Terry Foundation Scholarship
Before you spend hours on this
Will this scholarship actually lower your cost?
Not always. Many colleges reduce your financial-aid package when you win an outside scholarship — sometimes dollar-for-dollar — so the money can end up saving the school instead of you. It's called scholarship displacement. Two free tools tell you where you actually stand:
General guidance, not financial advice — your school's financial aid office is the only authority on how they treat outside awards. Always confirm with them before deciding.
Best fit for
Texas seniors who are top-of-class AND have a leadership/service/barrier-overcome story AND want to stay in-state. The kid who's worked through high school, raised a sibling, run a school org, founded something — Terry wants you.
What they actually look for
Terry is one of the most generous scholarships in the country — full cost of attendance for 4 years at any Texas Terry partner school, PLUS books, PLUS a stipend, PLUS summer enrichment. Roughly 250 new winners per year across all 13 partner schools combined. The selection criteria explicitly weight LEADERSHIP and CHARACTER over raw stats — they want first-gen, working-class, or otherwise barrier-overcoming Texas kids.
What you'll need
- Texas resident graduating from a Texas high school
- Plan to attend one of 13 Texas Terry partner universities (UT Austin, A&M, Texas Tech, UH, UT Dallas, UNT, Texas State, etc.)
- Top 5% of class (most winners are top 2-3%) + 1450+ SAT or 33+ ACT typical
- Demonstrated financial need (Terry uses CSS + FAFSA)
- Counselor or principal nomination — free, part of their job
- Multiple essays + on-campus interview at a Texas Terry university
When to start
Talk to your high school counselor in September of senior year. Each Terry partner school has its own Terry application deadline (most are December). Selected applicants invited to on-campus interview in February-March.
Watch out for
Terry is school-specific — you apply through your chosen Texas Terry university, not centrally. Don't accidentally apply via the foundation only; you must designate which Texas university you want to attend. Also: Terry requires you to live on campus freshman year (no commuter exceptions). If you were planning to live at home and save money, Terry isn't compatible with that plan.