About the National Fluid Power Association (NFPA)
- NFPA fosters awareness and involvement of middle and high school students, helping them understand fluid power’s potential as a technology and choose fluid power as a career path.
- NFPA helps increase the number of technically trained people capable of integrating and applying fluid power, and connects them to careers in the fluid power industry.
- NFPA supports universities in the development of fundamental fluid power knowledge and connects our industry to an increasing number of scientific and engineering leaders in our field.
The National Fluid Power Association (NFPA) is offering one merit-based scholarship, for $40,000 ($10,000 per year for four years), to high school seniors who have participated on a 2021 FIRST® Robotics Competition Team or a 2021 National Robotics League (NRL) Competition Team and used pnematics on their robot. This scholarship may be utilized for an Engineering course of study at any United States tech school/college or university that holds accredited status.Three (3) finalists will be chosen from essay entries. Phone interviews with the finalists will determine the ultimate scholarship winner.
Eligibility
To be eligible for this scholarship, you must:
- Be a senior in high school for the 2020-2021 school year.
- Have participated on a team during the 2021 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC®) or 2021 National Robotics League (NRL) Competition.
- Provide evidence that your 2021 FRC or NRL team used pneumatics on its competition robot.
Renewal Eligibility:
- Provide proof of enrollment in an accredited tech school/college/university Engineering program every year for renewal.
- Maintain at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale at the accredited tech school/college/university.
Submission of Scholarship Application:
- A completed NFPA Online Application.
- A 1,000 word or less essay to the NFPA 2021 Challenge Question: What was the most important fluid power concept you learned in working on your robot this year? How did this discovery influence the design you chose? Include specific details about the fluid power components you used in your design this year and explain how these components were better than other options. How did the impact of COVID-19 affect your design choices and build process?
- A 1,000 word or less letter of recommendation from an adult mentor/coach on your FIRST or NRL team:
- Confirming the use of pneumatics on your competition robot.
- And your participation in the 2021 FRC or NRL season.
- Will be judged by a panel of NFPA association members.
Rules and Regulations
- Scholarships will be paid directly to a recipient’s educational institution.
Applications are due May 1, 2021 (Midnight - Central Standard Time). Scholarship Award Winner will be notified in July.