Minnesota State Fair Scholarships

Scholarship Value: $1,000
Awards Available: 23

 Up to 22 scholarships of $1,000 each will be made available to young adults from greater Minnesota or those enrolled in an agriculture program in 2022-2023. These scholarships are available for students entering any field of study.

New in 2023, one $2,000 scholarship will be awarded to a person of any age entering a skilled trade career or furthering their training. All Minnesota State Fair Scholarships are funded through donations to the Minnesota State Fair Foundation.

Applications are now open must be submitted via the online application by Aug. 1, 2023, at 4:30 p.m.

A qualified committee will review applications and select the recipients. Scholarship recipients will be notified by telephone of their award by Aug. 15, 2023. If you have questions regarding this program or application, please contact the competition department at 651-288-4417 or competition@mnstatefair.org.

Requirements for Consideration

  • Applicant must be attending or planning to attend a post-secondary school, trade school or training in the current year.
    • Up to 22 scholarships will be awarded to students entering any field of study
    • One scholarship will be awarded to a student entering a skilled trade career (ex: post-secondary school, apprenticeship, tech school or vocational school that focuses on a skilled trade such as welding, lineman, mechanic, plumbing, electrical, etc.)
  • Application must indicate anticipated participation in the 2023 Minnesota State Fair.
  • Rural residency or enrollment in an agriculture program (for example, living in St. Paul and enrolled in your school’s FFA program or are a 4-H member) is required.
  • Applicant must be a resident of Minnesota.
  • Applicant must be a high school graduate as of the 2023 Minnesota State Fair.
  • Previous Minnesota State Fair Scholarship recipients are ineligible to enter.

Submission Requirements

  • Applications must be completed using the online scholarship application no later than Aug. 1, 2023, at 4:30 p.m. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered.
  • Incomplete applications, including applications without a transcript (for scholarship allowing any field of study) or letter of recommendation (for skilled trade career scholarship) will not be considered.
  • Transcripts may be official or unofficial, and must be submitted through the online scholarship application.
  • Do not submit multiple applications.

Sample Application Questions

For scholarship allowing any field of study

  1. What was your past involvement at the Minnesota State Fair (years, programs, awards)?
  2. What is your anticipated participation at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair?
  3. Please describe your scholastic achievements (GPA, Honors, etc.)
  4. What leadership activities are you involved in (associations and offices held, projects directed, athletics)?
  5. What community service or volunteer work have you participated in?
  6. What are your future goals?

For skilled trade career scholarship

  1. What was your past involvement at the Minnesota State Fair (years, programs, awards)?
  2. What is your anticipated participation at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair?
  3. Why would you like to enter a profession in the trades?
  4. What school activities and/or associations are you involved in?
  5. What are your future goals?

Judging Guidelines

  • A State Fair representative will initially review the applications to ensure applicants meet minimum requirements. Copies of the applications will then be sent to scholarship committee members.
  • Applications will be scored by each committee member based on the application criteria. The average of all scores will be used to determine the final scholarship recipients.
  • A State Fair representative will vote only in case of ties.
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