Latin American & Caribbean Scholarship Information

Award Description

This award provides sponsorship by the College of Sciences (COS) for students to receive the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) Scholarship. The LAC scholarship is a two-semester award (fall and spring) for students who are citizens of Latin America and the Caribbean to be re-classified as a Florida residents for tuition purposes. The COS Dean’s Office awards a limited number of sponsorships to students pursuing undergraduate or graduate degrees in the college.

This award has been renewed for the 2024-2025 academic year. Students interested in receiving the COS sponsorship for the LAC Scholarship must submit an application to be considered.

Interested students can learn more details about the LAC Scholarship at the following:

Please note that your eligibility will be verified with UCF Global and the college before any award can be made. You must also maintain eligibility during the fall 2024 and spring 2025 award semesters to receive the award.

For more information about the award please contact COSAwards@ucf.edu.

Eligibility Requirements

Students who apply must:

  • Be admitted to or completing a graduate or undergraduate degree offered by the College of Sciences
  • Have a valid immigration status;
  • Have permanent residency in an eligible* Latin American or Caribbean Country or Territory
  • Have a UCF cumulative GPA of 3.000 or better (for continuing students).
  • Be enrolled full-time at UCF (graduate = 9hrs; undergraduate = 12hrs) during the semesters of the award
  • Submit a short but strong essay. See application information below for more information.

Students are not eligible to apply if they:

  • Are already paying the in-state tuition rate.
  • Are awarded a graduate assistantship, scholarship or any other award that waives out-of-state tuition for the semesters of the LAC Scholarship.

*see the UCF Global Website for the list of eligible countries or territories

Application Information

Applications for Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 sponsorship must be submitted by 11:59pm on Monday, July 8.

Essay

Eligible and interested applicants will submit a short but strong essay (750 words maximum) detailing why we should sponsor you for this award. We want to know about your commitment to completing your degree and how the LAC Scholarship will benefit you or, if you are applying for a continued award, how the LAC Scholarship has benefited you and how continuation of the award will be beneficial. Continuing students who were previously awarded and have maintained excellent academic progress will receive priority consideration.

Apply for the LAC Scholarship

Scholarship Requirements/ Student Responsibility

For the semester(s) of the award, the student is required to maintain steady academic progress, and:
• The student is responsible for paying for any remaining tuition and student fees.
• The student must remain an active degree-seeking major in the program offered by the college/department/school offering the award sponsorship.
• The student must be registered for UCF classes at a full-time status (9 credits Grad/ 12 credits UG). Exceptions are only granted with approval of UCF Global.
• The student must have a current immigration status.
• The student must have a UCF Cumulative GPA of 3.000 or better.
• To receive any award beyond one semester, the student must maintain a UCF Cumulative GPA of 3.000 or better GPA.

Fall 2024/ Spring 2025 Award Timeline

College of Sciences sponsorship for the LAC Scholarship is awarded for two consecutive semesters, fall and spring. Eligibility is re-verified after completion of the fall semester.

June 4Application Opens: COS Sponsorship for the LAC Scholarship
July 8Application Closes at 11:59pm
August 1Applicants Notified of Pending Award and Reminded of Eligibility Requirements
August 13COS Dean’s Office Completes the LAC Scholarship Applications
August 16Students are Notified of Award
August 23Fall Registration Ends
August 30Fall Fee Deadline (tuition will be set to in-state prior to this date)
December 13Fall Grades Available and eligibility re-verified
January 6Students are Notified of Continued Award and Reminded of Eligibility Requirements
January 10Spring Registration Ends
January 17Spring Fee Deadline (tuition will be set to in-state prior to this date)

Other Opportunities for Graduate Students

The College of Engineering and Computer Science identified several countries that provide monetary support for students to complete certain graduate programs at UCF. This support can take the form of scholarships, grants, loans, or hybrid funding. Some loans are forgivable if the student returns to their home country for a fixed period of time.

For more information about these award opportunities, please see the College of Engineering and Computer Science’s LAC Scholarship webpage, and scroll down in the page to “External Support.”