AUSTIN, Texas—A scholarship program has been created to make The University of Texas at Austin more competitive in attracting qualified high school seniors from 130 Texas schools that historically have sent very few students to the university.
The Keep Texans in Texas! scholarship program to promote diversity will affect students from 130 Texas high schools who have been admitted to The University of Texas at Austin for the 2002-2003 academic year. The pilot program arises from Texas House Bill 2867, passed by the 76th Legislature to encourage educational institutions to offer matching scholarships for students who had been offered out-of-state awards.
“We want to keep the best of Texas in Texas,” said Dr. Lawrence Burt, director of the university’s Office of Student Financial Services. Burt said his office designed the program “as part of our larger commitment to see the university as culturally, economically and geographically diverse as is the state of Texas.”
The program is designed to guarantee an even starting point so it will not be more expensive for students from these 130 schools to attend The University of Texas at Austin than out-of-state universities. It will make the cost equal to or lower than that of out-of-state institutions, Burt said.
For example, if New York University, with an annual cost of $36,650, offered a student $25,000 in scholarships to bring his/her total cost down to $11,650, the Keep Texans in Texas! scholarship program would step in to cover the difference between that and the estimated $14,500 yearly cost of attending The University of Texas at Austin. This means that a student would get a scholarship or grant support of at least $2,850. This program does not preclude any other scholarship at The University of Texas at Austin and many students will qualify for and receive other scholarships from this university, bringing their costs even lower, Burt said.
Visit the Keep Texans in Texas! Web site to find a list of the 130 Texas schools.
For more information, contact Tariq Ahmed Elseewi in the Office of Student Financial Services, (512) 475-6239.
