ALL FAQ

SD Opportunity Scholarship Frequently Asked Questions

Initial Eligibility

How does a student qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

Students may establish their initial eligibility in the Opportunity Scholarship program by meeting the requirements in one of two ways.

Option 1

• RESIDENT STATUS: Be a resident of South Dakota at the time of high school graduation

• ACT SCORE: Have an ACT Composite or Super Score* of 24 or higher before the beginning of postsecondary education.  If using a SAT score, the sum of the verbal and mathematics scores on the SAT must be at least 1090 (testing before January 2016) or 1180 (testing after March 2016).

• CURRICULUM / GPA: Complete the high school course requirements (see Curriculum Requirements webpage) with no final grade below a "C" (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) and a cumulative high school GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (grade of "B") prior to graduation (NOTE: One unit of high school credit equals one year of instruction).

• ATTENDANCE: Attend a university, college, or technical school accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and that provides instruction from a campus located in South Dakota.

• TIMING:  Enter into the program within 5 years of high school graduation, or within 1 year of the student's release from active-duty military service (if that release is within 5 years of the date of the student's high school graduation). Students seeking to transfer from a regionally accredited university, college, or technical school located outside of South Dakota may do so within two years following high school graduation and be eligible to receive partial award.

Option 2 (higher ACT requirement, but no curriculum or GPA requirement)

• RESIDENT STATUS: Be a resident of South Dakota at the time of high school graduation

• ACT SCORE:  Have an ACT Composite or Super Score* of 28 or higher and meet the ACT college readiness benchmarks scores equaling or exceeding 18 for English, 22 for Reading, 22 for Math, and 23 for Science. If using an SAT score, the sum of the verbal and mathematics scores on the SAT must be at least 1260 (testing before January 2016) or 1310 (testing after March 2016).

• ATTENDANCE: Attend a university, college, or technical school accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and that provides instruction from a campus located in South Dakota.

• TIMING:  Enter into the program within 5 years of high school graduation, or within 1 year of the student's release from active-duty military service (if that release is within 5 years of the date of the student's high school graduation). Students seeking to transfer from a regionally accredited university, college, or technical school located outside of South Dakota may do so within two years following high school graduation and be eligible to receive partial award.

These requirements listed are established by the South Dakota Legislature and must be met to qualify for the scholarship.

 

Residency

How do I meet the residency requirement of the SD Opportunity Scholarship? 

To meet the residency requirements of the SD Opportunity Scholarship, students must be considered a South Dakota resident at the time of high school graduation. 

If I live on the border of South Dakota and attend high school in another state, am I eligible for the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship? 

Yes, the law says you must be a "resident of South Dakota" at the time you graduate from high school. So, if you live in South Dakota, but attend high school out of state, you may still qualify. Students must still meet the required coursework for the scholarship. 

Similarly, a student in a military family who has maintained South Dakota residency but attends high school out of state will qualify under that definition. 

I do not live in South Dakota, but attend and will graduate from a South Dakota High School, will I qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

No, the law does state that students must be a “resident of South Dakota” at the time you graduate from high school to qualify for funding.  Students who are not South Dakota Residents will not qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship even if they graduate from an South Dakota High School. 

 

ACT Requirement

Is an ACT of 24 required to receive funding for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?   

Yes - The rules for the SD Opportunity Scholarship are set up in State Statute 13-55-31 and state that a student must have a 24 ACT or higher to qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship.   While the laws regarding the SD Opportunity scholarship do grant some situations where an exemption can be granted to the rules of the scholarship, state statute does not grant the Board of Regents authority to waive the Initial Eligibility Requirements.

ACT Super Score

The ACT Score must be an official score reported on an official test report issued from ACT.  Test Scores can be reported by the High School on the Student’s transcript can be used to qualify for the scholarship.

If you are using an ACT Super Score to qualify for the scholarship, this must be ACT reported and may not be one that is manually calculated by the student, high school, or university.  In most high schools, admin is not able to report ACT Super Scores on the student’s high school transcript – in this case, the student must request that a new, updated ACT Score report must be sent to the university campus.

