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Qualified Applicants Must
Graduate from an accredited South Dakota high school with a Grade Point Average (GPA of) 2.8 or greater on a 4.0 scale. Home schooled students will be allowed to provide supplemental information if this requirement is not applicable.
Have a composite ACT score of 27 or greater (or the SAT equivalent).
Agree, in writing, to stay in South Dakota and work in a critical need occupation after graduation for as many years as the scholarship was received, plus one year. Approved Critical Need Occupations
Apply for the Dakota Corps Scholarship for a school period that begins within one year of high school graduation, or within one year of release from active duty of an active component of the armed forces.
Attend a participating South Dakota college as an undergraduate student in a program that will prepare the student to work in a critical need occupation.
Be a U.S. citizen or U.S. national.
Among those that qualify, recipients will be chosen based on GPA, test scores, activities, honors, and community service. Not all eligible applicants will be selected for a scholarship. From the total pool of applicants, a limited number of recipients will be selected. Also, some South Dakota colleges may limit the number of scholarship recipients they accept, or not participate at all.
Maintaining Your Scholarship
The scholarships are renewable if the recipient:
Maintains a 2.8 GPA on a 4.0 scale.
Is considered a full-time student as defined by the participating college.
Makes satisfactory academic progress toward a degree.
Is certified as accepted into the specific program by the start of his/her junior year (if in a four-year program) or is enrolled in an LPN program or other allied health care field.
The scholarship is renewable for up to the number of years required to complete the program, as defined by the college (i.e., one year, two years, three years, or four years), except that programs longer than four years are limited to four years. The recipient will not receive any additional funding for any years he or she takes beyond the required number. Scholarships are not provided for summer sessions at traditional four-year colleges.
If a student's GPA falls below a 2.8, they will lose eligibility until they are at or above a 2.8. However, if a student falls below a 2.8 more than one time with two breaks, they will no longer be eligible. I.e., A student has the scholarship Fall 2023, goes below Spring 2024 - one break. Then student in Fall 2024 has the GPA of 2.8 they will be eligible for the scholarship in the Fall. If they fall below again in the Spring of 2025, they are no longer eligible for the scholarship. This is considered a second break.
A student must make progress toward completion of the degree. Where academic progress is not being met and validated by the campus, the student will become ineligible until which point they can document that they are back on track through credits taken over summer, or registered credits during the academic Fall and Spring.
A student that is in their last and final semester may take less then the required full credit hours if they are graduating.