Scholarships
Numerous scholarships are available to GrC students at Cal Poly. Some are based on financial need, others are based on career interest. All are intended to provide specific monetary assistance to students in completing there degree requirements in GrC at Cal Poly.
Where to Begin
Where do you begin? If you need scholarships, you should refer to Cal Poly's Financial Aid web site. The application deadline for Cal Poly scholarships is usually the first week in March. Numerous scholarships are awarded in a process that uses a single application. So, by filling out one application, you are applying for several scholarships including:
Hans Veeder K/P Corporation
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
Well-rounded, love people, active, w/ emphasis on extracurricular leadership
PackagingArts
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
Demonstrated work experience in print industry
Christopher Frair
DRT concentration
3.0 GPA
Exhibited effort to perform extracurricular design projects
Doc Stapleton Memorial
GrC Major
upper division - 3.0 GPA
Demonstrated interest in printing industry
Bert and Wanda Weeden Graphic Communication
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
Scitex/Adobe Student
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
Guy Thomas Memorial
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
Demonstrates leadership and organizational abilities Interest in career in newspaper industry
Graphic Communication
GrC Major - 2.7 GPA
Financial Need.
Demonstrated interest in activities related to GrC
Hank Apfelberg Memorial
Demonstrated need.
Committment to career in GrC
Graphic Communication Department Leadership
GrC Major - 3.0 GPA
UGS after 3 quarters of employment. Demonstrated leadership: UGS manager, officer in club.
Other Sources of Scholarships
In addition to the scholarships discussed above, several scholarships are administered externally from the Cal Poly Scholarship office, and therefore require separate scholarship applications. These are categorized below..
General
Print and Graphics Scholarship Foundation (PGSF)
Applications Available: yes
Applications Due: May 1st, 2026
Numerous general interest scholarships for those interested in the print, prepress, and digital graphics industries. One application for several scholarship opportunities.Scholarships from $1,000.00 - $10,000.00 per academic year are being awarded. Apply here.
American Institute of Graphic Arts
Applications Available: 2026 applications coming soon
Applications Due: TBA
Design focused scholarships awarded annually. Student resources available here. Scholarships are not open as of January 2026. To keep tabs on next scholarship opening, bookmark this page.
Applications Available: yes
Applications Due: May 1st, 2026
IDEAlliance, formerly the International Prepress Association, has a bit more focus on prepress and computer applications. It is administered through the Print and Graphics Scholarship Foundation. Apply here.
Packaging
Tag and Label Manufacturers Institute (TLMI)
$5000 for a student with specific career interests in the tag or label business (predominantly flexography but may be sheetfed, web offset, or gravure).
Applications Available: 2026 applications opening soon here.
Applications Due: TBA
Other: A TLMI co-op helps
Printing Process
Flexographic Technical Association (FTA)
- FTA Scholarship
Final Thoughts
A couple of final thoughts: If you are awarded a scholarship, it is important that you find out who provided the funding and send them a thank you note immediately upon notification. Further, it is highly recommended that you stay in contact throughout the year, dropping a periodic e-mail or note updating the donor on your academic progress. This is very important to involve the donor in the giving process. Donors give when they know their gift makes a difference in someone's life.
Also, those organizations that provide criteria related to career interest are donating money to promote their particular industry segment. Please honor that and only apply for those scholarships for which you truly have career aspirations.