Scholarship Program

Scholarship Program Rules

 Applicants are evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Academic Records

  • Academic Plans and Career Goals

  • Financial Need (for educational purposes)

  • Community Service

  • Compelling Essay Responses; Correct Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling

  • Letter of Recommendation

  • Portfolio Submission

Calendar

  • July 31: Deadline for completed application packets.

  • July - August: Application processing.

  • August 31: Final determination is mailed and e-mailed to all applicants.

  • September: Full-time student enrollment is verified.

  • October: Award checks are processed.

  • November: Award checks are disbursed.

Application Deadline

All materials must be emailed or submitted in one package before July 31. 

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for a scholarship, you must:

  • Be of Hispanic heritage (one parent fully Hispanic or each parent half Hispanic)

  • Be a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident with a permanent resident card or passport stamped I-551 (current)

  • Be a graduate student enrolled full-time during the previous/current academic year at one of the following selected universities: Yale, Harvard, Columbia, NYU, Northwestern, UCLA, USC, and UT Austin

  • Be pursuing a degree in one of the following areas: Drama/Theater, Set Design/Costume Design, Lighting Design, Film (writing/directing/production), Broadcast Communications, Entertainment Law, or Business Administration with an emphasis on entertainment management

  • Have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.

Application Preparation

Application – Your application must be completed online. Please review before submitting. 

Answer all questions. Confine your responses to the space/word count requirements.

Community Service/Volunteer Activities section: Only list one activity per line. If the information you wish to list exceeds the allotted space, select those activities of longest duration or that are most meaningful to you.

Transcript(s) – Provide an official transcript from your current institution. 

  • Transcripts must include a cumulative GPA. If your transcript does not show a cumulative GPA, request that a school official confirm the information on school letterhead with his or her signature.

  • Transcripts must have the name of your institution, your name, Social Security number, and date of birth.

  • If you have completed only one full-time semester or term at your current institution, submit both your graduate and undergraduate transcripts.

  • If you recently transferred and completed less than one full-time semester or term at your current institution, you must also submit transcripts from all previous post-secondary institutions.


Letter of Recommendation – This must be from an instructor or advisor or, if you have been out of school for two or more years, from your most recent employer. The letter must be current and may not be from a relative. 

Allow your recommender at least two weeks to complete your recommendation. 

The letter must be confidential. Ask your recommender to return the recommendation letter to: 

info@hispanicarts.org

The letter should address all of the following topics:

  • Academic record

  • Academic plans and career goals

  • Personal strengths, including motivation, leadership, and commitment

  • Community service and extracurricular activities


Financial Information Documentation – The following documents are essential to the processing of your application. 

  • If you applied for federal financial aid, include a copy of all pages of your current Student Aid Report (SAR). Note: Be sure to apply early for federal student aid at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

  • If you did not apply for federal financial aid, include a copy of all pages of your 2010 1040, 1040 EZ, or 1040A federal tax return and W-2 form(s). Also include copies of your parents' (and spouse's, if married) 2010 federal income tax return(s) and W-2 form(s).


Portfolio Submission – Include two samples (video/audio tapes, photographs, scripts, etc.) of your original work.

All selection decisions are final and are not subject to appeal. Applications and support documents become the sole property of NHFA and cannot be returned.