At Ball State, 80 percent of our students are eligible for financial aid. The Department of History offers several scholarships to help you pursue your bachelor’s degree. If you are selected for a scholarship, you will have the honor of being recognized in front of your peers and faculty during the annual spring Honors and Recognition Ceremony.

Applications are due March 8, 2024.
Sharon Seager Women's History Fund application is due March 1, 2024

Scholarships - Application Required

Criteria

Applicants must:

  • be sophomores, juniors, or seniors
  • have a GPA between 2.75 and 3.25 on a 4.0 scale

First preference will be given to students who are engaged in extracurricular activities such as student government and volunteer work in the community.

Apply

The Jack Walker Scholarship supports students who have an interest in the founding of the United States.

Criteria

Applicants must:

  • complete 12 credits in history, including History 201, and at least one course numbered 300 and above
  • have an overall GPA of at least a 3.0
  • submit a 500-word essay

Apply

The Childress Family Foundation supports this fund to help advanced students majoring in history at Ball State. Individual awards are designed to assist students to meet a particular or unexpected situation. Funds are to be used for expenses of an academic or scholarly nature only.

Criteria

Recipients must be:

  • juniors, seniors, or master’s degree candidates
  • registered for a minimum of six credits of coursework in history during each semester for which aid is sought

Preference is given to students demonstrating sound academic ability and accomplishment.

Apply

After Professor Hoover's distinguished service at Ball State from 1959 to 1991, a person who studied under his guidance established this award as a tribute to him. Other members of this student's family have since joined in funding this scholarship, which is administered by the Department of History.

Criteria

Ball State graduate students, or seniors who soon will become graduate students by next autumn at Ball State, are eligible for the award.

Students who show special interest in and/or potential for research in community history either in the United States or abroad are also eligible.

Apply

The Edmonds Scholarship provides $3,000 in financial assistance every odd year to a Department of History student preparing to study abroad. The award alternates between the Department of History and the Honors College. Drs. Anthony and Joanne Edmonds devoted more than 60 years to Ball State and the Honors College and championed study abroad experiences for Honors College students.

a) In alternating years, Honors College students (from any major, including history, awarded in even-numbered years) and students majoring in programs of study within the Department of History (including Honors College students, awarded in odd-numbered years). Even-numbered years include applications in the Spring of an even-numbered year; awards may be received for the subsequent summer or academic year. Odd-numbered years include applications in the Spring of an odd-numbered year; awards may be received for the subsequent summer or academic year;

b) Student shall have a GPA above 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, or equivalent;

c) Student must be preparing to study abroad.

The Sharon Seager Women's History Fund promotes and supports scholarly investigations into the history of the lives of women in various cultures around the world.

Disbursements from the fund shall be made at the discretion of the chair of the Department of History in consultation with two members of the history faculty teaching Women's and Gender Studies.

Apply


The John W. Hannaford and Everett W. Ferrill Scholarship commemorates the dedication of these long-serving Ball State University professors to the support of traditionally underrepresented students in the Department of History and university community more broadly.

Criteria

To provide scholarships to Ball State University students in accordance with the following Scholarship Criteria: Undergraduate students majoring in History from underrepresented populations with a minimum GPA of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale and who have financial need. Recipients will be selected by the Department of History selection committee.

Apply

Additional Scholarships - No Application Required

Highest GPA in Each Class

The Althea Stoeckel, N. Merrill Rippy, Lester Schmidt, Robert A. LaFollette, Lawrence Hurst and Mabel Hurst, and Lawrence Birken scholarships are presented to the students based on outstanding grade point averages for each academic class. Awarded by the Department of History.

African American History

The Carter G. Woodson Prize is presented to the student with the highest grade in the African American History course (currently History 210), so long as they are not a graduating senior. Awarded by the Department of History.

History Majors

The Dr. Philip M. Mayfield Legacy and the Dr. William Eidson History scholarships are open to any student pursuing a degree in history. Awarded by the Office of Financial Services. 

Stephen J. Sr. & Beatrice Brademas Memorial Scholarship 

 The purpose of the Fund is to provide scholarships to Ball State University students in accordance with the following preferences: Outstanding incoming freshman, transfer, or current student who plans to major in, or is majoring in, history or social studies education. The applicant should have a GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale. The scholarship is renewable, thus allowing up to a total of four years of eligibility provided the student continues to meet the stated criteria. Awarded by the Office of Financial Services. 

Anastasios And Sophia Koumoulides Memorial Scholarship 

The purpose of the Fund is to provide scholarships to Ball State University students in accordance with the following preferences: Outstanding incoming freshman, transfer, or current student who plans to major in, or is majoring in, history or social studies education. The applicant should have a GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale. The scholarship is renewable, thus allowing up to a total of four years eligibility provided the student continues to meet the stated criteria. Awarded by the Office of Financial Services. 

Graduate Students

Graduate students who apply for graduate assistantships but are not selected will become eligible for the Richard W. and Dorothy J Burkhardt Scholarship. The recipient will be chosen based on the student's academic record. Awarded by the Office of Financial Services.

Paying for Your Education