 

Curriculum Requirements

Does my course meet the SD Opportunity Scholarship Curriculum Requirements?

If you are looking to see if a specific course meets the curriculum requirements for the SD Opportunity Scholarship, please reference the Approved Coursework Documents below: 

Approved High School and Dual Credit Coursework

 

 

Related Articles: 

Approved Coursework for the SD Opportunity Scholarship

Foreign Language

If I choose to complete two units of modern or classical language to meet the curriculum requirements of the scholarship, does that have to be two years of the same language or can I take Spanish I and French I, for example?

GPA Requirements

Can I use a weighted GPA to qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship? If my school only has a weighted GPA on my transcript, how is my application handled?

Grade Below a C

I received a grade below a C, does that disqualify me from the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

Journalism 

Does Journalism meet the curriculum requirements for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

CTE for Core Content

Does my Career and Technical Education (CTE) course meet the Math or Science requirements for the SD Opportunity Scholarship? 

 

GPA Requirements

Can I use a weighted GPA to qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?   If my school only has a weighted GPA on my transcript, how is my application handled?

The SD Opportunity Scholarship requires that GPA must be calculated on a 4.0 scale – any weighted scores, bonus points, and scores above 4.0 are not considered on a 4.0 scale.   If your transcript does not include an UNWEIGHTED GPA, please reach out to your high school to get this included.
 

Any weighted GPAs on the SD Opportunity Scholarship application may be recalculated based on the scale below. 

Letter Grade to Grade Point

A+ / A	4.0	B+	3.67	C+	2.33	D+	1.33	F	0
A-	3.67	B	3.0	C	2.0	D	1.0
		B-	2.67	C-	1.67	D-	.67

 

Grade Below a C

The requirement states that students must “receive a “C” (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) or higher on all required coursework – can I retake a course?

This notes that a student must have a C or higher on the REQUIRED coursework – meaning, students may have other grades in non-required courses that are below a C (as long as it doesn’t adversely affect their GPA) as long as the students have the needed courses with a C or higher.  Additionally, the examples below would work as well because the student would have the 4 units with a C or higher.

Example 1 (student takes an extra math course)	Example 2 (student retakes a course)
Math A – 1 Unit – grade: B Math B – 1 Unit – grade: C- Math C – 1 Unit – grade: A Math D – 1 Unit – grade C Math E – 1 Unit – grade B+	Math A – 1 Unit – grade: B Math B – 1 Unit – grade: C- Math B – 1 Unit – grade: A Math C – 1 Unit – grade C Math D – 1 Unit – grade B+

Both these examples meet the math curriculum requirements due to the fact that the student DOES have 4 units above a C.

 

Journalism

Does Journalism count as a credit for the SD Opportunity Scholarship? 

Journalism credit and the Opportunity Scholarship  (The South Dakota Department of Education released the following News Alert on August 27, 2027)

Last school year, a small number of South Dakota graduating seniors may have experienced an unexpected issue with the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship. Specifically, because their high school journalism course was not counted as an English-Language Arts (ELA) credit, they became ineligible for the scholarship. Prior to 2024, students were able to use journalism as an ELA credit which, along with other credits, qualified them for the scholarship. 

It is in no one’s interest—not the students, not the Board of Regents (BOR), not the Department of Education (DOE), not K-12 school districts—to have students ineligible for the Opportunity Scholarship because journalism is not counted as an ELA credit, even though it involves a great deal of student writing, editing, and research. Thus, DOE will now move the journalism course (Journalism 11101) out of Other and into ELA-Elective, as part of our Common Course Code process. This will allow students who take Journalism 11101 to attain an Advanced Honors Endorsement for their diploma, which is required to be considered for eligibility for the Opportunity Scholarship. This will eliminate the need for school districts to request waivers for the course.  As a result, there is no need for you to request an administrative rule waiver now or going forward.

