Need-Based ScholarshipsWorth a shot

Hagan Scholarship

Offered by Hagan Scholarship Foundation · Free to apply

The Hagan Scholarship Foundation built its award for hardworking, self-reliant students, with roots in rural and small-town America. Beyond tuition help, the program carries a financial-literacy mission, aiming to send its scholars into adulthood knowing how to budget, save, and invest. That preparation is built into the program's design: each scholar manages a foundation-provided Schwab brokerage account through college and completes workshops on life skills rarely covered in the curriculum. Scholars who graduate while in the program can also apply to extend support into graduate or professional school. Seniors headed for a four-year, not-for-profit college can draw up to $7,500 a semester across eight semesters, roughly $60,000, with the stated aim of graduating debt-free. Eligibility is broader than its rural reputation: any U.S. public, private, charter, magnet, or STEM high school qualifies, household adjusted gross income is capped at $125,000 in the current cycle, and applicants need a 3.5 unweighted GPA plus 240 hours of paid work between January 1 and September 1 of the graduation year. Applications open September 1 and close December 1. Interviews are no longer part of the process; every applicant learns their status after an eligibility review, and finalists then submit supporting financial documents. Recipients also commit to life-skills workshops and a foundation-funded brokerage account, with an optional study-abroad benefit in year three.

Other deadlines near this one

How hard is the Hagan Scholarship to win?

Real competition, but not a lottery. The time cost is low enough relative to the award that a qualified student comes out ahead by applying.

Estimated odds: roughly 1 in 20 applicants
Modelled applicant field: ~27,000 students
Awards each cycle: 1,326
Payoff per hour of work: $750 / hr

What drives the odds here

Odds on a scholarship are mostly a question of how many students can enter. Each rule below changes the size of that field.

More rivalsOpen nationwide, so the field is large
Fewer rivalsAn essay is required, which filters out casual applicants
Fewer rivalsRecommendation letters are required, a step many applicants skip
Fewer rivalsAn official transcript is required
Fewer rivalsAn income ceiling applies
Fewer rivalsOpen to a single grade level only
Fewer rivalsRequires at least a 3.5 GPA
More rivalsA large award draws far more applicants

How Solyo estimates this: We model the applicant field from how narrow the eligibility rules are, then divide the awards available by that field. Requirements such as essays and recommendation letters improve a serious applicant’s odds, because most browsers never complete them. These are estimates derived from each award's published structure, not reported acceptance rates, which almost no scholarship provider discloses. Treat them as a way to rank where the hours go, not as a guarantee.

Who can apply for the Hagan Scholarship?

These are the eligibility rules Solyo verified against the official award page, translated into plain English. Your student must meet each one.

Open to high school seniors
GPA of 3.5 or higher (unweighted)
Open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents (green card), DACA/Dreamer students, students on other visas, or undocumented students
Household income of $125,000 or less

Confirm these before applying

Open to seniors at any U.S. high school: public, private, charter, magnet, and STEM schools all qualify; the former rural and class-size requirement was removed, and homeschooled students cannot apply
Must complete 240 hours of paid, supervised, non-family work between January 1 and September 1 of the graduation year, and again in that window each year to keep fall disbursements
Must be fluent in English and have no felony conviction
Recipients must attend mandatory life-skills workshops and manage a foundation-provided Schwab account in later years; an optional study-abroad benefit is available in year three

Good to know

Income cap has risen: adjusted gross household income must not exceed $125,000 for the class of 2027 cycle (earlier cycles used $100,000)
Must enroll the first fall after graduation at an eligible four-year or higher not-for-profit college; community colleges and online institutions do not qualify, and a four-year-or-less graduation schedule must be maintained
Applicants may apply regardless of nationality or citizenship: US citizen finalists submit FAFSA Summary pages, while non-citizen finalists provide a copy of a foreign passport or green card

Personalized matching

Does your student actually qualify?

Not sure your student clears every rule above? Solyo checks 20+ criteria against their real profile: GPA, state, grade level, intended major, and more, across every award in this directory at once.

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What the application takes

Essay required. The prompt centers on career goals.
1 letter of recommendation. Ask teachers or counselors early; good letters take time.
Transcript required. Request it from the school registrar ahead of the deadline.

Deadline and application cycle

The current deadline is December 1, 2026. This award runs on an annual cycle, with deadlines around December 1 each year. Applications open September 1. The 240 paid work hours run January 1 to September 1 of the graduation year, so a job lined up by New Year of senior year keeps the first fall disbursement safe.

Paid work hours start counting: January 1, 2026
Applications open: September 1, 2026
Application closes: December 1, 2026
All applicants notified of status: Winter
Finalists submit documents and awards are made: Spring

Remind me before Dec 1 Apply on the official site

Free to apply. Legitimate scholarships never charge a fee. We use your student's information only to build their plan.

Common questions about the Hagan Scholarship

How much is the Hagan Scholarship worth?

