Pepsi Scholarship

If you’re looking for help paying for college (and since most applicants probably are—here's some helpful info about that) and have started to check into scholarships (because you definitely should), chances are you’ve come across some of the famous ones (The National Merit Scholarship or the Gates Scholarship, for example). And because they are famous, they’re generally highly competitive.

The eligibility requirements are fairly broad for those scholarships, which means a lot of people can apply for them (and a LOT of people do). This means that the competition for these scholarships can be fierce (8,500 students receive the National Merit Scholarship out of the 1.5 million high school students who take the PSAT).

Enter the Pepsi Scholarships! Narrower eligibility = less competition.

 
 

Pepsi Cola Scholarship Program

Pepsi (yep, the soft drink) offers a ton of scholarships with very specific requirements. And while this might initially strike you as a bad thing (who likes constraints?), the fact that each of the scholarships in the Pepsi Scholarship Program is geared toward specific student populations means, if you’re eligible, greater odds of qualifying. And who doesn’t like odds that work in their favor?

Have we piqued your interest? We hope so, because these scholarships offer some amazing opportunities for you to get financial help with things like tuition, books, and room and board.

Let’s dive in!

College Scholarships Available from Pepsi

Quaker, Tropicana & Gatorade Quality, Trust & Growth Scholarship

Are you an undergrad majoring in Business or Economics? Do you have a GPA of at least 3.0? Can you demonstrate your commitment to serving your community or the ways you’ve been a leader? Then this Pepsi scholarship could be yours!

The Pepsi Corporation awards 14 of these scholarships every year, and recipients get $5,000 (while this is a one-time award, you can reapply annually).

You also need to be a student at one of these colleges to be eligible (we told you, VERY specific!):

  • Ohio State University

  • Saint Joseph’s University

  • Texas A & M University

  • Tuskegee University

  • University of Arizona

  • University of Texas

  • University of Washington

  • Wake Forest University

The Pepsi Bottling Group $10,000 Scholarship

Well, you already know how much you’ll get with this scholarship! But you need more information than that!

If you’re about to graduate high school (yay, you!) and have already been accepted at a college, university, or technical school in Maryland, you are eligible for this scholarship! You also need to

  • have at least a 2.5 GPA

  • be able to show that you’re active in your community (this could be your school community, your neighborhood community, or any other community of which you are a part)

  • and that you have strong leadership skills

If you’re interested in applying for this scholarship, head right on over to your school’s financial aid office since you apply for this scholarship through your college or university (again, in Maryland). You’ll need to submit your high school transcripts, SAT and/or ACT scores, two letters of recommendation, and a copy of your college acceptance letter. You will also be asked to write an essay in support of your application.

The Pepsi-Cola Public Affairs Scholarship

This one is also only open to students in a specific state AND at a specific university:

  • If you attend Missouri State University

  • have completed at least 45 credit hours

  • and have at least a 3.25 GPA

you might be eligible for this scholarship.

But wait! There’s more!

As the name suggests, you need to demonstrate a commitment to public service (and “commitment” means consistent service to the public, not a one-off volunteering experience).

This is another scholarship that you apply for through the school’s financial aid office, and you’ll need to submit your transcripts (unfortunately, they won’t just take your word for it) and an essay about public affairs.

Pepsi S.M.I.L.E. Scholarships

The PepsiCo Foundation Success Matters in Life and Education Scholarship aims to help Black, African-American, Hispanic, or Latino students transition from community college (for a guide to how to transfer, transfer essay examples and analysis, and a transfer policy database, check out those links) to a four-year college or university (here's a link to their website) with a $50,000 scholarship spread out over two years. But you can’t just be at any community college to be eligible for this scholarship. Here’s what you need to know:

  • You must be currently enrolled as an undergrad at Westchester Community College, Dallas College, or City Colleges of Chicago

  • You must have completed 45 credit hours

  • You must plan to enroll in an accredited 4-year college or university

  • You must major in a STEM or Business program

  • You need at least a 2.75 GPA

The other really cool thing about this scholarship (in addition to the generous financial help), is that you will be paired with a mentor from PepsiCo (you know, someone who is already in the business world)!