Should you have any concerns or questions, feel free to contact us. For questions about waivers, contact Kathy Reidy and for questions about the change related to Common Course Code, contact Vera Van Winkle. For questions about the SD Opportunity Scholarship, contact the Board of Regents office at 605-773-3455 or email scholarships@sdbor.edu

 

CTE for Core Content

Does my Career and Technical Education course meet a science or math requirements for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

CTE for Content Credit - South Dakota schools may offer students the opportunity to earn academic credit by completing approved career and technical education courses that address the pertinent standards within the curriculum. Approval to offer credit must be obtained through an application process with the Department of Education. 

Click the Approved CTE for Core Content List link on that page for a full list of courses that have been approved for core content across the state.   If the course appears on the DOE's list of approved for core content for a particular district AND is listed on the SDOS Approved Coursework Document (last page), then the course can meet either the CTE requirement for that particular student or the core subject area it is listed under. 

Example:    Principles of Engineering, because it has been approved by the DOE to meet the Science Requirement for Bishop O'Gorman High School and is on the SDOS Approved Coursework document, can meet the Science Elective requirement for the SD Opportunity Scholarship. 

 

 

Foreign Language

If I choose to complete two units of modern or classical language to meet the curriculum requirements of the scholarship, does that have to be two years of the same language or can I take Spanish I and French I, for example?

The intent has always been for a student to take two years of instruction in the same language. The written policy has been clarified to make it very clear that the curriculum intends a student to take two years of courses in the same language; for example: Spanish I and Spanish II. 

A student can take one unit of a foreign language and another unit of Career and Technical Education (CTE) coursework.  Students do not need to take a full 2 units of either Foreign Language or CTE.

 

Participating Schools

What South Dakota post-secondary schools qualify to accept the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship?

The scholarship may be used at any university, college, or technical school in South Dakota that is accredited by the North Central Association (NCA). Most institutions in South Dakota are regionally accredited by NCA. The school also must provide instruction from a campus located in South Dakota

Augustana University Black Hills State University Dakota State University Dakota Wesleyan University Lake Area Technical College Mitchell Technical College Mount Marty University

Northern State University South Dakota Mines South Dakota State University Southeast Technical College University of Sioux Falls University of South Dakota Western Dakota Technical College

 

Gap Years

Can I sit out a year or two after high school graduation and still qualify for the scholarship?

Yes, under certain circumstances. You must enter the scholarship program within five years of high school graduation, or within one year of release from active military service, if that release is within five years of the date of your high school graduation.

 

Enroll out-of-state during summer

What is the effect of initial scholarship eligibility if a student attends summer school out of state between high school graduation and initial enrollment in participating South Dakota institution?

If a student attends summer school out of state between high school graduation and initial enrollment in a South Dakota institution, the following conditions must be met in order to maintain initial eligibility for the SD Opportunity Scholarship:

• The student’s status at the out-of-state school is nondegree seeking.

• The student has not received federal financial aid from the out-of-state institution.

 

Applying for the Scholarship

How do I apply for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

Students can apply for the SD Opportunity Scholarship by logging in to the SD Board of Regents Scholarship Portal using the appropriate log-in.   Once they have logged in to the portal, if available, the SD Opportunity Scholarship application will be listed on the home screen.  Students can click the application link and complete the application.   

The SD Opportunity Scholarship Application contains mostly contact information and basic high school and academic information – most of which will be verified by the students High School Transcript.    Because student transcripts are sent to the individual campuses as part of the admissions process, students do not need to have an additional transcript sent to the campus as part of the SD Opportunity Scholarship Application process. They will, instead, include their transcript contact person from their high school that can be contacted should there be any questions regarding the student’s transcript.

 

Scholarship Portal Log-In

Which log-in should I use for the Scholarship Portal?

There are two methods provided for students to log in to the SD Board of Regents Scholarship Portal.  

 

Option 1 – BOR Students

If a student is  A). currently enrolled in Board of Regents Coursework (Dual Credit, Rising Scholar, etc), B). has been applied at a Board of Regents institution (and accepted??)

they will have Board of Regents credentials that will allow them to log in.  To log-in, students will use their Student ID and password.  

