Scholarship Service Program Philosophy

Recipients of most renewable MTSU academic scholarship recipients are required to complete 75 hours of service to MTSU each semester. These scholarships are awarded to incoming freshmen and incoming transfer students, based on academic achievements. For more information about academic scholarships for incoming freshmen, please visit incomingfreshman.php. For information about scholarships for incoming transfers, please visit transfers.php.

We believe that the service requirement provides valuable experience to students, as well as helping scholarship recipients make important connections with students, staff, and faculty. The experiences you have in the Scholarship Service Program may help you

• determine the direction your educational path takes.
• make connections with people who can assist you in meeting your academic and career goals.
• build skills and abilities for your future career.
• enhance your résumé and find a job in your chosen field after graduation.

Scholarship Service Program Placements

If you are the recipient of an academic scholarship of $2600 or more per year, you will be assigned to an MTSU academic or administrative department to complete your service hours.

Please click here for a list of departments which participate in the Scholarship Service Program.

When you receive your academic scholarship offer, you will have the opportunity to indicate the types of departments you would prefer. If you fail to submit this information at the time that your return your scholarship agreement form or wish to change your original responses, you may send your requests to bmccart@mtsu.edu by June 1. We will make every effort to place you in one of your top choices; however, we cannot guarantee this, since placements depend on the number of available positions in a department and how many other students requested that department. In late August, you will receive email notification of the department to which you have been assigned; unless you or your supervisor requested a transfer, you will return to the same department each year.

If you are a current SSP participant and wish to transfer to a different department, please check with your supervisor to determine whether he or she is able to approve a transfer. If both your current supervisor and the supervisor of your requested department approve the transfer, you will then need to submit a Scholarship Service Transfer Request form, available at Transferform. Transfer requests must be signed by both your current supervisor and the supervisor of your requested department. If your current supervisor is not able to release you, you may want to request the transfer again in April for the following academic year. Since new students are assigned to the SSP each summer, supervisors may be more able to approve transfers before the summer term begins, when they can request a new student to replace you.

Frequently Asked Questions

When can I complete service hours?

• Most departments are open between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm and will schedule you during those hours. They will work with you to schedule around classes and other education related conflicts. Please be flexible!
• Service hours may be completed on evenings and weekends, if both you and your supervisor agree to the schedule. However, most departments are unable to approve such schedules since they are not open at those times.
• Service hours may be completed during mid-semester holidays (such as Spring Break) and during finals week, if both you and your supervisor agree to the schedule.
• All service hours for a semester must be completed by the last day of finals week.

Can I work for pay in the same department that I complete my service hours?

• If your department has positions available and wishes to hire you, you may work for pay during the same semester, either through the Federal Work-Study Program or through the departmental budget. The first five hours worked per week will be unpaid and will count toward your service requirement. Please contact your supervisor to determine whether paid student positions are available in your department.

What are the rules?

• You will be expected to follow general courtesies, such as following a dress code, completing tasks as assigned, maintaining a professional attitude, reporting for scheduled hours, and calling if you are unable to report for any reason.
• Please show up on time, at the times scheduled. If you are not able to come at scheduled times because of illness or other issues, you should notify your supervisor as soon as possible. You will also need to make up the missed service hours.
• Please remember that your requirement is to provide service to MTSU. That is, you should expect to spend your time completing assigned tasks rather than spending the time studying or chatting with friends.
• Your service hours will generally involve academic or administrative work, such as filing, answering phones, helping with research, grading papers, shelving books in the library, or monitoring a computer lab. Please perform the tasks you are asked to perform. Even Directors of entire departments sometimes have to complete work that seems boring!
• Your assigned tasks will not be primarily physical (such as painting, cleaning, or moving furniture), unless you specifically request such a placement. However, your supervisor may ask you to complete minor physical tasks as part of your assignment, such as dusting computers while monitoring a computer lab and assisting students with issues. If you feel that your service hours are spent on primarily physical tasks, and you did not request such a placement, please notify us at bmccarty@mtsu.edu.
• If you have a conflict with your supervisor or a coworker, please work with the person to resolve the conflict. While we can transfer you to another department if you are unable to settle the issue, keep in mind that you cannot switch jobs in the "real world" every time you have an argument. This is a great chance to build conflict resolution skills!

What should I do if I can't complete the service requirement for a semester?

• If you are enrolled in certain types of courses, you may request a service waiver for that semester.
  • A 6-hour internship
  • a 3-hour internship which is unpaid and requires at least 150 hours
  • Student teaching
  • A Study Abroad program
  • Nursing or athletic training clinicals
  • Social work practicum
  • Honors thesis course UH4950

To request a waiver, you will submit one of two forms:
Service Waiver Request: Internships (for a waiver based on a 3-hour or 6-hour internship) OR
Service Waiver Request: Other (for student teaching, study abroad, clinical, practicum, and thesis courses)

We recommend that you submit your waiver request at least two months before the start of the semester, so that it can be processed before the semester begins.

• If you are reported during a semester as not completing the service hours, your scholarship for the current term will be canceled. You will have an opportunity to resume completing your hours and regain the scholarship, if all missed hours are made up before the end of the semester.
• If you are reported at the end of a semester as not completing the service hours, your scholarship for the upcoming term will be canceled. You will have an opportunity to file an appeal; if your appeal is approved, you may then be able to regain eligibility for the scholarship. You can find information about the appeal process at http://www.mtsu.edu/scholarships/AppealFAQ.php
• If you find that you will not be able to complete the requirement due to extenuating circumstances, you may file an appeal during the semester to request that your hours be reduced. You can find information about the appeal process at http://www.mtsu.edu/scholarships/AppealFAQ.php.