§7902 Scholarship Program

Summary

Creates a scholarship for people who are getting a doctoral degree in computer science or electrical or computer engineering at an accredited school, if money is available. To get the money, the student must sign an agreement to work for the Department for a set time. The work time must be at least as long as the years the student got help, and it usually starts after the degree is finished. The Secretary decides the exact length and other rules. The scholarship can pay tuition and fees plus $1,500 per month for books, lab costs, and living expenses. A student cannot get more than $50,000 in one school year or more than $200,000 total. The Secretary can give help for up to five years, but can allow more in special cases. If a student stops meeting school progress rules or fails to do the agreed work, the student must pay back the part of the aid that was not earned, unless the Secretary allows an exception. The Secretary will make rules about repayments and when to grant exceptions. That debt is owed to the United States and generally cannot be wiped out in bankruptcy if discharged less than five years after the agreement ends. The Secretary may allow paid internships between terms that add to the scholarship money but do not count toward the work obligation. The scholarship payments do not count as income for other federal benefit programs. Finally, a student who gets certain GI Bill payments for a month cannot get this scholarship for that same month.