ASCEND Undergraduate Scholarships

• U.S. citizens or legal U.S. permanent residents
• Full-time undergraduate students in STEM majors from College of Business (COB)*, College of Health and Human Services (CHHS)**, College of Liberal Arts (CLA)**, College of Natural Science and Mathematics (CNSM), and College of Engineering (COE).

* Only Information Systems major.

** Please, check https://www.csulb.edu/ascend/faq or email ASCEND.AANAPISI@csulb.edu before applying.

• Demonstrated need of support to improve academic affordability, graduation, and GPA during spring 2024 semester or summer 2024.
• Minimum current combined cumulative GPA of 2.6.

• Complete the online ASCEND scholarship application via this link or (https://csulb.academicworks.com/opportunities/13068). Application accepted until all scholarships are awarded. 

• Statement of ASCEND scholarship impacts toward student’s success and ASCEND-AANAPISI program’s missions that address the following areas:
  • What barriers are you experiencing that are prohibiting you from achieving your academic goals? How can
    A.S.C.E.N.D. scholarship funding assist you in achieving those goals? (250 words maximum)
  • One of A.S.C.E.N.D.: AANAPISI grant's mission is to enhance equity, diversity, and inclusion towards Asian
    American and Native American Pacific Islander (AANAPI) and underserved populations. Please describe any
    contributions you have made in support of this mission. For example, steps you may have taken to counter racist
    attacks on AANAPI or any contributions towards stopping racism, bias, and discrimination towards AANAPI.
    Examples are not limited to reducing Asian hate so long as they show connection with the grant's mission. (250 words maximum)
  • Please explain what would happen if you were not selected for this scholarship support? (250 words maximum)
• Applicants must provide a consent for ASCEND scholarship selection committee to obtain student academic records and financial aid eligibility on CSULB system.

• For AY22-23 ASCEND scholarship recipients, please also elaborate impacts of your previous ASCEND support, and justification for spring 2024 or summer 2024 support.
• Students with summer 2024 Provost’s Graduation Intensive Award (PGIA) or government summer tuition support are not eligible for ASCEND summer 2024 tuition scholarship.
• Students can prioritize up to 2 types of ASCEND scholarships. Please identify your primary and secondary need priority on the application. The applicant will be primarily reviewed based on their 1st priority of their selection. Scholarship will be disbursed to the specified scholarship of choice when the student allowance has not met, and ASCEND specific scholarship fund is available. If student’s support has been reached to their specific cost of attendance allowance for both selected scholarship types, the award recipient cannot receive ASCEND scholarships.

• Needs justification.
• Impacts of ASCEND scholarship toward student’s success.
• Ability to enhance equity, diversity, and inclusion on CSULB STEM learning climate.
• Potential to advance ASCEND-AANAPISI missions.
• Passion for learning (achievable plan and ambitious goals).
• Quality of application package.

Once the scholarship is disbursed, ASCEND scholarship awardees

1. must participate in ASCEND research on how ASCEND scholarships aid AANAPI and underserved student success. In accepting the ASCEND scholarship, it is required to participate in the ASCEND study.
2. must utilize the scholarship for spring 2024 or summer 2024 as prioritized at CSULB. The scholarship cannot be allocated to other expense categories if the maximum allowance has been reached between two selected ASCEND aids.
3. ASCEND scholarship awardees for spring 2024 or summer 2024 must remain enrolling at CSULB without withdrawing from any courses. Please contact ASCEND leadership team (ASCEND.AANAPISI@csulb.edu) if the award recipients encounter challenges that cause their academic difficulties after the ASCEND scholarship is disbursed.
4. are highly recommended to take Asian American or Native American Pacific Islander relevant General Educational courses (G.E. foundation, G.E. exploration or upper division G.E.) within one year after receiving ASCEND scholarship. If students have enrolled in or completed one of the suggested G.E. courses, students are not required to take an additional course. The courses under the following course prefixes are considered: Asian & Asian American Studies (AAAS), Asian American Studies (ASAM), Asian Studies (A/ST), Cambodian (KHMR), Chinese (CHIN), Filipino (FIL), Japanese (JAPN), Korean (KOR), Vietnamese (VIET).
5. are required to complete at least one ASCEND professional and leadership workshop (see ASCEND website at www.csulb.edu/ascend for more details).
6. must meet their academic advisor after the scholarship is awarded.
7. must acknowledge ASCEND team will track student’s academic performance to evaluate ASCEND’s impacts towards student’ success.
8. must complete annual ASCEND evaluation and survey forms.
9. must agree to be included in the ASCEND email list and ASCEND discord group and LinkedIn.
10. must agree to share their name and CSULB ID to the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships to verify the award allowance.

The ASCEND program eliminates barriers, gender, race, national origin, color, disability, or age and assures equitable access to, and participation in the program.