Lance Scholars Program helps Montana Tech mining engineering transfer student launch career

Transferring to a new college can come with challenges, but one mining engineering sophomore from Boulder, Montana, secured a hands-on summer internship and earned two major scholarships to cover most of his education even before starting classes at Montana Technological University.

“It was convenient to apply for the Lance Scholars Program,” said Rutger Shultz. “All the information was right there on the website. It was super simple. I think I did it all in a day. It wasn’t a long essay. It was short and sweet.”

Shultz is in the inaugural cohort of the Lance Scholars Program. The program annually provides 50 in-state students with the opportunity to receive a $4,000 per year scholarship, renewable for up to an additional three years (up to $16,000 total), covering almost half of current tuition at Montana Tech. It was established through the generosity of Ryan (Petroleum Engineering, ’84) and Lisa Lance. Ryan has served as the CEO of ConocoPhillips since 2012. The Lance family made a $31 million donation to Montana Tech in Spring 2022, most of which is dedicated to the Lance Scholars Program.

For Shultz, earning the scholarship made a big difference in his student experience.

“I thought I was going to have to work through college,” Shultz said. “I am very fortunate to not have to worry about working.”

Shultz was also able to land an additional Rio Tinto Scholarship, which was established in 2024 to support the next generation of students pursuing mining careers. The scholarship has a $9,500 value.

Shultz, who earned his associate of science in welding from Helena College in May 2024 before transferring to Montana Tech, said he is committed to mining engineering after landing a transformational internship with Barnard Construction Company based in Bozeman.

Shultz was put into contact with Barnard by a mining engineering professor when he visited Montana Tech for the Intercollegiate/International Mining Competition, which was held in March 2024. During the internship he was assigned to a tunneling team working on a reservoir project in Colorado.

“I just fell in love with working underground,” Shultz said. “I got to do a lot of everything.”
 Shultz was able to work with laborers on the tunnel crew, interact with vendors, learn about the paperwork required for projects, the process of submitting information to owners, and attend engineer meetings where decisions were made about the project. Shultz is already planning on interning with Barnard again in Summer 2025.

Shultz has a simple answer to how he feels about both receiving scholarships to fund his education and being able to complete the internship with Barnard.

“I am so grateful,” Shultz said.

Shultz would like to take mining engineering jobs that offer opportunities for travel once he graduates. He said a recent reception with Ryan and Lisa Lance reminded him that he’s limited only by his own ambition.

“It was cool to see where life can take you,” Shultz said. “If you are ambitious enough you can really go wherever you want with it.”

Shultz encourages students to apply for the Lance Scholar Program even if they have doubts about qualifying.

“I’m an A and B student,” Shultz said. “I’m not a perfect student by any means. I think you should apply if you qualify.”

The Lance Scholars Program is open to Montana high school seniors or transfer students who meet the following criteria:

• Student must have a 3.0 GPA or higher at time of application.
• Student must be a resident of Montana.
• Student must be an incoming first-year, transfer, or a Highlands College student moving to a bachelor’s degree program.
• Student must complete the dedicated scholarship application for the Lance Scholars program.
• Student must complete the FAFSA.

Applicants will be asked in 3-5 sentences to answer the question: During your time at Montana Tech, what is one thing you'd like to learn or experience that has the ability to effect change in the world?

The deadline to apply is February 15. Upon acceptance to Montana Tech, qualifying students will receive a link to apply for the Lance Scholars Program and submit materials on their personal URL (PURL) page. For more information visit www.mtech.edu/lancescholars.