Incoming Freshman Scholarships

The Visual Arts Program in the School of the Arts at Northern Kentucky University is pleased to offer art scholarship opportunities for our incoming freshman students. Students who are majoring in Visual Arts and have officially applied at NKU may compete for this scholarship support. Two Visual Arts Freshman Scholarships will be awarded, each for one semester of in-state tuition. Several alternates will also be chosen.

To apply for one of these portfolio-based freshman scholarships, please fill out the NKU Visual Arts Incoming Freshman Scholarship Application through the link provided below. As part of the application, the student must upload a PDF document containing digital images of 7 pieces of artwork. Each image must be labeled as directed in the ‘Scholarship Art PDF Formatting’ document (see below). Applicants will be judged on the quality and originality of their artwork, as well as their grade point average, SAT/ACT scores, letter of intent, letter of recommendation (preferably from their high school art teacher), and high school transcripts.

Once the deadline passes, the Visual Arts scholarship committee, consisting of 4 full-time and/or tenured faculty, will review each qualifying application (see Review Rubric above). Immediate notification will be sent from the chair of the scholarship committee to those that did not meet all the qualifications, along with an explanation of why. After the committee determines the scholarship recipient(s), the Program Head of the Visual Arts Program will send a letter of notification to all qualifying applicants.

Applications must be submitted by March 15 each year. Late (and/or late) submissions will not be considered.

Visual Arts Incoming Freshman Scholarship Application

For questions regarding the scholarship application process,
Paige Wideman
Office: FA 413
widemanp@nku.edu | (859) 572-6061

Kentucky Governor's Scholars Award Scholarships
If you have participated in the Kentucky Governor's School for the Arts you may be eligible to apply for full in-state tuition at Northern Kentucky University. Eligibility for this scholarship includes a 3.0 GPA or higher, a class rank in the top 20%, an ACT composite score of 24 or higher or an SAT score of 1090 or higher and must be a degree-seeking student.

Contact the Office of Student Financial Assistance for more information.
Toll-Free 1-888-225-4499

Other Institutional Scholarships can be found under the Freshman Scholarship Listing.

Complete list of Scholarships and Awards

Current Student Scholarships

The Visual Arts Program in the School of the Arts at Northern Kentucky University is pleased to offer scholarships for students majoring in Visual Arts. Students may compete yearly for scholarship support.

Applicants will be judged on the merits of their artwork, as well as their overall grade point average, participation in visual arts courses, and overall artistic development. All scholarships in the Visual Arts Program are awarded on a competitive basis.

Once the deadline passes, the Visual Arts faculty, representing all areas of our program, will review each qualifying application (see Review Rubric above). Immediate notification will be sent from the chair of the scholarship committee to those that did not meet all of the qualifications, along with an explanation of why. After the faculty determines the scholarship recipients and award amounts, along with alternates, the Program Head of Visual Arts will send a letter of notification to all qualifying applicants. Those awarded scholarships will have to sign and return their letter of acceptance by the predetermined deadline.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be able to be a full-time student and must maintain a 3.0 grade point average at the university to receive and retain the scholarship.
• Part-time students may apply for scholarship support, but must be a full-time student in the scholarship award year.
• Previous scholarship winners may re-apply for scholarship support each year.
• Artwork must have been completed within the past year. Applicants will be disqualified if resubmitting work from their previous applications.
• Late (and/or incomplete) submissions will not be considered.

Applications must be submitted by March 31 each year.

Digital Submission Guidelines

Each applicant must submit an online application through the link provided below. As part of the application, each student must upload their unofficial NKU transcript and properly labeled artwork in separate PDF documents (see specifics below). Documents submitted incorrectly labeled and/or are in the wrong format or not openable will lead to disqualification.

Online Scholarship Application Links

• Current Foundations Student Scholarship Application
  
• Sophomore, Junior & Senior Student Scholarship Application
  

Unofficial Transcript PDF Submission

Rename the pdf document:

• lastname_firstname_transcript.pdf
  (Example: kahlo_frida_transcript.pdf)

Artwork PDF Submission

Save the PDF document:

• lastname_firstname_artwork.pdf
  (Example: kahlo_frida_artwork.pdf)
  

Each student must submit their artwork in a single PDF document. There are many great online tutorials that will help you make the best reproductions possible.

Instructions to format your artwork in a PDF

Here is an excellent tutorial on how to photograph your artwork

Artwork Requirements

Seven (7) individual artworks must be submitted for scholarship consideration with a total of 14 images permitted, allowing for detail shots as needed. Work may be in a single discipline or a combination of work from 2D, 3D, and 4D areas. If a student is working in a series, each work of art he/she submits counts as one individual work of art. For more clarification, refer to the FAQ’s and/or contact Paige Wideman for assistance.

For 2-D and 3-D work, please provide

• A minimum of one (1) full view of each individual artwork.
• Remaining images are details of the submitted individual artworks. Do not exceed the maximum of 14 images.

For Time-Based work, please provide

• URL link to a maximum seven (7)-minute video uploaded to YouTube or VIMEO.
• This video can be one clip from a single video or it can be a compilation of clips from up to 7 videos.
• Each video included in the compilation counts as one work of art.
• One (1) still from each of the selected videos must be submitted in the remaining image allotment. Please put the image in order as they will be seen in the submission.

Labeling of Artwork
Please review the "Scholarship Art PDF Formatting' document above for proper layout. Any embellishment on this layout will result in disqualification. Each image must be labeled as follows:

Labels for “Detail” views of your artwork (or alternate views of a 3-D/Installation) should be as follows:

* Dimensions are required for all artworks submitted, whether photographs, digital art, drawings, etc. The committee understands that photographs and digital art can be printed or exist in multiple sizes/dimensions. In these cases, please submit the image dimensions in which the work was originally created.

Dimensions should follow this format:

• 2-Dimensional – width x height (designate if inches, feet, or centimeters, etc.)
• 3-Dimensional – width x height x depth (designate if inches, feet, or centimeters, etc.)
• Digital Art – width x height (designate in inches, centimeters, or pixels, etc.)

Scholarship Application Checklist

Your online scholarship application submission includes:

___ Completed application (all requested student information)

___ Unofficial NKU transcript in PDF format (properly labeled and uploaded)
(for Incoming Freshman - high school transcript and letter of recommendation each in PDF format)

___ Required artwork in PDF format (properly labeled and uploaded)

Scholarship Details
Please be aware that having received a scholarship of any amount in the past does not guarantee that a student will receive one the next time he/she applies. Nor does it guarantee that if a student did receive a scholarship again that it will be for the same amount. Scholarship support includes: SOTA, Visual Arts Program, Friends of Fine Arts, and the Schiff Family Photography Scholarship. The number and the kind of scholarships are determined by funds available. Several alternates will also be chosen.

As a Visual Arts student who has achieved scholarship success, you should be available to participate in service opportunities to the Visual Arts Program, School of the Arts, and/or the University, as needed during the scholarship award semester/year. These service opportunities include, but are not limited to:

• Shadow Program
• SOTA Open House
• Visual Arts Office Assistance
• Black/Gold Days
• Norse Days
• Registration Day (Orientation)
• Study Abroad Experience Sharing
• Faculty Recruiting Visits

For questions regarding the scholarship application process, please contact:
Paige Wideman
Office: FA 413
widemanp@nku.edu | (859) 572-6061