By logging in with this method, it allows any student information applicable to the scholarship to be pulled directly into the application (GPA, ACT scores, High School Graduation date, etc).   If a student is planning to attend a Board of Regents school, every effort should be made to log in using their Board of Regents credentials – provided deadlines are not missed, the preference would be to wait to apply until a student has their BOR Credentials.

 

Option 2 – Non-BOR Students

Students not enrolled at a Board of Regents Institution will need to create a manual account with Scholarship Manager.  First time users will be prompted to create an account then verify their email address.  When returning to the site in the future, users will continue to use the Non-BOR School button to log in to their account.  

Once a scholarship award is made with the campus, the email address associated with their account may and user name may be changed to match their email and student ID on campus, but their account will remain a manual account (i.e. student data will not be pulled in from the campus).

 

Application Review Process

I applied for the SD Opportunity Scholarship, when will my application be reviewed?

Once a student has applied for the SD Opportunity Scholarship, their application, transcript, coursework, and ACT scores will be evaluated.   For students attending a Board of Regents School, this is done by staff at the Enrollment Services Center.  Students attending a private university or Technical College have their application and additional information reviewed by staff at their individual campus.    It is important that if you apply for the scholarship at one institution but end up enrolling at a different institution, you let BOR staff know by completing the below information. 

 

Additionally, because the scholarship does require a FINAL OFFICIAL HIGH SCHOOL TRANSCRIPT, this review process does not typically begin until approximately June 1st or after your final official transcript is received.   Because of the sheer number of applications that are submitted, this process does take a large portion of the summer – to ensure that your application is reviewed as quickly as possible, ensure:

• your high school has sent your transcript to the appropriate institution – this should be done through a secure method. [please note: Email is not a secure method]

• the university or college you plan on attending has the most up to date ACT scores.  [see FAQ regarding the ACT Requirement]

 

 

Scholarship Deadlines

What are the scholarship deadlines for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

 

Students beginning enrollment for the FALL term have the following deadlines:

September 1		Incoming Freshmen or students who, though they would have qualified, did not initially complete an application for the SD Opportunity Scholarship when they began post-secondary.
September 1		Returning Students (students who previously attended an out-of-state institution and are returning to South Dakota within their first 2 years)
September 20		Transfer Students (In-State Transfer between SDOS Institutions)

 

Students beginning enrollment for the SPRING term have the following deadlines:

January 15		Incoming Freshmen or students who, though they would have qualified, did not initially complete an application for the SD Opportunity Scholarship when they began post-secondary.
January 15		Returning Students (students who previously attended an out-of-state institution and are returning to South Dakota within their first 2 years)
February 15		Transfer Students (In-State Transfer between SDOS Institutions)

 

Competitive Scholarship

If I meet eligibility requirements, will I have to “compete” with other eligible students to receive the scholarship?  Is it first-come, first serve?

All students who meet eligibility requirements and complete the necessary application procedures can expect to receive a scholarship award. If the numbers of eligible recipients exceed the amount of money appropriated for the scholarship by the South Dakota Legislature, the scholarship may be prorated and distributed to each recipient proportionately.

 

Enroll Out-Of-State and Return to SD

Can I attend school in another state for a period and return to South Dakota and still qualify for the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

Yes, under some circumstances. Beginning on July 1, 2006, the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship program extended scholarship eligibility to certain South Dakota students who attend college or a technical school out of state and then return to South Dakota to attend school. Such students may be eligible for a partial scholarship award. This applies only to students who first attend full time at regionally accredited institution out of state and then return to South Dakota to attend school within two years after their high school graduation date (or two years following release from active military service).

To be eligible upon returning, students must complete the Transfer/Returning student application prior to the appropriate deadline and meet initial and continuing eligibility provisions (GPA and credit-hour load requirements) while they were enrolled out of state. If a student returns to South Dakota and applies for the Opportunity Scholarship, a partial award is made. Students forfeit any scholarship amount for the time spent out of state. In their fourth and final year of eligibility, the scholarship payment is also reduced by one-half (a $1,300/$1,500 award will be made, instead of a $2,600/$3,000).

