<p>As two current SMU seniors, we have decided to create this thread to answer all your questions about the Hunt and President's Scholarship. Each of us belongs to one of the scholar communities and have enjoyed 3.5 years on the scholarship including the Taos Retreat, studying abroad, Tate Lectures, etc. </p>
<p>Feel free to ask us anything and make sure to specify which scholarship your question aplpies to. </p>
<p>Pony Up!</p>
<p>Do you know how many engineering students are scholars? It is âdifficultâ to do these extra things (lectures etc.) when the student is majoring in engineering?</p>
<p>Thank you for setting up this page and your willingness to answer questions. Hope to hear some good news from SMU at the end of the week.</p>
<p>I just want to make sure I understand. Please confirm that this is correct about the merit based scholarships:</p>
<p>The Presidentâs Scholars Program- If eligible you will be sent (via snail mail) an invitation to apply. Exceptional SAT/ACT scores and GPA required.</p>
<p>The Hunt Leadership Scholarship - anyone can apply through the website below - deadline Jan 15th - an essay is required. Emphasis on leadership.</p>
<p>[Hunt</a> Leadership Scholars Program Application - Undergraduate Admission - SMU](<a href=âhttp://www.smu.edu/Admission/Apply/HuntLeadershipScholarsApplication]Huntâ>http://www.smu.edu/Admission/Apply/HuntLeadershipScholarsApplication)</p>
<p>Other scholarships (Cornerstone, Founders and Second Century) are awarded along with the admittance letter. Scholarships are also awarded through each College.</p>
<p>Questions about Hunt Scholarship Application:
Do you recommend getting additional letters of recommendation specific to the scholarship?
Does the application committee prefer one of the essay prompts over the others?</p>
<p>THANKS!</p>
<p>Hi,
just wondering what your stats were when you applied??</p>
<p>Does the presidents scholarship rely heavily on extra cericulars?
My friend is really hoping to be considered for the Presidents scholarship and has a 2310/2400 SAT score and was hoping that would make him stand out?</p>
<p>For the BBA Scholars/Business Direct/Hunt Leadership programs are you only notified if admitted? After what date is it fair to assume you have not been chosen?</p>
<p>Also how much of the Hunt Leadership scholarship selection is academic based v. leadership based? </p>
<p>Thanks for the thread btw! Very Helpful!</p>
<p>My son was a PS graduated in May and getting his masters at SMU now â majored in Mechanical Engineering. Canât say enough good things about the program and his professors and the other PSâs⊠they really were his peer group, and he made some amazing friends!! There are benefits that go beyond the âfull rideâ. Thanks to gostangs for answering all these questions â would have loved this info in 2009 
Good luck everyone!! SMU is an amazing school, btw⊠also have a junior there and youngest got her acceptance letter today. Pony Up!!</p>
<p>What is the interview process like for the Hunt Scholarship?</p>
<p>and when does SMU send out notifications for BBA Scholars?</p>
<p>@itsv your life is not defined as âjustâ an engineering student! While the curriculum can be demanding, I have a friend in the program who is also in a fraternity and plays on the football team. You can enjoy all that college life has to offer, including lectures, independent research, studying abroad, etc. while in the Lyle School of Engineering. I donât know the exact number of Hunt and Presidentâs Scholars who are engineers, I have quite a few friends from both scholar programs that are engineers. Hope that helps!</p>
<p>@CWSTUDENT you are correct about all of that</p>
<p>As far at the Hunt application is concerned, I personally had one of my community service advisors write my recommendation letter. I think itâs nice for there to be a personal voice that can vouch for your leadership skills.</p>
<p>When I applied there was only one essay choice but both are great and the committee donât prefer one over the other. My advice is to pick the one you feel most comfortable about.</p>
<p>@edameris I had 5.3 weighted GPA and was ranked 5th at a private school in South Florida. I had a 2020 SAT and was an AP Scholar with Honor. I played a varsity sport, was student body and national honor society president and did a lot of community service domestically and internationally (over 1200 hours). There is no âformulaâ that they really look for; some kids were super jocks and others were really passionate about theatre. They look for genuine and enthusiastic leaders who are going to impact the SMU community in different ways. For the current Hunt seniors, 4 are president of their greek organization, 1 was homecoming king, another started his own community service club on campus, another is an editor for the newspaper, etc. You can read everyoneâs bios on the website and see how truly diverse we all are. </p>
