Scholarship provides more green for students applying to Lakeland College environmental science programs

For high school students looking for green careers, there could be more “green” left in their wallets after paying tuition for environmental science programs with Lakeland College’s academic excellence scholarships.

Starting this year, Lakeland College’s academic excellence scholarships are being extended to qualified applicants for full-time studies in environmental science programs beginning in the fall of 2010. Program majors include conservation and restoration ecology, environmental conservation and reclamation, environmental protection technology, and wildlife and fisheries conservation.

Academic excellence scholarships are awarded to new applicants based on their Grade 11 average in five subjects. Averages between 85 to 89 per cent are worth $1,500, 90 to 94 per cent earns $2,500, and 95 per cent or higher cashes in at $3,500.

The academic excellence scholarships continue to be offered to qualified new applicants to business, educational assistant and university transfer programs. The scholarships have been awarded to deserving new students at Lakeland College for the last three years.

Last year, collectively, a total of $57,000 in academic excellence scholarships was distributed to new students at Lakeland. The benefits of the scholarships have become more widely known and valued among high school students and their families, particularly in today’s tighter economic conditions. They also provide an added incentive for high school students to pursue post-secondary educational studies at Lakeland.

“In the past, Lakeland College has had students with strong academic ability but had a difficult time with the added financial burden of pursuing a post-secondary education program. Some were only able to come if they were able to secure a scholarship or some other form of financial assistance,” says Mel Mathison, dean of the college’s School of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “The academic excellence scholarships help to address those financial needs. They reward students for their academic accomplishments from high school, and they lessen financial worries so students are able to commit to their studies so that they can pursue careers in the environmental sciences field.”

The college is currently reviewing all new applications to environmental science, business, educational assistant and university transfer programs. The deadline for new applicants to qualify for an academic excellence scholarship is May 1, 2010.

For more information about the scholarships, please contact the Admissions office at 1 800 661 6490 ext. 8420 or 780 853 8420, or go online to http://www.lakelandcollege.ca/greatsavings/