SEMO announces free tuition giveaway for 2023-2024 year

One future Southeast Missouri State University student may win a tuition-free 2023-2024 academic year at SEMO, university officials announced this week.

"We have offered the free tuition giveaway for several years, and it is very popular," said Lenell Hahn, Southeast's director of admissions.

"It really does two things. First, we know students can be concerned about the cost of college. For one student, much of that worry goes away. But for everyone else, applying by Dec. 1 is important because that is the scholarship guarantee deadline. Applying by Dec. 1 means students are eligible to receive the maximum amount of scholarships they qualify for."

The winner of the tuition waiver option will be randomly selected and must be enrolled full-time for SEMO's Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 semesters and must also live in a university residence hall, said Hahn, who has led SEMO's admissions office since January 2013.

Students who submit an application to www.semo.edu/apply by 11:59 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, and who are first-time freshmen or first-time transfer students are eligible for the program.

"The university is always looking for incentives to encourage students who may be starting or transferring to Southeast," Hahn said, "and the possibility of free tuition is a great example of such an incentive because it drastically reduces the cost for the student selected."

SEMO said the value of its offer is $7,761 based on the fiscal year rate for 2023 with tuition covering up to 30 credit hours of Missouri undergraduate tuition.

General fees, program fees or any course-related fees remain the winning student's responsibility to satisfy.

SEMO officials said approximately 70% of students receive a scholarship and such grants are possible without submission of ACT or SAT scores.

There is no application fee, Hahn added.