What is it?
Pursuant to Florida Statute 1009.21, graduate students who are citizens from Latin America and the Caribbean (including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) who have been awarded a non-duty scholarship, from the U.S. federal government or the State of Florida government or by the government of the Latin American/Caribbean country of origin, of a minimum of $500 per academic year (fall and spring semesters) may be eligible to be designated as Latin American - Caribbean Scholarship recipients. A Latin American - Caribbean Scholarship recipient will be classified as a Florida resident for tuition purposes only. LAC Scholarship recipients must be awarded and additional $500 scholarship in order to retain Florida resident status for the summer terms. Students who, for any reason, lose their LAC scholarship status will revert to out-of-state tuition classification.
Citizens from the following countries are eligible: Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cayman, Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands, Uruguay, Venezuela, U.S.Virgin Islands
LAC Scholarship recipients must be registered graduate students in good academic standing at The Florida State University or a prospective graduate student who has been admitted to the university. Each awarding unit may set additional criteria for new and renewal scholarships. Full time enrollment status (9 hours per semester for graduate students) must be maintained. Under-enrollment must be approved by the academic dean and meet immigration requirements. Note: Graduate or research assistantships do not fulfill the definition of scholarship. Recipients who change majors or graduate and begin a second degree program must reapply for the LAC scholarship.
LAC Scholarships may be granted for the student's full academic program ($500 minimum per academic year; $500 minimum for the summer terms). If a LAC recipient withdraws from the university, the scholarship is cancelled.
How is it obtained?
To receive the LAC Scholarship status, the qualified student must obtain a memo from the student's academic dean, written to the University Registrar, indicating the student is from Latin America or the Caribbean (including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), receiving a minimum scholarship of $500 per academic year, and noting that the student is eligible for classification as a Florida resident for tuition purposes only. This memo should be copied to the Office of Graduate Admissions, the Dean of Graduate Studies, the International Center, the Office of Financial Aid and the Office of the Registrar. The Latin American/ Caribbean Scholarship Memo can be found at the Faculty/Staff section of the forms page.
For more information, please contact the Office of Graduate Studies at (850) 644-3500, the International Center at (850) 644-1702, the Office of Graduate Admissions at (850) 644-3420, or the Office of the Registrar at (850) 644-1050.
Florida Statute 1009.21 can be viewed at: The 2005 Florida Statutes.
