An Ultimate Guide to the Bezos Scholar Program - 10 Tips to Help You Land It
If you’re an ambitious high school student looking for opportunities that can impact your personal and academic development, consider applying for a scholars program. Such programs connect you with like-minded peers and offer unique opportunities that cannot be found in the classroom. They give you access to knowledge resources, provide mentorship and networking opportunities, make you more culturally aware through diverse interactions, and emphasize community building and social responsibility.
Participating in a reputed scholars program can also boost your college profile, demonstrating your ability to execute projects, communicate clearly and effectively, and curious nature. One such opportunity is the Bezos Scholars Program, which connects and supports high school students in the U.S. and Africa who develop socially responsible projects, making it worth considering.
In this blog, we will review the Bezos Scholars Program, including information on the program details, who can apply, the key dates, and discuss 10 tips to help you secure a spot in the program!
What is the Bezos Scholars Program?
Bezos Scholars is a year-long program for high school juniors in the U.S. and Africa, teaching and developing them into leaders who implement community-building projects. Each year, the program selects 17 students — 12 from the U.S. and five from Africa — passionate about launching a “Community Change Project,” which imagines novel approaches to solve pressing social issues. Projects by program alumni have covered themes like climate change and environmental justice, mental health and awareness, and community integration, to name a few.
Students applying for the program must also nominate a “student educator,” a member of their school staff who can attest to their academic credentials and community involvement. Through the program, these students receive guidance, support, and a renewable grant of up to $1,000 to realize their project.
The Bezos Family Foundation, an independent philanthropic organization, offers the Bezos Scholars Program. The foundation is run by Jackie and Miguel Bezos, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ parents.
Is the Bezos Scholars Program prestigious?
The Bezos Scholars Program is a well-known and highly sought-after opportunity for students interested in social change and contributing positively to local communities. The program is highly selective and prestigious: only 12 students from the U.S. and 5 from Africa are selected annually. Anecdotally, program alumni estimate the acceptance rate to be less than 3%.
The Bezos Family Foundation, a respected philanthropic organization, funds the program in collaboration with the African Leadership Academy and the Aspen Ideas Festival.
What does the program include?
The 17 Students accepted into the Bezos Scholars Program can avail of the following benefits:
An all-expense paid trip to Aspen, CO, for a week-long networking and skills-building retreat. Throughout the school year, they participate in virtual workshops focused on building leadership skills they can implement in the communities.
Free access to college advisors who help them prepare their portfolios and applications. This includes one-on-one sessions to create college lists, essay reviews, and financial aid opportunities.
A letter of recommendation signed by the Foundation’s founders, mentioning what the program is about and the student’s accomplishments.
Funding worth $1,000 to implement a Community Change Project.
What are some of the Community Change projects scholars have done?
Bezos scholars have implemented 218 projects since the program’s implementation in 2005. Broadly speaking, the Community Change project must address a community need. These projects are meant to be sustainable and, as such, scholars can apply to renew funding annually. Past projects by scholars include a system to connect immigrants with legal resources, school-to-prison pipeline prevention strategies, financial literacy classes for teenagers, STEM mentorship opportunities for deserving middle school students, reducing ocean waste, and many more.
Where are Bezos Scholars now?
Bezos Scholars have had considerable success in college and career pursuits. Many past scholars have attended renowned universities including the University of Washington, UIUC, UCLA, Cornell, UNC Chapel Hill, Duke University, Brown University, and more before moving on to impressive professional positions.
They have also implemented meaningful changes, striving for equity in their communities and the U.S. at large, and actively working for the welfare of the youth. Let’s take a look at two former Scholars:
Isabel Ohakamma (2021 Scholar) is a student at the University of Virginia studying psychology and youth and social innovation as a Posse Scholar. She also serves on UCLA’s Youth National Scientific Council on Adolescence. As a Bezos Scholar, she founded the Student Wellness Coalition designed to provide mental health support and resources, primarily to students of color, that assist them in creating healthy lifestyles to be well-rounded leaders.
Josphat Loukot Lowoi (2016 Scholar) attended Duke University on a full-ride scholarship where he majored in Economics. He completed a nine-week internship on Wall Street as a summer analyst and after graduating in 2022, he began working as an analyst at BNP Paribas’ New York office. He also received a grant from the Kenan-Biddle Partnership and Mastercard Scholars Program which focused on setting up a community sports facility and supporting a local school program run by his older brother.
