Student Eligibility

To qualify as an applicant for the ACEC California Scholarship Program, a student must:

1. Be entering their junior, senior, fifth or master’s degree year in the Fall of 2026. Students graduating in December 2025 or Spring 2026 are not eligible.
2. Be enrolled as follows:
   1. Upper division undergraduate students must be enrolled full-time and working toward a degree in an engineering or land-surveying curriculum approved by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) during the 26-27 academic year.
   2. Master’s degree students must be enrolled at least half time, and either be in an ABET-accredited Master of Science (MS) engineering program or have a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree from an ABET-accredited engineering program during the 26-27 academic year.
3. Meet the following minimum grade point average requirements:
   1. For ACEC California’s State Competition: Applicants must have a minimum grade point average of 3.2 in completed engineering and land surveying courses and a minimum overall grade point average of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0
4. Be interested in the possibility of pursuing a career in consulting engineering or land surveying.
5. Citizenship: You do not have to be a U.S. citizen to be eligible for an ACEC California scholarship. However, U.S. citizenship is required for some chapter scholarships and ACEC National scholarships.

Additional Conditions

• Payment of the award will be made at the start of the 2026 fall semester, after submitting proof of enrollment.
• No student may receive more than two awards from ACEC California’s scholarship fund. Students who have previously received one award must reapply to be eligible for a second award.
• All recipients must remain full-time students in good standing at a California university or college during the year in which the award is received.
• To qualify as an application the student must complete the entire application, which includes providing their transcripts with their fall 2025 grade and completed recomendation form.

Scoring Guidelines

Students’ interest and commitment to the business and management of the profession are important. Students are encouraged to reflect that throughout their applications. The ACEC California Scholarship Foundation is especially interested in supporting students who are potential future consulting engineers or land surveyors.

Applications should be as complete as possible. Each portion of the application has a specific point value. Judges will score each section separately. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

• Cumulative Grade Point Average: 20 points
• Essay Questions: 25 points The 2 essay questions (250 word-limit). Points may be lost for poor grammar, incorrect spelling, and illegibility. Proofread carefully.
• Work Experience: 27 points Work experience will be limited to the last three years prior to the date of the application. List your mostrecent work experience first and include any jobs held during high school if within the three-year period.Indicate the year in school during which you held a particular position. Indicate if your work experiencewas in the form of work-study, co-op, or practicum. Clearly identify the nature of the business of thelisted employers; in particular, note consulting engineering or land surveying firms. Be complete and accurate. The more experience you list, the higher your potential score.
• Recommendation: 15 points A recommendation is needed from a consulting engineer, land surveyor, engineering professor, mentor or supervisor. Applicants must utilize the request form in the application portal — a PDF/letter is notsufficient and will not be considered. Letters sent in addition to this form will not be considered. Students should notify their recommender/form recipient in advance as recommendation letters are required. Greater weight will be given for recommendations from a consulting engineer or land surveyor.
• Extracurricular College Activities: 13 pointsList all college activities including offices held and other leadership roles in any organizations. Be as complete as possible. The more activities you list, the higher your potential score.
1. Student organizations (4 points)
2. Community activities (4 points)
3. Organized athletics and/or musical activities (2 points)
4. Other (3 points)