Scholarships for first-year students

The information on this page applies to first-year students. If you are applying as a transfer student, please refer to our Academic Scholarships for Transfer Students page.

Scholarship application guidelines

Your application for admission to Cornell also serves as your academic scholarship application. Please refer to our first-year admission dates for information on priority consideration for scholarships and other deadlines. You will be informed of any academic scholarship awards at the time of admission.

Scholarship eligibility

Eligibility for many of our academic scholarships is based on your rank among our pool of admitted students. We determine your rank based on a number of factors, including your academic record, college entrance exam scores, personal essays and interviews, and recommendations.

Some scholarships place a greater weighting on service, involvement, or other criteria as noted below.

Scholarship renewal

Academic scholarships and awards are renewable annually if you make satisfactory academic progress.

Questions?

For questions about academic scholarships, please contact your admissions counselor.

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Available scholarships

King Scholarship: Full tuition
Eligibility: Top five percent of admitted students. Limited to 3-5 per year, based upon funding.

Trustee Scholarship: $25,000
Eligibility: Top 10 percent of admitted students

Presidential Scholarship: $22,000
Eligibility: Top 15 percent of admitted students

Dean’s Scholarship: $20,000
Eligibility: Top 20 percent of admitted students

Founders Scholarship: $17,000
Eligibility: Top 25 percent of admitted students

Community Enrichment Award: $10,000
Eligibility: Admitted students who have contributed in meaningful ways to their school or community.

Legacy Award: $2,000
Eligibility: In recognition of those students whose parent, grandparent, or great grandparent graduated from Cornell College.