You can check out the full bios of the previous scholarship recipients here.
Who is eligible to participate in the program?
To apply for the Bezos Scholars Program, you must meet the following criteria:
For U.S. students, you must be a current high school junior attending a public school that qualifies for a free and reduced lunch rate of at least 30%.
Must have opted for at least one advanced course (Honors, AP, IB, etc).
African applicants must be part of the African Leadership Academy to apply for the program.
The program pays special attention to diversity and aims to build a cohort representing the different communities and cultures in the U.S. and Africa. Note: to encourage equity of opportunity, schools with Bezos scholars in 2023 and 2024 will be ineligible to participate in the 2025 program.
What are the important dates?
The exact application dates can vary slightly, but the entire process will follow this timeline:
Fall: Applications open (November 30, 2023 for the 2024 cohort)
Winter: Applications are due (January 5, 2024, for the same year’s incoming cohort)
Spring: Selected scholars are notified
Late June: Aspen Ideas Festival (Took place in Aspen, Colorado between June 22 and June 28 for the 2024 cohort)
Senior high school year: Community change projects, college advising, leadership development workshops
If you’re interested in applying, here are 10 tips to help you get selected:
Make sure you are eligible: While this seems easy, it could involve some research and you wouldn’t want your application to be declared ineligible. The program has stringent eligibility criteria, namely that your school qualifies for a free and reduced lunch rate of at least 30%, you have opted for advanced high school courses, and no Bezos scholar was selected from your school in the last two academic years.
2. Ensure you can commit to the program: The Scholars program is quite intensive: apart from the week-long Aspen trip, you must dedicate up to 20 hours per month to workshops and other activities, usually on a Saturday. This can be a significant commitment considering that you will be in your senior year and have to focus on academics and college applications.
3. Choose a good student educator: Your chosen student educator needs to be a member of your school staff who has ideally witnessed your academic and personal growth over some years. They should have the time and bandwidth to participate fully in the program, including the week-long trip to Aspen and organizing year-round workshops and meetings. Remember, your school counselor is eligible for nomination as a student educator!
4. If in doubt, ask: If you have any doubts during the application process, reach out to the program coordinators. Approaching organizers with insightful questions can help you stand out as a proactive student with strong communication skills. These traits will be highly valued during the selection process!
5. Reflect on what you want your community project to achieve: Your project should focus on an issue you are passionate about and which can see tangible benefits for a local community. Define clear goals, choose a workable approach, and determine the impact you want to have.
6. Review projects done by alumni: The program has a library of projects completed by scholars since its inception in 2005. You can review these projects to learn more about successful project proposals, namely the aim, objectives, methodology, and thematic areas to focus on.
7. Get diverse opinions on your application: Once you’re done, ask your parents, teachers, peers, and other people you deem fit to review your application for the program and advise you on what needs to be improved. Ideally, you would ask someone involved in community-oriented work to review your application and suggest improvements.
8. Demonstrate your passion: The Bezos Scholars program wants students who engage passionately and are deeply invested in their communities. You must be a clear communicator, intellectually curious, and demonstrate a history of serving others. To get selected, you need to articulate how your past experiences in conjunction with the program would help you achieve your goals.
9. Have clarity of thought: You need to structure your application well and ensure ideas flow seamlessly. The application process includes a minute-long, self-recorded video where you will explain why you want to be a Bezos scholar. After that, you will have to respond to written prompts that include questions on challenges you overcame in high school, your positive impact on your community, and a project proposal.
10. Review your application thoroughly: Ensure all details are correct, paying special attention to any errors that might have crept in during revisions. Confirm that your responses to the written component of the application are to the point since the program highly values effective communication.
One other option - the Lumiere Research Scholar Program
If you’re interested in pursuing independent research, you could also consider applying to one of the Lumiere Research Scholar Programs, selective online high school programs for students founded with researchers at Harvard and Oxford. Last year, we had over 4000 students apply for 500 spots in the program! You can find the application form here.
Also check out the Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation, a non-profit research program for talented, low-income students. Last year, we had 150 students on full need-based financial aid!
Kieran Lobo is a freelance writer from India.