Dakota Corps Scholarship Program

800.874.9033
DakotaCorps@sdbor.edu
Kerri.Richards@sdbor.edu

The Dakota Corps offers scholarships that pay for the full cost of tuition for South Dakota students who plan to remain in the state upon completion of their education.

Each recipient must agree to enter a critical need occupation in South Dakota following completion of the program of study. The number of years a recipient must work in a critical need occupation to fulfill the entire obligation is equal to the sum of the number of years of scholarship received, plus one year.

Critical need occupations:

• Registered nurse
• K-12 teachers
  • Special education
  • Foreign language
  • Vocal or instrumental music
  • English as a Second Language (ESL)
  • English Language Learners (ELL)
• Secondary teachers
  • Math
  • Science
  • Language arts
  • Career and technical education
• Accountant/auditor
• Engineer
• Information technology

To be considered, applicants must meet all criteria:

• Have graduated from an accredited South Dakota high school with a grade point average of 2.8 or greater on a 4.0 scale. Home schooled students will be allowed to provide supplemental information to qualify
• 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
• Apply for the first 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
• Be an incoming freshman at 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 national

Scholarship amounts are approximately equal to:

• The maximum tuition and generally-applicable fees for 16 undergraduate credit hours (per fall and spring semester) at an institution of higher education under the control of the South Dakota Board of Regents for recipients attending a public four-year college
• The same amount that is paid for a public four-year college if the student is attending a private nonprofit college. Remaining tuition and generally applicable fees for 16 credits must be covered by the participating nonprofit college through institutional scholarship or tuition waiver.
• An amount determined on an individual basis for technical college recipients that will never exceed the maximum tuition and generally applicable fees for sixteen (16) undergraduate credit hours per semester for a public college.
• The maximum tuition and generally-applicable fees for a full-time undergraduate student at a tribal college if the recipient is attending a tribal college.

Links to additional guidance and the online application portal are available on the program website.