College Scholarships & Awards

College Scholarships

To be eligible for a college scholarship, students must be a declared major in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and must be in good academic and financial standing at the university. Additional restrictions are listed underneath each award's description. All award amounts are contingent upon funding.

Entering Graduate Student Scholarship

This scholarship is restricted to students who complete and submit, by the July 15 deadline, (a) the FAFSA (or TAFSA) and (b) their application package. Students who receive this $1,000 award must register for at least nine hours during the Fall 2019 term.

To be eligible for this Entering Student Scholarship, students must be an applicant to a CHSS graduate degree or graduate certificate.

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College Research Awards

To be eligible for a college research award, students must be a declared major in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences; registered full-time in the semester of their application, and be in good academic and financial standing at the university. All award amounts are contingent upon funding. Additional restrictions are listed below.

Dr. Nicole LaRose Student Research Fund

Nicole M LaRose, Assistant Professor of English at the University of Houston-Downtown passed away in 2011. This young scholar's published work examines how questions of community, identity, and technology are explored in texts centered in and around the sprawling metropolis of London, a city that exerted a particular fascination to her. Dr. LaRose invited her readers to see cities as places of contradiction and confusion, but also as sources of discovery and community.

LaRose Funds are intended to support the research and creative activity of students in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) at UHD. Applications are reviewed by a committee of faculty from CHSS. All funds must be used to support student research or creative activity. Applicants may request funding to support any research or creative activity needs, including but not limited to the following: purchase of books or materials to conduct research, travel to attend a conference, travel/admissions costs to gather data or view materials (books, art, etc.), etc.

The committee will review all materials and make awards based on the strength of the overall set of materials, with special attention to applicants who demonstrate strong writing skills and a research interest that suggests potential for creative/independent thinking. While a proposal may be based on work done for a course, these scholarships are not intended to fund the purchase of materials required for a course or course project that is assigned as part of the regular coursework.

To be considered for this award, applicants must:

• be a certified full-time undergraduate (at least 12 semester credit hours) or graduate (at least 9 semester credit hours) certificate or degree seeking student in good financial and academic standing at the University of Houston-Downtown.
• have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher at the time of application.
• be in good financial standing with the university at the time of application.
• plan to be enrolled at UHD during the period in which the award will be used.

Apply for the Scholarship
Download the Recommendation Form (PDF)

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 Susan Kiernan Ahern Endowed Scholarship

Dr. Susan K Ahern came to UHD in 1983 to teach English. As an associate professor, she received the Faculty Award for Teaching Excellence. Later, she served as Department Chair before becoming Dean in 2003. Through her tenure as faculty member and dean, Dr. Ahern had a passion for exposing students to visual, literary, and cultural arts and she worked diligently to develop opportunities to expose UHD students to these creative endeavors. ,/p>

This award is restricted to expenses associated with credit bearing coursework at UHD, including tuition, books, fees, and/or supplies for the coming academic semester. To be considered for this award, applicants must have a cumulative grade point average that is above 3.0. Please note that awardees must enroll full-time (12 semester credit hours for undergraduates, 9 semester credit hours for graduates) during the semester s/he receives an Ahern scholarship.

To be eligible for the Susan Kiernan Ahern Endowed Scholarship, students must be a declared major in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and must be in good academic and financial standing at the university.

Apply for the Scholarship

Alicia Spencer Castillo Memorial Scholarship

This scholarship is named for Alicia Spencer Castillo, the late mother of Max S. Castillo, former president of UHD, and Martha Spencer-Castillo Nitschke.

This award is restricted to expenses associated with credit bearing coursework at UHD, including tuition, books, fees, and/or supplies for the coming academic semester. To be considered for this award, students must:

• be a declared undergraduate major in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
• have a cumulative grade point average that is 3.0 and above.

Please note that awardees must enroll in at least 12 semester credit hours during the semester s/he receives a Castillo scholarship.

To be eligible for the Alicia Spencer Castillo Memorial Scholarship, students must be a declared major in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and must be in good academic and financial standing at the university.

Apply for the Scholarship

Donald R. Engstrom Memorial Scholarship
(For English majors with leadership experience)

This scholarship was established in 1994 thanks to the generosity of Bruce M. Engstrom and Betty J. Engstrom. This scholarship is intended for undergraduate English majors who have proven to be leaders in the University and/or the greater Houston Community.

This award is restricted to expenses associated with credit bearing coursework at UHD, including tuition, books, fees, and/or supplies for the coming academic semester.

To be considered for this award, applicants must:

• be a declared English major
• have a cumulative grade point average that is above 2.0

To be eligible for the following award, students must be a declared English major; registered full-time in the semester of their application and award; and be in good academic and financial standing at the university.

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Dr. Bill Brigman Endowed Scholarship in Political Science

The Brigman Endowed Scholarship is intended to support student activities in the Political Science program in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) at UHD. Applications will be reviewed by a committee of Political Science faculty.

Applicants may request funding to support any activity to enrich and enhance the study of Political Science including but not limited to the following: tuition assistance, purchase of books, travel to attend a conference, conference registration, student organized political science activities and events at University of Houston-Downtown, etc.

To be considered for this award, applicants must:

• Full-time status in semester of application: undergraduate (at least 12 semester credit hours).
• Declared political science major.
• Must have a minimum of 30 semester credit hours at UHD.
• Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher at the time of application.
• In good standing with the university at the time of application.
• Must enroll in 12 or more semester credit hours at UHD during the period in which the award will be used.
• Candidates involved in political, community or student activities will be given special consideration.

* Awardees can receive only one Brigman scholarship per academic year.

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