Scholarships

Cal State University Associates Scholarship Fund

The Cal State University Associates Scholarship Fund will award scholarships in the amount of $1,500 to students who meet the following criteria: 1) students must be full-time at CSUSB Palm Desert Campus, with a majority of class work done at the Palm Desert Campus, 2) students must be a Sophomore, Junior, Senior or a graduate student with a GPA of 3.0 or better, and 3) students must submit a letter of application stating why the applicant's candidacy should be considered. The recipient of the award may reapply up to three times and each scholarship is good for one year.

Pat and Dr. Ward Fredericks Doctorate Fellowship Fund

The Pat and Dr. Ward Fredericks Doctorate Fellowship Fund will provide an award of $5,000 to a student in the California State University San Bernardino, Palm Desert Campus Education Doctorate program. Selection criteria include the following: students must be enrolled and in good standing in the CSUSB Ed.D. program; each applicant shall provide a short essay (1000 words or less) providing their personal goals and specific reasons for obtaining the Ed.D. degree; recipients may re-apply for consideration for a total of three years. Awardees are strongly encouraged to make a future commitment to provide some level of scholarship assistance to others at a future date.

Please note that doctoral level quality is expected throughout the application process including the essay. Depending on the quality of submissions, the donor may not award the fellowship each year.

H.N. and Frances C. Berger Scholarship Fund

The H.N. and Frances C. Berger Scholarship Fund will provide five (5) scholarship awards in the amounts of $5,000 each distributed annually. Selection criteria include the following: students must be enrolled full-time at California State University San Bernardino, Palm Desert Campus; students must be in the fields of allied health, (particularly nursing, but also including nutrition and kinesiology), education or criminal justice; students must reside in Riverside County, California; students must demonstrate financial need; students must have a minimum GPA of 3.0.

Coeta & Donald Barker Scholarship

The Coeta & Donald Barker Scholarship awards scholarships to nursing students who attend CSUSB Palm Desert Campus, have a minimum 3.0 GPA, and show financial need. Financial need is determined by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). A letter of recommendation should come from a nursing instructor who can attest to the applicant's noble characteristics of service to others and commitment to their profession.

Palm Springs Environmental Scholarship

Awards $3,600 to one student who is an incoming freshman from Palm Springs Unified School District. The high school senior must be accepted by CSUSB to study environmental health or related field.

Steve & Catharine Briggs Scholarship

Provides scholarships to students enrolled in the College of Natural Science's Nursing or allied health professions degree program, must attend the Palm Desert Campus, and demonstrate a commitment to the pursuit of a career in nursing or the allied health sciences. Financial need is considered, but not essential.

The City of Palm Desert Karnig Academic Excellence Scholarship

A $10,000 gift from the City of Palm Desert honored President Albert Karnig upon his retirement by establishing the President Albert Karnig Academic Excellence Scholarship. The scholarship provides support for high achieving undergraduate students who are enrolled full-time on the Palm Desert Campus with 12 or more units and who have a minimum GPA of 3.5.

Athena Fund Scholarship

The Athena Fund Scholarship awards one $3,600 scholarship to any CSUSB Palm Desert Campus student with a 3.0 GPA or higher.

Betty Barker Scholarship

The Betty Barker endowed scholarship was formed in 2007 to provide funds to help meet the cost of education for students who are enrolled full-time on the Palm Desert Campus, have a minimum GPA of 3.0, demonstrate an interest in becoming a teacher, intend to work in a field related to the major and show financial need.

Jane Straus Scholarship

Jane Straus was the judge and grammar guru for the first-ever anywhere Grammar Bees held at the California State University, San Bernardino Campus in Palm Desert. Two Coachella Valley Grammar Bee Specials were produced at the Palm Desert campus and telecast on KCET Desert Cities. Jane was the author of The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation and the founder of GrammarBook. A scholarship fund established in Jane's memory provides a $1,000 scholarship to be awarded annually for the next 5 years. To qualify for the scholarship, students must be enrolled for their senior year at CSUSB - Palm Desert Campus, have a 3.5 GPA, establish financial need, and be majoring in English with the intent to become teachers of English when they graduate.

Louis Fernandez Palm Desert Campus Undergraduate Scholarship

Awarded to undergraduate students who attend the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus and have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher. A letter of recommendation from a current instructor is required.

Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship

Awards are made to ten to twenty $3,900 scholarships each to CSUSB Palm Desert Campus students. Students are eligible if enrolled in a major offered at PDC, with a majority of their coursework completed at PDC, maintaining a minimum 3.25 cumulative GPA, and demonstrating a commitment to service in the community.

Roderick M. Hendry Scholarship

Provides scholarships to students with an overall GPA of 3.0, open to any declared major available at the Palm Desert Campus, must be an undergraduate student, must be enrolled as a full-time student at CSUSB Palm Desert Campus, must have completed at least 30 semester units of college course work with a required minimum of 9 semester units of course work in their declared major with at least a 3.0 GPA, and must submit a 500 word essay as to why they want, need, and deserve this scholarship. Financial need is considered, but not mandatory.

Indian Wells Rotary Scholarship

Five awards are given annually for $4,000 in support to outstanding academic leaders on the campus. Awards are given to upper-division, full-time Palm Desert Campus students only and may be renewed for two years.

University Legacy Scholarship

PDC will offer up to five University Legacy Scholarships for first-time freshman entering each fall. This scholarship honors outstanding students and will provide up to a $7,425 scholarship (net of financial aid) for up to four years of undergraduate study (this currently is the cost of tuition and average fees.) Criteria for selection of the honorees include: 1) academic and scholarship performance, as measured by cumulative grade point average, and class ranking; 2) leadership potential, as demonstrated by previous leadership experiences, community engagement, and - for scholarship continuation - ongoing involvement as a leader at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus; and 3) financial need, measured by the findings of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the California Dream Act Application. A full application process includes a copy of high school transcripts and two letters of reference; a writing exercise experience; and an interview with a selection committee comprised of members of the PDC Advancement Board, faculty, staff and administrators. Filers should submit an application through the online University Legacy Scholarship form.

Bridging the Gap

As a result of generous grants from the Auen Foundation and the H.N. & Frances C. Berger Foundation, the Bridging the Gap fund is here to help students who are struggling with uncommon financial stress to overcome and continue to persist in achieving their college goals. We know well that sometimes an unexpected circumstance or a financial burden is just enough to make it impossible for a student to finish a semester, complete a key course, or participate in a required out-of-class learning opportunity. This fund will provide financial support for up to $1,500.00 per academic year to alleviate the concerns of a financial EMERGENCY crisis that may prevent a student from continuing to attend the university. Please note that these funds cannot be used to pay tuition.

The Academic Year 2024-2025 application is currently open.

Students are eligible for support if they meet all of the following criteria:

• Must be a CSUSB Palm Desert Campus full-time student during the semester in which they apply;

• Must live in the Coachella Valley;

• Must demonstrate an emergency financial hardship;

• Must be in good academic standing; and

• Must meet with a PDC financial aid advisor prior to filling out the application to discuss all other financial aid options.

Students must apply via the online Bridging the Gap application form.