StudyDesk Scholarships
About the scholarship
The Jefferson Scholarship, run by the Jefferson Scholars Foundation, is the University of Virginia’s most prestigious undergraduate award — a fully funded four-year package covering tuition and fees, on-campus housing, meals and living costs, and books and supplies, with leadership and citizenship programmes, undergraduate research support, international travel, internships, conferences and career and alumni networking on top. The total value is widely reported at more than $405,000 for non-Virginia students over four years — a figure corroborated by several aggregators, though not stated on the official FAQ page retrieved, so it is presented here as the widely reported figure rather than an official quote.
What makes this award different from most scholarships is the entry route: you cannot apply for it yourself. Your school must nominate you, and nomination alone is not enough — you must also win admission to the University of Virginia through the normal admissions process. The two decisions are independent. That means the real deadline is not just 1 December 2026 for the Foundation’s materials; it is also whatever internal deadline your school sets for choosing its nominees.
Eligibility
- Be a final-year secondary-school student in your graduating class.
- Show outstanding academics plus leadership and community engagement.
- Be nominated by your school — nomination is mandatory; students cannot apply directly or self-nominate.
- Separately apply for and gain admission to the University of Virginia — nomination does not guarantee admission, and admission does not guarantee the scholarship.
- Open to all nationalities.
- No minimum GPA is published. SAT/ACT scores are not considered for the scholarship.
- There is no IELTS requirement for the scholarship itself, but UVA’s English-language requirements still apply.
Benefits
- Full tuition and fees for 4 years (8 semesters).
- On-campus housing, meals and living costs, plus books and supplies.
- Leadership and citizenship programmes.
- Undergraduate research support and international travel.
- Internships, conferences and career and alumni networking.
- Note that the widely reported total value of more than $405,000 for non-Virginia students was not stated on the official FAQ page retrieved.
Documents to prepare
- Counsellor and nominee materials supplied by the Jefferson Scholars Foundation after nomination — these are the official materials, and they are due by 1 December 2026.
- Your UVA admission application, submitted separately.
- Note that no specific official document list was found: Bright’s generic list (form, transcripts, CV, personal statement) is not presented here as the official list.
How to apply
- Ask your school counsellor or principal whether your school participates, and seek nomination.
- Note that your school may set an earlier internal deadline for choosing nominees.
- If nominated, complete the Foundation’s counsellor and nominee materials by 1 December 2026.
- Separately apply to UVA for admission.
- If shortlisted, attend regional and final interviews (final interviews are in late February 2027, per one source).
FAQs
No. School nomination is mandatory — students cannot apply directly or self-nominate. Ask your school counsellor or principal whether your school participates.
1 December 2026 — counsellor and nominee materials are due that date, per the official Jefferson Scholars Foundation FAQ. Your school may set an earlier internal deadline.
Yes. It covers full tuition and fees, on-campus housing, meals and living costs, books and supplies for 4 years, plus leadership, research, travel and internship support. The widely reported total value of more than $405,000 for non-Virginia students was not stated on the official FAQ page retrieved.
No. You must separately apply for and gain admission to UVA. Nomination does not guarantee admission, and admission does not guarantee the scholarship.
No minimum GPA is published, and SAT/ACT scores are not considered for the scholarship. There is no IELTS requirement for the scholarship itself, but UVA’s English-language requirements still apply.
A separate Jefferson Scholars Foundation award for first-generation students, with nomination limited to US schools. It is not the Jefferson Scholarship covered in this article.
Verified 26 Oct 2026: jeffersonscholars.org/scholarships/walentas-faqs (official Jefferson Scholars Foundation FAQ, opened and read) — counsellor and nominee materials due 1 December 2026, school nomination mandatory, students cannot apply directly, separate UVA admission required, final-year students, leadership and community engagement, no minimum GPA published, SAT/ACT not considered; Bright Scholarship and ScholarshipUnion — corroboration, including the widely reported total value of more than $405,000 for non-Virginia students (about $83,000 a year), which was NOT stated on the official FAQ page retrieved and is presented as the widely reported figure, not an official quote. NOT USED: Bright’s generic document list (form, transcripts, CV, personal statement) — the official process speaks of counsellor and nominee materials supplied by the Foundation after nomination. Final interviews in late February 2027 are from one source only.
