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GlaxoSmithKline Opportunity Scholarship

Administering Organization

Triangle Community Foundation

Purpose

In 1988 GlaxoSmithKline, headquartered in Research Triangle Park, made a significant gift to its home community by creating the GlaxoSmithKline Opportunity Scholarship Fund. Administered by Triangle Community Foundation, this Fund offers residents of Durham, Orange, or Wake County, who have overcome significant adversity, the opportunity to pursue their dreams and improve their lives through education or training.

Criteria

Any person who is a U.S. Citizen for a minimum of one year and residing in Durham, Orange, or Wake counties for a minimum of one year may apply. The applicant must be eligible to receive North Carolina resident tuition costs. The applicant must demonstrate the potential to succeed despite adversity as well as an exceptional desire to improve himself or herself through further education or training. Past recipients, for example, have included individuals who have overcome physical and sexual abuse, as well as homelessness as children, a recovering alcohol and heroin addict finishing a pre-law program, a young man living with Hodgkin’s disease who just completed the physician’s assistant program and a woman who raised three children on her own, survived bankruptcy and clinical depression and who is now studying to be a teacher of the deaf at a small four-year college. Due to the nature of the scholarship, high school students seeking general scholarship assistance are discouraged from applying unless they have faced significant adversity.

There are no limitations on age, income level or previous education. Similarly, there are no limitations on the course of study or type of education or training program the applicant is planning to pursue. Scholarships may be used to begin a new program of study or continue a program in which the applicant is already enrolled. Scholarships may only be used for state universities in North Carolina or community colleges.

Awards will be made without regard to race, creed, color, sex, age or national origin. GlaxoSmithKline and Triangle Community Foundation employees or their family members are not eligible. Award recipients are expected to attend the award ceremony.

Amount

Up to $20,000

How To Obtain An Application

Applications can be downloaded here. The application is an Adobe Acrobat Form. Once the application is downloaded it must be completed in Acrobat Reader by filling in the appropriate blanks. All applications must be typed. Please read all directions on the application form before submitting an application.

Application Deadline

All application materials must be postmarked by March 15 in order to be considered