The Flinn Scholarship

The Flinn Scholarship is a competitive undergraduate scholarship awarded to approximately 20 of Arizona's highest-achieving high school students. The scholarship program is managed by the Flinn Foundation. As of 2012, the scholarship was valued at over $100,000 and included free tuition, room, and board at any Arizona university; funding for study abroad; mentorship from university faculty; and fellowship among current and alumni scholars.[1]

History

The Flinn Foundation was established by Dr. Robert and Mrs. Irene Flinn in 1965. Dr. Robert Flinn was a cardiologist, and both desired to benefit Arizona's future citizens.[2] Both died in 1984 and 1978, respectively, while the undergraduate Scholarship program exists under their name. The Flinn Foundation also supports advancement of the biosciences in Arizona and the Arizona Center for Civic Leadership.

Goals

The stated goal of the Flinn Scholarship is to reduce the brain drain of bright students from Arizona. The scholarship program provides financial support to highly qualified Arizona undergraduates to pursue an undergraduate education in one of Arizona's public universities, in an effort to take advantage of local opportunities and help increase the standard.

Application Criteria

The scholarship application criteria includes a set of residency requirements and academic requirements. All applicants must be United States citizens by the time of entry into university and must be legal residents of Arizona for at least two years. Academically, students maintain a GPA of 3.5 or higher, place in the top 5% of their respective graduating classes, and score a 29 or higher on the ACT or 1300 or higher on the combined critical reading and mathematics scores of the SAT I.[3]

In order to be eligible for the Flinn scholarship, all applicants must be given admission by at least one of Arizona's three public universities: Arizona State University in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, the University of Arizona in Tucson, and Northern Arizona University of Flagstaff. A majority of Flinn scholars in recent years have attended Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University in Tempe, followed by University of Arizona Honors College.

Application Process

The application is one of the most highly competitive and widely regarded scholarship applications in the state of Arizona. In 2012-2013, the scholarship received 653 applications, the highest level in the history of the program, of which 76 were selected for the semifinalist status, 42 were selected for the finalist status, and 23 were selected as scholar-designates. This makes for an acceptance rate of 3.5%. This figure does not include approximately 7 who were selected as alternates.

Initial Online Application

First, the online application, which is typically due in mid-October of each year, consists of five basic sections: general information, academic, extracurricular, essays, and recommendations. The essay section consists of three different essay types: autobiographical, creative, and argumentative. The topics vary from year to year. Three recommendations are required: two from teachers and one from a college counselor.

Three rounds of review take place in the initial review from mid-October through mid-December, when roughly 60-75 semifinalists will be notified. The Round Three reviewers select the semifinalists from roughly 125 of the strongest applications, and assist in reviewing the semifinalists during the semifinalist interviews.

Interviews

The semifinalist interviews take place in early January. Candidates are typically notified within a week of their status as a finalist, of which 40-45 are selected. Flinn Finalists then are given the opportunity to visit information sessions at the three Arizona public universities and stay overnight with current Flinn scholars. Typically, the deans of the universities and other high-ranking administrators will interact with the Finalists during their stays. Following this are the Finalist interviews in late February/early March, during which finalists are interviewed by well-positioned and well-renowned individuals in the state of Arizona.

Selection

Following the Finalist interviews, scholar-designates and alternates are typically notified within a week of the interviews. Scholar-designates can then accept or decline the scholarship until mid-April, after which Alternates will be notified from an unranked waitlist. The class of Flinn scholars will then be finalized every year by mid-April. The scholarship program aims for a class of 20 every year.

Scholarship Benefits

Financially, all scholars effectively receive an almost full scholarship to attend one of Arizona's three public universities for four years of undergraduate education, but not all of this is supported by the Flinn Foundation. Typically, given the academic rigor and achievement of the Flinn Scholars, the universities will provide the highest level of merit scholarship available to cover tuition (typically $10,000-$12,000), while the Flinn Scholarship will provide a supplemental stipend of $10,000-$12,000 to cover room & board, books, and other expenses. The scholarship also allows for $6,800 to be spent per year for study abroad opportunities. All in all, the scholarship is a highly regarded program by Arizona's public universities.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ , Flinn Scholarship Package.
  2. ↑ http://www.flinnscholars.org/about-flinn/history
  3. ↑ , Application Criteria.
  4. ↑ http://www.honors.arizona.edu/future_students/Flinn.html
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