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College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Students

CLASS Scholarships

Academic Scholarships for Undergraduate Students in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (Fall 2023–Spring 2024) 

Every year, the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (CLASS) awards numerous scholarships to honor students while they are in the process of completing a degree at the University of Houston. The amount of award varies for each scholarship and ranges from $500 to $2,500. You can find scholarship requirements, instructions, an application link and a list of all CLASS scholarships below, as well as links to office of the dean grants and CLASS department scholarship information.

Deadline: Friday, March 31st, 2023

Questions about CLASS scholarships? Email us at cscholar@central.uh.edu. 

Scholarship Requirements

Unless the individual scholarship criteria stipulates otherwise, students must meet the following minimum qualifications to be eligible for a scholarship. (You can find the individual scholarship descriptions listed below.) 

  • Student must have a major declared in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.
  • Student must have completed a minimum of 60 semester credit hours. Seniors who graduate in December 2023 will receive half the total scholarship award for the fall semester only.
  • Student must be enrolled in a minimum of 12 semester hours during Fall 2023 and a minimum of 12 semester hours during Spring 2024, unless otherwise specified. (The Bratton Family Part-Time Student Scholarship is the one exception to this requirement—see the description below.)
  • Student must have had a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 and maintained it for each semester during the past two semesters, unless otherwise specified in the scholarship criteria.
  • Students will be considered for all scholarships for which they meet the donor’s criteria but will receive only one scholarship award. 

Additionally, you will also need a letter of recommendation from a CLASS instructor. Please do not submit recommendations from instructors from other UH colleges. In short, we will only accept letters from a professor employed by a CLASS department. To get a strong letter of support, contact your professors early, and provide as much information about your accomplishments as possible. The application will ask you for an email address from the instructor who will be delivering the letter. Please ask your recommender to send the letter to cscholar@central.uh.edu with your name in the subject line. 

CLASS Scholarship Application

Before you start the application, be sure to carefully read all the requirements listed above and review the scholarship opportunities described below. 

https://universityofhouston.iad1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_7VS7gWmycxs3bam

College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Scholarships

Please click on the individual scholarships for applicant criteria and, in some cases, background information on the donors for these scholarship gifts. 

  1. Alumni Association Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page and can accept other scholarships.

  1. Debra Danburg Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship emphasizes women students, and applicants must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. Barnett Scholarships

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page. Additionally, the student needs to have received a University scholarship and have a strong interest in one of the social sciences or pre-law programs. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years if the student maintains scholarship-level academic performance throughout their time at the University of Houston.

  1. Bratton Family Part-Time Student Scholarship

    Criteria
    The applicant enrolled part-time as an undergraduate or graduate student in a CLASS major. The award is non-renewable, applicants must reapply.

  1. CLASS Scholarships

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. CLASS Faculty Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. Carolyn Wall Baskett Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit-based — the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page — and need-based. Awardees may accept other scholarships and grants in conjunction with the Carolyn Wall Baskett Scholarship.

  1. CLASS Scholarship Endowment

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. David and Jackie Gardner Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit and need based. Applicants need a minimum 3.0 GPA, while also demonstrating academic merit and financial need.

    Donor Story
    The Gardners are advocates for the impact and importance of liberal arts and social sciences, disciplines that teach students how to critically think, listen and learn. Jackie and David, a ’72 alumnus of English, believe these are the building blocks to all professions and meaningful living.

  1. Debra Danburg Endowment Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship emphasizes women students, and applicants must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. Delores Welder Mitchell Scholarships

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. Don Sanders Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is need-based and intended for social science majors who are hard workers with a determination to succeed.

  1. Dr. Ronald Lepow Endowment Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit-based — the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page — and need-based.

  1. Louise Woestemeyer Scholarship Endowment

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit-based — the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page — and need-based. Additionally, the Louise Woestemeyer Scholarship Endowment requires applicants to have a GPA of 3.5 or higher. 

  1. Peek Family Endowment Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit-based — the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page — and applicants must be declared political science majors and, importantly, exhibit leadership qualities. Awardees may accept other scholarships and grants in conjunction with the Peek Family Endowment Scholarship.

    Donor Story
    Kathryn E. and Howard A. Peek believe that higher education is the best investment citizens can make in their community, and the University of Houston contributes great wealth to the region both economically and socially. For these reasons, the Peeks are proud to provide scholarship support for students in the UH department of political science in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. 

  1. Rauch Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page. Additionally, the Rauch Scholarship requires applicants have a GPA of 3.5 or higher. 

  1. Robert Eckels Endowment Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page.

  1. Sarada Scholarship

    Criteria
    The scholarship is both merit-based — the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page — and need-based, with a preference for first-generation college students. Awardees may accept other scholarships and grants in conjunction with the Sarada Scholarship.

    Donor Story
    Given by the Jagannathan family in memory of mother/grandmother Sarada, an A-student, sportswoman and expert singer of classical Indian music who was denied the opportunity to get a college education because of the gender limitations of the era. Despite this, she instilled a deep love of culture and literature among her children and grandchildren, who celebrate her legacy through this scholarship.

    And every time the music rose, -before
    Mine inner vision rose a form sublime,
    Thy form, O Tree, as in my happy prime
    I saw thee, in my own loved native clime.
    (excerpted from the poem "Our Casuarinas Tree," by Toru Dutt)

  1. Undergraduate Scholarship

    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page. Additionally, the student needs to have received a University scholarship and have a strong interest in one of the social sciences or pre-law programs. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years if the student maintains scholarship-level academic performance throughout their time at the University of Houston.

  1. The Wendy Adair Persistence Scholarship Endowment for CLASS Seniors

    Criteria 
    Applicants need to be enrolled as a senior with 30 credit hours or less remaining to complete a College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences major and maintain a 2.5 GPA entering the last two semesters before degree completion. Awardees may accept other scholarships and grants in conjunction with The Wendy Adair Persistence Scholarship Endowment for CLASS seniors.

    Donor Story
    For 30 years, Wendy Adair led UH’s public relations efforts with creativity and vision, serving as University of Houston System vice chancellor/associate vice president for University Relations. She has also served as vice president for advancement at Texas Southern University and volunteered for many Houston organizations. 

  1. William Cunningham Endowment — Hawes

    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page. Additionally, the applicant must be a full-time student studying Asian culture (history, language, humanities etc.). Candidates pursuing studies in a) Southeast Asia and b) East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Tibet) — in that order — receive consideration ahead of candidates in the areas of South or Central Asia and may accept other scholarships and grants.

  1. Williams Cunningham Endowment — Young

    The scholarship is merit-based, and the applicant must meet the general requirements listed on the CLASS scholarship page. Additionally, the applicant must be a full-time student studying Asian culture (history, language, humanities, etc.). Candidates pursuing studies in a) Southeast Asia and b) East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Tibet) — in that order — receive consideration ahead of candidates in the areas of South or Central Asia and may accept other scholarships and grants.

Please also see the following links for additional links to additional college and departmental scholarship opportunities: 

  1. Office of the Dean’s Grants (click “Student Grants”)
    https://www.uh.edu/class/grants/deans-grants/index 
  1. CLASS Departmental and Program Undergraduate Scholarships