<p>As for your friend, I canât guarantee if they will be invited based on their test scores but they definitely have a good chance. A lot of Presidentâs Scholars were also heavily involved in extracurriculars in high school. Sometimes regional counselors have a lot of influence in the students theyâve met who they think are good candidates so a strong relationship with them never hurts.</p>
<p>@collegeboundhs14 Iâm not sure about Business Direct/BBA but Hunt will notify you by, I believe, the end of February/beginning of March for interview weekend which is always in March. Youâll be notified either way, if chosen to interview, within 2 weeks usually. </p>
<p>The Hunt is also very academically-based, but sometimes not as much as the Presidentâs Scholar. There are some Hunt who were National Merits, perfect SATs, etc. and there are some who scores and GPAs were not nearly as high but had exceptional leadership in their schools and community. To be a Hunt Scholar though, they really are expecting both. There is a minimum GPA and SAT/ACT listed on the website and they do usually stick to that unless a candidate has leadership or awards on a national level or has started a company/charity, etc. </p>
<p>Students they feel are more academically strong and less impressive with extracurriculars might be considered for Presidentâs instead and vice versa.</p>
<p>@brighdalake Iâve actually served on the interview committee so I have first hand knowledge from both sides of the table. The interview itself is about 30 minutes and includes a member of the SMU faculty, a Hunt Scholar alumni and two current Hunt Scholars (or 3 if an alumni isnât available). There is a list of questions they can ask or they can come up with questions on their own. more likely than not they will ask you about things on your resume, why your want to come to SMU, your greatest achievement, what campus organizations interest you at SMU, etc. </p>
<p>The weekend itself is super fun because you get a chance to meet a lot of amazing high school students from across the country. Current Hunt Scholars will host a Q&A panel and a dessert reception.</p>
<p>@gostangs2014 thank you so much for your great feedback! I am looking forward to finding out if I have the opportunity to interview. </p>
<p>Do you have any recommendations on how to prep for the Hunt interview or any advice regarding answering the questions, attire, or common misconceptions?</p>
<p>IMPORTANT HUNT QUESTION !!!
Since the essay is due by the 15th - will the board have access to your resume and application to SMU? Meaning, do you need to highlight the things you have done leadership-wise in your essay, or will they have a copy of your resume?</p>
<p>THANKS!</p>
<p>CWSTUDENT, </p>
<p>Have you gotten an answer to your question? </p>
<p>I donât know the answer, but I get the impression from reading the application that the board or committee will have access to all your application information - or at least on an as-needed basis. The way the scholarship application is worded - asks for your top two leadership positions, followed by essay prompts, I would think that when you write your essay you will naturally be writing about your leadership experience. I would suggest, as you might read in other essay threads, NOT to laundry list every leadership position you have ever held. </p>
<p>I hope this helps. Good luck to your student!</p>
<p>Thanks lots2do. I have not gotten an answer to my question. Just wondering if you need to restate exactly what you did for a specific organization or if they will look at the resume as well. I wasnât sure about basically repeating what is on the resume if they will already be looking at that.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>If my daughter applies for the Hunt, will she still be considered for the Presidents Scholars program? How does SMU decide which program ( if any) to name you as a candidate for? Do you know when the finalist weekend would be for either Hunt or Presidents?</p>
<p>Anyone know what the date will be for interviews for Hunt?? Yes, I have been to the event calendar which only has dates through MAY 2013 !!
Any thoughts?</p>
<p>What happens if the prospective student is out of the country? We have a really late Spring break and wonât be back until the 22nd of March. It is a school trip so it is unlikely to be able to get it changed.</p>
<p>@CWSTUDENT </p>
<p>While the scholarship committee will have access to your resume and all your application materials, it is okay to reference your leadership experience in your Hunt essay - so long as you are answering the question and not just re-stating what is already on your resume.</p>
<p>The dates for the Hunt interview have not been released but they will likely be held in mid-March. Interviewees will be notified in mid-February.</p>
<p>Whew! Hopefully the last college essay submitted. If chosen for an interview, how will that notification be sent? Email? Snail mail? 50% of those that get an interview are chosen, correct? For a total of 25 for the Hunt Scholarship.</p>