 

Maintaining Eligibility Requirements

What will I have to do to maintain my eligibility once I get the scholarship?

A student must meet certain continuing requirements or the scholarship renewal award is cancelled. In order to maintain scholarship eligibility, a college student will have to:

• Maintain a cumulative 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale, calculated after the second semester and for every semester after that. If the cumulative GPA falls below 3.0, the recipient forfeits the scholarship for the subsequent semester and for additional semesters after that until eligibility is reestablished. The scholarship will be reinstated beginning in the semester after which the student has raised the cumulative GPA back to 3.0 or greater, and met other continuing eligibility requirements. Reinstating a lapsed scholarship does not extend the time allowed under the scholarship program, and students who lose eligibility a second time cannot reestablish it in any event.

• Complete consecutive spring and fall terms.

• Meet the credit hour benchmarks specified below for each year of eligibility in the scholarship program. (Remedial courses at the 0-credit level and repeated courses do NOT qualify toward the credit hour benchmarks.)

  • 30 Credit Hours - Sophomores or those receiving 3rd and 4th term funding

  • 60 Credit Hours - Juniors or those receiving 5th and 6th term funding

  • 90 Credit Hours - Seniors or those receiving 7th and 8th term funding

 

Re-Apply?

If I applied and received the SD Opportunity Scholarship last year, do I need to complete any paperwork or form to receive the scholarship next year?

No - As long as you are meeting the Continuing Eligibility Requirements of the scholarship, there is no paperwork or documentation that you must complete to receive the scholarship year after year.  

 

GPA Below Minimum

I became temporarily ineligible after falling below the 3.0 GPA requirement.  If I am able to raise my cumulative GPA above 3.0 next semester would I qualify to receive the full amount during my senior year?

Yes. Student funding is based on the number of semesters he/she has attended at one of the 16 participating institutions.  If you have met all other continuing eligibility requirements each semester since becoming temporarily ineligible, then you can qualify for $1,300 during each of your final semesters of eligibility in the program.  You would need to submit an eligibility reinstatement form once you have raised your cumulative GPA in order to reinstate funding (NOTE: Falling below the cumulative GPA requirement a second time after you have reinstated it once before, terminates eligibility).

 

Minimum Credits

What are the minimum number of credits I need to take each semester to keep my SD Opportunity Scholarship?

There is not a minimum number of credits a student needs to take each semester to maintain eligibility for the SD Opportunity Scholarship as long as they are meeting the below credit thresholds.   Online, Dual Credit, AP course work and CLEP credits earned can count towards these Credit Thresholds

Credit Thresholds

• 30 Credits prior to 3rd semester

• 60 Credits prior to 5th semester

• 90 Credits prior to 7th semester

 

Retaking AP Coursework

I was awarded college credit through the AP testing process during high school and have chosen to take the corresponding course in college. How will this affect my continuing scholarship eligibility?

When a high school student scores 3 or better on an AP test (i.e. AP Biology), a letter grade of “A” is recorded for the corresponding course (i.e. Biology 101) on the student’s college transcript. If a student chooses to re-take the course for which he/she earned credit through the AP process, this will be a repeat course which will not count toward the credit hour benchmark requirements. To maintain eligibility, the student must enroll in more credit hours in addition to this course to meet his/her respective credit hour threshold.

 

Transferring

Will I be able to keep my scholarship if I transfer to another school?

In-State Transfers

Recipients may transfer among eligible South Dakota post-secondary institutions and retain their scholarship eligibility, as long as they meet all other criteria noted above as well as submitting a transfer application form. Transferring out of state terminates eligibility.

Out-of-State Transfers

Persistence requirements for the Opportunity Scholarship specifies that a student must be continuously enrolled at one of the 16 participating institutions in South Dakota.  Once a student leaves the state to continue their post-secondary education, they violate this requirement and become permanently ineligible in the scholarship program and may not re-establish eligibility.

