• Samvid Scholars will empower future leaders and changemakers by providing financial support for graduate study as well as leadership training
• Scholars receive up to $50K for tuition and fees each year for two years of study in a graduate program
• Scholars will be invited to an Annual Retreat with leadership training and networking opportunities
• The program will offer professional development support and mentoring beyond the two years of tuition funding

Eligible applicants must:

• Be a first year graduate student for the 2021-2022 academic year
• Plan to pursue a full-time graduate program at a university in the United States
• Have an undergraduate GPA of 3.5 or higher
• Be a U.S. citizen
• Graduate degrees that are 2 years or more are eligible for the scholarship (JD, MBA, MD, MEd, MEng, MA, MPH, MPP, MS, etc.). PhD programs are not eligible.

Scholars must maintain academic good standing in order to remain eligible for the second year of the scholarship.

• The application will consist of:
  • Personal contact information
  • Academic information
  • Transcripts from all degree-granting higher education institutions
  • Standardized test scores
  • Information about planned graduate study
  • Short essays
  • Recommendations
• Finalists will be contacted for a virtual interview with the scholarship selection committee.
• Candidates selected for the scholarship will be notified shortly afterward. All other applicants will be notified of their status as well.
• Awardees will be asked to provide confirmation of enrollment in a qualifying graduate program.

A selection committee will evaluate candidates based on:

• Academic achievement
• Leadership and extracurricular achievement
• Ambition to make an impact on the world
• Potential for success and contribution to society
• Relevance of graduate study to long-term goals
• The program will award up to 20 scholarships

Yes, you are eligible to apply. In the online application, you will be asked to list the institutions or programs that you are considering. If you are selected as a scholar, you will be asked to provide enrollment confirmation in a graduate program.

Any graduate program that is 2 years or longer at a university in the United States

Yes, if the Master’s degree portion of the program will require at least 2 years.

Yes, you can apply. The program will work with the limits of other awards to give scholars the maximum benefit from all sources of funding. Note that the Samvid Scholars funding applies only to tuition and fees.

Transcripts from all higher education institutions that provided or will provide you with a degree are required. This means your undergraduate transcript and, if applicable, transcripts from graduate schools. Transcripts from summer abroad courses or non-degree programs are not required.

For the application, you may submit a school-issued unofficial transcript. If you are selected as a scholar, you will be required to submit official transcripts.

You should submit the standardized test score that is required for admission to your graduate program.

No, there are no minimum test score requirements. However, the selection committee will weigh the strength of applicants’ test scores, in combination with other qualifications, when selecting finalists and scholars.

If your graduate program waived the standardized test score requirement, then we will also waive the requirement for the scholarship application. In the application fields asking for test score information, indicate that it was not required for your program (or put N/A). For the question that requests an upload of a score report or score report screenshot, simply create a document that says that standardized test scores were not required by your graduate program. Your application cannot be submitted unless these fields have an answer.

You should choose recommenders who can give a candid and thorough assessment as to how you meet the scholarship’s selection criteria. At least one of the recommendations should be academic; a professor would be ideal, but another recommender who can discuss your academic ability and potential for success in graduate study would be fine.

You are required to submit the names and contact details for two people who will provide your recommendations.