Chairmans College Scholarship

Scholarship Sponsored by Promotional Products Education Foundation

PPEF Overview
PPEF is a charitable, nonprofit educational foundation that provides college scholarships to students whose parents work in the promotional products industry or who themselves are employed by a company in the industry. Since its founding in 1989, PPEF has distributed $4,003,500 in scholarship funds to 2,138 students. In 2025 alone, PPEF awarded $335,000 in scholarships to 180 recipients, including 32 renewal recipients.

Eligibility and general rules
- Scholarships are open to full-time employees of the promotional products industry and to their dependent children.
- Awards are for undergraduate study only.
- Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.
- Candidates may apply for more than one scholarship if they meet the respective criteria. Note: Four-Year College Scholarships are evaluated first; applicants who do not receive a Four-Year award will automatically be considered for One-Year and Named Scholarships without submitting a separate application.
- To be considered for need-based scholarships, PPEF must receive a copy of the applicant’s Student Aid Report (SAR) after filing the FAFSA.
- The application deadline is March 15 at 11:59 PM Central Time.
- PPEF selects recipients through a competitive review. Scholarship winners are announced in early June each year.

Scholarship programs (amounts and deadlines)
Apply by March 15, 2026 for the 2026–2027 awards.

1) Four-Year College Scholarship — For high-school seniors
- Need-based: $9,000 total ($2,250 per year over four years)
- Merit-based: $5,000 total ($1,250 per year over four years)

2) One-Year College Scholarship — For current college students or trade school applicants
- Need-based: $2,250 (one year)
- Merit-based: $1,250 (one year)

3) Chairman’s Scholarship — For students entering their junior year (career track)
- Merit-based: $5,500 total, paid $2,750 annually (junior and senior year)
- Eligibility: Entering the junior year of a bachelor’s program in a field related to promotional products, with the intention of joining the promotional products industry after graduation.
- Renewable for the senior year if the student maintains the minimum GPA and the student or a parent remains employed in the promotional products industry.
- Selection factors: GPA, essay, resume, letter of recommendation, and optional financial need information.

4) Adult Learner Scholarship — For industry employees returning to school
- Merit-based: $1,250 (one year)
- Eligibility: Available only to full-time promotional products industry employees who are beginning their first year of college or trade school after being out of school for more than five years and who do not have a recent GPA. Children of industry employees are not eligible for this award.
- Selection factors: essay, resume, and letter of recommendation.

Application notes and timeline
- PPEF’s award decisions come from a competitive application review; recipients are usually announced in early June.
- For the 2025–2026 school year, applications closed on March 15, 2025. Applicants and non-recipients were notified by June 9, 2025.
- Review the application forms for full instructions and any additional requirements.