• Legal residents of Delaware.
• U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens.
• High school seniors must rank in upper half of graduating class and have a combined score of 1570 on the SAT.
• All applicants must have at least a 2.75 cumulative GPA.
• Full-time enrollment at a Delaware public college in an undergraduate or graduate program leading to teacher certification in a critical need area as defined by the Delaware Department of Education.
• Awards may be prorated for students enrolled part-time.
• First preference will be given to students who intend to teach middle and high school math and science.
• Second priority is given to students who intend to teach special education in a content area.

• Art
• Bilingual Teachers
• Business Education
• English
• ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages)
• Foreign Language
• Mathematics (middle school and high school)
• Music
• Reading
• School Librarians
• Science  (middle school and high school)
• Special Education
• Technology Education

Award:

• Loan not to exceed cost of tuition.
• Renewable for up to three additional years with a cumulative GPA of 2.75
• Loan forgiveness provision at a rate of one year of teaching in a Delaware public school for one year of loan.

Deadline:

• The priority deadline to receive all application materials is 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 21, 2013.
• Applicants who apply after the priority deadline will be considered to the extent that funding is available.

To apply:

• You can apply online beginning December 3, 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. You must 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. If you are a high school senior, or have less than 12 college credits, your High School Academic Record Report and Transcript Request and your high school transcript must be submitted directly from your high school to the Delaware Higher Education Office. Students are responsible for ensuring that their school provides these forms by the deadline.
4. If you have 12 or more college credits, your College Grade Release Form must be submitted directly from your college to the Delaware Higher Education Office. Students are responsible for ensuring that their school provides this form by the deadline.