 

Graduating College Early

If a student graduates in 3 years, how would the SD Opportunity Scholarship funding be paid out to the student?

The South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship is paid out based on the academic year that the student is enrolled, and a student must be enrolled in that academic year to receive the year's funding.   Therefore, students that graduate after 3 years and are not enrolled in the 4th year, are unfortunately not eligible for the fourth year of funding.   A student that graduates in 3.5 years and is enrolled in a portion of the fourth academic year, would then be eligible for the year's funding. 

If the student enrolls in a graduate program at a participating university with no gaps in enrollment, they could be eligible for the fourth-year funding to be paid out during their graduate program.  If the graduate program is at a different school than their undergraduate program, the student needs to complete an institutional transfer form for the SD Opportunity Scholarship.

 

Regents' Scholar vs. SD Opportunity Scholarship

What is the difference between the Regents’ Scholar Diploma and the SD Opportunity Scholarship?

The Regents' Scholar Diploma has been awarded for many years by the state of South Dakota based on criteria established by the South Dakota Board of Regents. It is a commemorative certificate issued by the Board of Regents that says the student completed the Regents' Scholar curriculum. A high school administrator submits a list of students who qualify and the Board of Regents issues the certificates, which are often handed out at high school graduation ceremonies or awards night.  The Regents' Scholar Program does not have funding tied to the award. 

The South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship is a program that awards a $7,500 scholarship over four years to qualifying high school graduates, who complete the high school curriculum requirements established for the Opportunity Scholarship program and maintain certain academic standards. Eligibility is based on an application submitted to the South Dakota post-secondary institution by the student, along with an official high school transcript and verification of a minimum ACT score of 24 or SAT score where the sum of the verbal and mathematics scores is at least 1090 (testing before January 2016) or 1180 (testing after March 2016)

 

Exemptions

In what circumstances am I able to request an exemption to the SD Opportunity Scholarship? 

State statue grants the Executive Director of the Board of Regents the authority to grant exemptions to continuous enrollment requirements when good cause is shown. As a result, when a situation arises that hinders a student from meeting the eligibility requirements for the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship, he/she has the opportunity to request an exemption waiver from the Executive Director. 

The administrative rules that govern the Opportunity Scholarship program provides authority to the Board of Regents to grant waivers to a limited number of continuous eligibility criteria including the Credit Hour Thresholds and Persistence Requirements (continuous enrollment).   As a result, when a situation arises that hinders a student from meeting the continuing eligibility requirements for the program, he/she has the opportunity to request an exemption waiver from the Executive Director.  To this date, waivers have been granted based on five specific rationales including:

1. Situations where a medical hardship has hindered a student's progress;

2. Student participation in an approved exchange program through their institution;

3. Conflict with program of study requirements that influence student credit hours;

4. Participation in an institution approved internship or cooperative education program; and/or,

5. Military deferral for National Guard or military service.

While waivers are routinely granted for the issues outline above, the Legislature has not granted a Participating Institution or the Board of Regents with the authority to grant waivers for other requirements established in the state statute or administrative rules.  These include:

1. Failure to meet all of the initial eligibility requirements (13-55-31 & 13-55-31.1);

• Be a resident of South Dakota at the time of graduation from high school;

• Have a composite score of 24 or higher on the ACT;

• Meet the high school course requirements for graduation, with a cumulative average grade of “B” (3.0  on a 4.0 scale), and a C or higher in all required courses;

• Attend a participating post-secondary institution within South Dakota;

• Enter into the program within five years of graduation

2. Failure to meet the established application deadlines (24:40:13:12, 24:40:13:14);

3. Failure to meet the 3.0 GPA requirements for continuous eligibility criteria (13-55-34); and/or

4. Early payment of scholarship awards outside the requirements set forth in 13-55-33 or 24:40:13:20.

Submit a SD Opportunity Scholarship Exemption Request