When you apply for this scholarship, they’ll ask for:

  • your academic transcript

  • a demonstrated financial need

  • a list of your work experience

  • information about how you’ve participated in your school community and beyond

  • and an essay that responds to the question, “How could receiving this scholarship help you overcome obstacles, including financial challenges, and ultimately reach your educational and career goals?”

Pepsi Scholarship Fund – American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation

Ok, so this one is SUPER specific, and if you’re headed for a career in the hospitality industry, this scholarship could be right up your alley.

To qualify for this scholarship, you have to be a graduating senior from Washington D.C.’s Hospitality High School, and your school must nominate you.

The scholarship amount is anywhere from $500 to $3,000 per year, and only students who are enrolling in an undergraduate hospitality degree program in college are eligible.

You also have to have at least a 2.5 GPA (very doable) and have worked at least 250 hours in the hotel or hospitality industry (also doable, but very time consuming). PepsiCo partnered with the American Hotel and Lodging Education Foundation for this scholarship, and you can click here to learn more about them!

Pepsi/Frito-Lay Scholarship

If you’re a high school senior living in Michigan, and if you’ve been a part of Wayne State University's Upward Bound Program, first of all, congratulations on being one of the 150 students who get to participate in this awesome opportunity! Secondly, this scholarship is just for you!

To qualify, you must

  • have participated in the program for two years

  • provide proof that you’ve already been accepted to post-secondary school

  • and maintain consistent inclusion on your school’s honor roll.

Pepsi/Phi Theta Kappa Transfer Student Scholarship

This is another scholarship reserved specifically for current community college students who are transferring to a four-year institution, but not just any four-year institution.

Members of the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society who have been admitted from a community college to the University of Nebraska at Kearney, who have at least a 3.0 GPA, and who are committed to service-learning can apply for this $2,000 per year scholarship.

If this sounds like you, go for it!

Mid-Del Technology Pepsi Scholarship

Graduating seniors from the Mid-Del Technology Center in Oklahoma who will attend a state university in Oklahoma are eligible for this scholarship!

So, after getting your start in high school learning a trade or vocation such as masonry or cyber security, you can keep that train moving once you attend college, all with the help of this Pepsi Scholarship!

You must have at least a 3.0 GPA, be able to demonstrate financial need, and maintain a consistent level of academic achievement to qualify for this scholarship program. You can do it!

The PepsiCo ExCEL Scholarship

If your mom or dad works at PepsiCo, you get the added perk of a scholarship meant just for you!

The PepsiCo ExCEL Scholarship’s goal is to support the college education of the children of its employees, and the cool thing about this one is that this includes colleges and universities outside the United States. In fact, students in more than 50 countries have received this scholarship.

Undergraduate students who receive this scholarship can attend any accredited college, university, or technical school in the world (that’s right, the world!). You must be

  • a dependent child younger than 24

  • and be a high school senior, high school graduate, or college undergraduate to qualify.

If you have a parent who currently works at PepsiCo, send them off to get some more information about this one!

Pepsi Service Scholarship

The Pepsi Service Scholarship goes to ONE student per year, and this one lucky person must be a freshman at the University of Nebraska—Lincoln.

Eligibility requirements for this scholarship also include Nebraska residency, at least a 3.0 GPA, and a demonstrated commitment to leadership and community service while in high school. Additionally, if you’re into writing personal statements, lucky you! The completion of a personal essay is part of the application process.

Final thoughts

Who knew the Pepsi scholarship program was so far-reaching?! If you live in certain states, if you’re pursuing certain career paths, if you’re a leader who’s committed to your community, there’s a good chance there’s a scholarship here for you!

We know the eligibility for some of these scholarships is very narrow, but again, this can work in your favor. Instead of competing against 100,000 other students, for example, you might be one of a hundred applying for the same scholarship (much better odds!)

So, if you fit the eligibility reqs for any of these PepsiCo scholarships, get in touch with the financial aid counselor or office at your school. They’ll have the application information for you and then you can get down to the business of gathering your application materials. Good luck, future Pepsi Scholars!

 

Jessica B.

Jessica has a Ph.D in English from the University of Southern California and teaches English at a Los Angeles-area independent school, where she has also been English department chair and a class dean.  Sandra Cisneros is her hero, and she loves books, her awesomely-sarcastic family, the beach, cozy sweaters, and more books. Oh, and her sweet pitbull/lab mix named Ruby. 

Top values: Curiosity, equity, wonder