NIU students pursuing a career in advertising might be eligible for one of five $1,000 scholarships offered by the Northern Illinois Advertising Council.

“We’re looking for hard-working, enthusiastic students who will convince us they’re committed to a career in advertising by showing us what they’ve done in college and telling us what they plan to do in the work place,” NIAC Scholarship Committee Co-Chairman Doug St. John said.

Several eligibility requirements must be met for consideration. Applicants must be Illinois residents of Boone, Ogle, Stephenson or Winnebago County. In addition, applicants must be full-time graduate students or undergraduates entering their junior or senior year with a minimum GPA of 2.5, St. John said.

“We are pretty loose about the requirement of the major. As long as the student has an obvious interest related to advertising, such as marketing, journalism, graphic arts, broadcasting, communications, photography or liberal arts, he will be considered,” he said.

Qualified students also must fill out an application, which includes a short essay section. “The essay is really just a couple of paragraphs on what your career goals are, what you have done to date in pursuit of the academic requirements, your expectations of your future academic fulfillments, and why you want to go into the field,” St. John said.

Out of the 50 to 60 expected applicants this year, 15 finalists will be chosen and contacted by the NIAC Scholarship Committee for a personal interview. The names of the winners will be publicized on May 25.

“This is really a great opportunity because the applicant has a very good chance. Last year we (the NIAC) granted two scholarships and had 25 applicants. So, the odds are excellent compared to most scholarship opportunities,” he said.

Applications are available from St. John at 815-398-7131 or Brad Benedict at 815-963-4805.