SHSU Honors Scholarship

The Honors College mission is to offer a unique and intellectual academic environment that emphasizes undergraduate research and personal growth.

The Elliott T. Bowers Honors College offers scholarships to incoming Honors freshmen every fall semester, including the Honors Scholarship (23 per year) and The Elliott T. Bowers Honors Scholarship (2 per year). These competitive scholarships are selected from a qualified applicant pool on a first-come, first serve basis. Candidates will be invited for a Zoom interview.

Incoming freshmen are encouraged to apply to the Honors College as soon as possible and to take the SAT or ACT test.

Note: to be considered for a scholarship, students must be first accepted into the Honors College.

Honors Scholarship 

Qualifying incoming freshmen will be considered for the Honors Scholarship. Recipients of this competitive scholarship (distributed over an SHSU undergraduate college career no longer than four years, at a maximum of $40,000) will be selected from the eligible applicant pool. Incoming freshmen who meet the requirements are encouraged to apply as soon as possible and to take either the SAT or ACT test. Interviews for the following Fall semester will take place in January (November application deadline) and March (March 1st application deadline). 

Eligibility: to be eligible to apply, students must:  

  • have demonstrated excellence in academics and leadership 
  • have achieved scores of 1320 (SAT) or 29 (ACT) 
  • have been accepted to the Elliott T. Bowers Honors College 
  • be incoming first-time freshmen (high school graduates with dual or AP credit are eligible) 

Scholarship Renewal Requirements: The Honors Scholarship will renew each academic year (up to eight undergraduate semesters), provided students meet the following: 

  • Enroll in an Honors UNIV 1101 course and reside in Honors designated housing in Piney Woods Hall
  • maintain Status One in the Honors College, meeting all requirements for satisfactory academic progress toward graduation “With Honors” 
  • maintain full-time enrollment (12 credit hours) at SHSU each fall and spring semester. NOTE: Scholarship funds will not be awarded if students are enrolled in fewer than 12 credit hours. Students who fall below 12 hours during a semester will be put on probation (without scholarship) the following semester 
  • maintain a cumulative SHSU GPA of at least 3.25 
  • be Honors advised each semester 
  • attend 3 qualifying honors events per year 
  • enroll in face-to-face courses (cannot be enrolled 100% online) 
  • follow and complete a self-designed Honors Scholar Track of excellence before graduation* 

*Note: Scholarship recipient classes of Fall 2022 and earlier are not required to complete an Honors Scholar Track. However, it is highly encouraged. 

Scholarship Disbursement Plan: 

The scholarship will be awarded per Academic Year (eight fall and spring semesters only) as follows: 

Freshman year: $10,000 

Sophomore year: $10,000 

Junior year: $10,000 

Senior year: $10,000 

If the student graduates in fewer than eight semesters, the student will forfeit any remaining scholarship funds. 

To apply, please email honors@shsu.edu stating your interest in joining Honors. If the student is eligible, they will be sent a personalized link to apply. 

If a student has already been accepted into the program but was not contacted about an interview and believes a mistake has been made, please email us as soon as possible. 

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The Elliott T. Bowers Honors Scholarship 

The Elliott T. Bowers Honors College offers two academic scholarships (distributed over an SHSU undergraduate college career no longer than four years, at a maximum of $80,000) each fall semester to academically strong and highly motivated incoming first-time freshmen. The Bowers Scholarship was designed, in part, to bring “exceptionally motivated and capable students” into an academic and social environment consisting of their academic peers, while providing them with a means for close interaction with faculty and for enhanced educational opportunities. To facilitate this unique opportunity for qualifying students, the scholarship is intended to help defray the costs of attending college. The Bowers Scholarship Fund was established in 1989 to honor Dr. Elliott T. Bowers (1919-2003), who served as the ninth president of Sam Houston State University from 1970 to 1989.  

Eligibility: to be eligible to apply, students must:  

  • be incoming first-time freshmen (high school graduates with dual or AP credit are eligible) 
  • have been accepted to the Elliott T. Bowers Honors College 
  • have achieved scores of 1350 (SAT) or 30 (ACT)  
  • have demonstrated excellence in academics and leadership 

Scholarship Renewal Requirements: The Bowers Scholarship will renew each academic year (up to eight undergraduate semesters) provided students meet the following: 

  • Enroll in an Honors UNIV 1101 course and reside in Honors designated housing in Piney Woods Hall
  • maintain Status One in the Honors College, meeting all requirements for satisfactory academic progress toward graduation “With Highest Honors” (Read about graduating with Highest Honors)
  • maintain full-time enrollment (12 credit hours) at SHSU each fall and spring semester. NOTE: Scholarship funds will not be awarded if students are enrolled in fewer than 12 credit hours. Students who fall below 12 hours during a semester will be put on probation (without scholarship) the following semester 
  • maintain a cumulative SHSU GPA of at least 3.25 
  • be Honors advised each semester 
  • complete the Honors thesis 
  • attend 3 qualifying honors events per year 
  • enroll in face-to-face courses (cannot be enrolled 100% online) 
  • conduct themselves in a professional manner as benefits an Honors student 

If the student graduates in fewer than eight semesters, the student will forfeit any remaining scholarship funds. 

To apply, please email honors@shsu.edu stating your interest in joining Honors. If the student is eligible, they will be sent a personalized link to apply. 

If a student has already been accepted into the program but was not contacted about an interview and believes a mistake has been made, please email us as soon as possible. 

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The Elliott T. Bowers Honors College

Academic Building IV Suite 202 | Box 2479 | Huntsville, Texas 77341-2479

Phone: (936) 294.1477 | Email: honors@shsu.edu