The University of North Texas esports team celebrates a win over Vanderbilt University last month. UNT’s esports program will offer its first scholarship program for women next year, as well as its first dedicated women’s esports team.
The University of North Texas esports program will offer a scholarship for women and will also have its first dedicated women’s esports team for the 2023-24 academic semester.
The University of North Texas esports team celebrates a win over Vanderbilt University last month. UNT’s esports program will offer its first scholarship program for women next year, as well as its first dedicated women’s esports team.
For the first time, the University of North Texas esports team will offer scholarships for women and will also have its first dedicated women’s esports team for the 2023-24 academic year.
Dylan Wray, UNT’s esports coordinator, said the five scholarship awards could help challenge and address issues women gamers usually face. The scholarship and team will also create a better environment for women in which people can compete, play and succeed.
“Women in video games, especially in competitive esports, face toxicity, gender discrimination and harassment that their male counterparts don’t experience,” Wray said.
The program has offered scholarships for women with its general team scholarship, but Wray said this is the first specific scholarship program for women.
More specifically, the esports team will build off the scholarships to introduce its first women’s Valorant team. Valorant is a free-to-play first-person tactical shooter.
The University of North Texas esports program will offer a scholarship for women and will also have its first dedicated women’s esports team for the 2023-24 academic semester.
Courtesy screenshot/UNT esports
Plano-based RGB Custom PC, which builds custom gaming computers, is sponsoring the scholarships.
UNT alumna Holly Millay, the co-founder and CEO of RGB Custom PC, said she talked with Wray about offering the scholarship at the end of 2021.
Millay said she understands how difficult it can be for students to pay for college and that some programs don’t get as much funding. Millay wanted to support students and the esports team by offering funds.
She said it will create an opportunity for both men and women to play together.
“There’s a lot more women who are interested in gaming and like to take part in it, but I think traditionally people think it’s guys who are gaming,” Millay said. “And no matter what gender, everybody just should have a good time and be able to do that and have these opportunities that they might not otherwise have.”
In 2018, UNT became the first public university in Texas to launch a collegiate esports program. A year later, the university became the first in the state to offer student scholarships to esports players.
The University of North Texas esports team qualifies for another season of Collegiate Rocket League in January.
Courtesy photo/Twitter
Undergraduate applicants must have a 2.50 GPA to qualify for the scholarship, while graduate students must have a 3.00 GPA.
They must also hold a minimum of one of the following rank qualifications:
Valorant: Diamond 3
Rocket League: Grand Champion 2
Overwatch: 4K SR
League of Legends: Diamond 4
Candidates must submit a 150-word essay that includes their reasons for applying for the scholarship and their perspective on the importance of representation of non-cis-male-identifying athletes in esports.
They must also write 150 words or less about an activity or event they would organize with the*gameHERs or another similar organization during their time at UNT.
According to its mission statement, the*gameHERs is a women-led community “dedicated to amplifying and centering the voices of women gamers and femme identifying gamers across the spectra of gender identity and expression.”
Wray said the students who are awarded the scholarship would need to set up events or a weekly hangout to spread the word about supporting women in gaming.
Candidates who meet the competitive requirements will be asked to try out with their team of choice and be evaluated on communication, game knowledge, teamwork, mechanics and response to feedback by the 2022-23 UNT esports varsity team.
“I think it’s an important step forward, and it’s a right step forward,” Wray said of the scholarship. “And I think it’s just kind of the beginning of our journey. I think there are a lot of things that the programs and myself need to do to help empower and get more female gamers represented in esports.”