Up to $7,500 per semester for up to eight consecutive semesters, a $60,000 maximum, but your actual amount is computed, not flat. Each semester HSF takes the school's full cost of attendance (tuition, fees, room, board, books, supplies, personal and transportation costs) and subtracts every other scholarship, grant, waiver, and work-study award, plus half of your FAFSA SAI. It is last-dollar money built so recipients can graduate debt-free. The formula has teeth: students with large merit aid or low-cost schools draw less, recipients living at home get no room and board disbursement, and deliberately declining other aid to inflate the Hagan amount costs you the scholarship outright.

When is the Hagan Scholarship deadline?

Two windows exist for the 2027-2028 academic year, and you may use only one. The fall application opened September 1, 2026 and closes December 1, 2026; a spring application opens January 15, 2027 and closes March 15, 2027. Applicants can apply one time only, so a rushed December submission burns your only shot; if senior fall is chaos, the spring window is the deliberate play. After the eligibility review, finalists submit supplemental information (U.S. citizens provide the first two FAFSA Summary pages showing the SAI), and all scholarships are awarded by May 1, 2027. HSF is blunt that it makes no exceptions to criteria or deadlines and that its decisions are final and not subject to appeal.

Who is eligible for the Hagan Scholarship?

Graduating seniors at a U.S. high school (public, private, charter, magnet, or STEM) with an unweighted cumulative GPA of at least 3.50, whose parents' adjusted gross household income on the 2025 federal return did not exceed $125,000, and who will enroll at an eligible four-year college or university the first fall after graduation. Any nationality may apply; non-U.S. citizens selected as finalists show a foreign passport or green card. Homeschooled students cannot apply, and the scholarship cannot be used at a community college, junior college, or online institution. The application also needs a current transcript, an unsealed letter of recommendation, and, before your first fall disbursement, 240 hours of paid work.

What counts as a rural school for the Hagan Scholarship?

Nothing anymore, and that is the surprise: the rural requirement is gone. The Hagan Scholarship built its reputation on rural students from tiny graduating classes, and many scholarship lists still describe it that way, but the foundation's current eligibility criteria, on both the application page and the brochure dated August 19, 2026, require only that you attend a high school located in the United States, with public, private, charter, magnet, and STEM schools all named eligible. No county-population rule and no graduating-class-size cap appear anywhere in the published criteria. HSF titles its list "Eligibility Criteria. No Exceptions.", so read it exactly as written: suburban and urban students with a 3.50 GPA and family income under $125,000 are now in the pool.

How does the 240-hour work requirement for the Hagan Scholarship work?

You must work 240 hours between January 1 and September 1 of the year you start college, and again in that same window every year you hold the scholarship, to qualify for each fall disbursement. The definition is precise: regularly scheduled, non-family employment, performed under supervision, for compensation. Full-time or part-time both count, and paid internships and work-study qualify. That is about seven hours a week from New Year's Day of senior year to move-in, very doable, but not something you can back-fill in August. The foundation is candid about why it exists: the grantor worked through school and believes recipients benefit from contributing to their own education. No exceptions are granted, and failing the hours is one of the most common ways scholars lose the award.

What does the Hagan Scholarship include besides tuition money?

An unusual amount, and most of it comes regardless of financial need. First-years open a personal Schwab brokerage account and receive $1,000 for college essentials like a computer and bedding. From sophomore year on, each scholar manages a real HSF-funded Schwab brokerage account: $10,000 in year two, $15,000 in year three, $20,000 in year four, and after graduation the scholar keeps all investment gains up to $10,000, taxed as ordinary income. Third-years with a 3.50 CGPA earn an all-expense study and travel abroad experience worth up to $8,000. Mandatory workshops run every year, mostly online, though second-year workshops meet in person in Omaha in late July with travel help. Scholars who graduate in the program can also apply for a Hagan Graduate Scholarship worth up to $30,000.

How hard is it to win the Hagan Scholarship?

The front door is more open than the reputation suggests: up to 1,500 new U.S. Hagan Scholarships can be awarded for the 2027-2028 academic year, and 6,920 have been awarded in the program's history. The genuinely hard part is keeping it. HSF itself says only about fifty percent of recipients graduate college while still in the program, with most losses caused by missed credit-hour minimums, GPA slips, or the 240-hour work requirement. Renewal demands a 3.25 cumulative GPA, fourteen credit hours every fall semester, thirty credit hours per academic year, a four-year graduation schedule, and completion of the mandatory workshops, with no exceptions granted for conflicts. Apply expecting to run a four-year program, not to cash a one-time check.

When do Hagan Scholarship applications open?

Applications open September 1, and close December 1, 2026. The 240 paid work hours run January 1 to September 1 of the graduation year, so a job lined up by New Year of senior year keeps the first fall disbursement safe.

Does the Hagan Scholarship require an essay?

Yes. The application requires an essay, 1 recommendation, and a transcript. Expect to spend about 6 hours on it.

Is the Hagan Scholarship free to apply?

Yes. The Hagan Scholarship is free to apply. Legitimate scholarships never charge an application fee, and Solyo verifies every listed award against its official page.

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