Significant Changes Made to Washington State Opportunity Scholarship

Interested students eyeing the Washington State Opportunity Scholarship (WSOS) Baccalaureate opportunity should keep in mind two significant tweaks have been made to the application process. North Central Educational Service District  has, in partnership with Apple STEM Network, worked on outreach and awareness about the scholarship for the last four years in the local surrounding communities.

The entity recently announced the two changes to the scholarship.

"The first is that the application window has been reduced to a four week period," said Dr. Sue Kane, STEM network executive director.

The first day to submit applications is January 6 and the deadline for application submittals is February 6 whereas previously the deadline was late February. The second change is the number of scholarships awarded.

"For the last four years, we've had 1,850 scholars in each cohort every single year. Every single year those scholarships have gone to 1,850 students," said Dr. Kane. "This year, the cohort will be 750."

The WSOS Baccalaureate scholarship is for students planning on earning a Bachelor's degree in Washington state, from a low to middle income family, maintained a 2.75 GPA and committed to a career in a high demand STEM field. The scholarship offers up to $22,500 and is flexible funds meaning it can cover costs from tuition to housing or transportation.

"A shorter application window and fewer scholarships means it's going to be much more competitive so we want to see scholars work a little bit on their essays and really get on top of that application period," said Dr. Kane.

Another option for students is the Career and Technical scholarship which allows students who plan on earning an Associate degree, apprenticeship or certificate to apply toward the STEM, health care, welding, manufacturing or information technology field.