• Legal residents of Delaware
• U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens
• High school seniors who rank in upper quarter of class
• Combined score of at least 1800 on the SAT
• Enrolled as a full-time student in a degree program at a nonprofit, regionally accredited institution

• $1,250/year
• Renewable for up to three additional years with a cumulative GPA of 3.0
• Approximately 50 awards/year

Deadlines:

• All application materials must be submitted by 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 22, 2012.
• Award recipients will be notified by May 11, 2012, and must accept by July 2, 2012.

To apply:
You can apply online beginning January 2, 2012, by completing the Common Merit Application on the Delaware Higher Education Office's secure Student Account Access site at https://dheo.doe.k12.de.us/dhec_student/login.aspx. First-time users must establish an account and provide a valid email and mailing address before proceeding to the application. Incomplete applications cannot be processed. Please be sure to provide all of the required information:

1. Completed application, including activities
2. Essay of no less than 1,000 and no more than 1,200 words, excluding headings and footnotes (Word count will be verified.)
3. High School Academic Record Report and Transcript Request and high school transcript submitted directly from your high school to the Delaware Higher Education Office (Students are responsible for ensuring that their schools provide these forms by the deadline.)