Carver Scholars Program

The Carver Scholarship is a selective scholarship for students at Iowa community colleges, two-year private colleges and four-year colleges who demonstrate high need, have graduated from an Iowa high school or have been residents of Iowa for at least five consecutive years immediately prior to applying. Students must present evidence of unusual barriers they have encountered, or are facing, in their pursuit of full-time college  attendance.

Qualified applicants must also have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.80 on a 4.0 scale and be ready to begin their junior year at Drake.

The application and more details can be found through the Carver Charitable Trust. The application deadline is April 1.

Scholarship Details

The Carver Scholars Program is funded by the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust. It provides one new scholarship each year to a Drake student from Iowa who will be starting their junior year, in an amount of about $8,800. To be eligible, a student must be enrolled full-time and have a 2.8 cumulative GPA, demonstrate financial need (FAFSA required), and have encountered unusual barriers in pursuit of their college attendance. 

Scholarships may renew for a student's senior year, but renewal is not automatic--recipients must re-apply for a 2nd year of support. More information, including instructions to apply, can be found at www.carvertrust.org/scholarships. Applications require an essay and letters of recommendation, and all materials must be submitted by the application deadline (typically April 1). 

All scholarships require full-time enrollment (minimum of 12 credit hours per semester) and satisfactory academic progress. Individual scholarships may have additional eligibility or application requirements. 

Undergraduate scholarships are available only to students enrolled at the undergraduate level, for up to 4 years total or until a Bachelor's degree is earned (whichever comes first). Students entering one of Drake's joint undergraduate/graduate degree paths should refer to Program-Specific Policies to understand which years are designated as undergraduate-level for billing and financial aid purposes. Scholarships will renew automatically if all renewal requirements are satisfied.