Scholarship Instructions & Guidelines

Details of the Award

Approximately thirty-five (35) college scholarships are available annually, each in the amount of $3,500. The number of scholarships and their amount for each academic year will be determined after October 15 and posted on the NGC website.
One-year scholarships are available to juniors, seniors and graduate students pursuing a Master's Degree.
Sophomores may make application for their junior year.
College/university must be accredited and listed on the official website of the U.S. Department of Education http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.aspx

Must be a US Citizen or Permanent Legal Resident of the United States.
International or Foreign Exchange Students are not eligible.
Doctoral program students are not eligible.
Must be attending school full-time as defined by NGC:
- Undergraduate students must be enrolled for a minimum of 12 graded hours of classes.
- Graduate students must be enrolled for a minimum of 9 graded hours of classes.
Study abroad on fellowships or internships are not eligible; funds may be applied to studies overseas provided that the study is a condition of the recipient's degree plan and that payment continues to be made to the accredited U.S. college or university.
Must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 (on a 4.0 scale).
Must be planning a career related to gardening, landscape design, environmental issues, floral design or horticulture.
Must be majoring in one of the following fields of study:
- Agronomy
- Agriculture Education
- Floriculture
- Horticulture
- Landscape Design
- Botany, Biology
- Forestry
- Wildlife Science
- Plant Pathology/Science
- City (Rural & Urban) Planning
- Habitat or Forest/Systems Ecology
- Environmental Concerns (Management: Environmental, Horticulture Resource/Environmental Behavior)
- Environmental Conservation (inc. Engineering, etc.)
- Land Management and/or other related or allied subjects.

All applications received by a State Garden Club Chairman will be judged by that Chairman and committee in order to choose one winning application.
After judging has been completed at the state level, the NGC Scholarship Chairman will receive the applications by March 1 for judging.(NOTE this date has been moved forward)
The NGC Scholarship Committee will consider only one application per state. (Exception: Any State Garden Club with a membership of over 10,000 may submit two applications.)
The following Sample Scale of Points may be used for the evaluation of each application:
- Academic Record 40%
- Applicant's Letter 30%
- Listing of Honors / Extracurricular Activities / Work Experience 10%
- Financial Need 15%
- Recommendations 5%
Applications are evaluated and winners chosen by the National Garden Clubs Scholarship Committee, which consists of the NGC Scholarship Chairman and the eight Regional Directors of NGC.
Final judging takes place just prior to the annual NGC Convention.
Winners are announced during the NGC Convention. The NGC Scholarship Chairman will notify all applicants in writing of the committee's decisions immediately following the judging.

Checks for the winning applicant's scholarship will be mailed in late July from NGC Headquarters to the Financial Aid Office of the institution at which the student is enrolled. No funds will be sent directly to the student.
All funds will be distributed by the Financial Aid Office according to the particular school's term-system, unless the student has only one term remaining before the completion of the degree.
In the event of a change in a student's major to one other than those listed above, or if the student withdraws from school; the balance of the funds must be returned to National Garden Clubs.
The Student and Financial Aid Officer will determine how the money is to be spent: tuition, food, housing, books, etc.

The following documents must be submitted, single side pages only:
NGC Scholarship Application Form

Financial Aid Form

Complete official academic transcripts

Letter from applicant, limit of one page only

List of extracurricular activities, honors, recognitions received within the last three years

Three letters of recommendation
All of the documents must be mailed by the applicant in one large envelope. Do not place the documents in page protectors, in any sort of permanent binder, or staple the pages.
Applications must be mailed to the State Garden Club Scholarship Chairman for the state in which the applicant is a legal resident, even if the student is attending an out-of-state school. A list of State Garden Club Chairmen is at the end of the application. Please note the deadlines: 1) Due to State Chairman: February 1, 2019; 2) Due to NGC Scholarship Chairman and Committee: March 1, 2019.
No applications should be sent to the NGC Scholarship Chairman.
When a student reapplies for a scholarship (whether the applicant is or is not a previous winner), a complete new and updated application must be submitted.