Kessler Scholarship

Apply to join the Kessler Scholars: a unique cohort-based scholarship program to support first-generation college students. The Kessler Scholarship provides four years of support to exceptional University of Michigan students who are among the first in their family to pursue a four-year college degree and who demonstrate significant financial need.

The Kessler Scholars award can provide up to $15,000 per year in financial support for students who are Michigan residents or up to $25,000 per year for out-of-state students. The scholarship is renewable for four years of undergraduate study.

Kessler Scholars benefit from more than just scholarship funding. They join a supportive cohort-based scholarship community and gain access to academic, social, and professional resources to help promote their success at the University of Michigan.

It is in your best interest to apply as soon as you’re admitted to the College of LSA. The application formally closes on April 15th, however, please refer to your invitation email to see your personal application deadline to receive maximum consideration.

Award
Varies
Deadline
04/15/2024
Supplemental Questions
  1. Students selected for the Kessler Scholars Program participate in cohort-based activities designed, in part, for first-generation students to support one another at the University of Michigan. Tell us how you have made an impact in a community you are part of through service or leadership and how you anticipate that you would contribute to the community that is the Kessler Scholars?
  2. The Kessler Presidential Scholarship supports students who are among the first in their family to pursue a four-year college degree. How does your family background influence the way you think about education and see the world?
  3. Describe specific adversities (excluding financial hardships) that you have faced thus far in your life (either in school or outside of school) and what you have done to overcome them. Also, what have you learned from those experiences?
  4. Describe your career goals and how an education from the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts can help you accomplish them.
  5. Please list other institutions (colleges, universities, etc.) on your short list of options other than the University of Michigan.