Scholarships4Kats Application by the November 1st priority date in order to qualify for scholarships.
- Check with your high school counselor for additional scholarship opportunities.
SHSU freshman scholarships are competitive. ACT and/or SAT scores can increase your eligibility for certain scholarships, even if your scores were not required to be admitted.
The application for the next academic year opens the September prior to the priority date for that year.
Scholarships4Kats matches you to scholarships you are eligible for based on your application automatically. You may manually review recommended opportunities that will require additional information or applications.
Yes, changes can be made to your application after submitting; however, changes could impact your scholarship eligibility.
In regards to majors, we pull student’s majors through University data. Be sure that when you “change your major” that you did so with an advisor so that it was changed in the system.
Yes, students can still apply after the priority date. We've established this date to allow students the best opportunity for scholarships.
Applications submitted using copy and paste AI responses will not be accepted.
- Scholarship committees are urged to select recipients by mid-February. Notifications from departments should be sent to students before May 1st. If you are a selected recipient you will be notified via your SHSU email.
- Keep in mind that just because you qualify for a scholarship does not guarantee that you will be selected. Our scholarship process is very competitive.
Scholarships in the Summer term are very limited and depend on the funds available.
Outside scholarships should be sent to Student Account Services, review their website for more information.