2019 city scholarship applications now available to Boston residents

Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced applications are now available for the 2019 City of Boston Scholarship Program. The City of Boston Scholarship Program is designed to support higher education, and is available to Boston residents interested in pursuing an undergraduate degree or continuing education in Massachusetts.

"The City of Boston Scholarship Fund helps students achieve their dream of attending college, and I'm proud that through this program, we're able to give our residents the support they need," said Mayor Walsh. "I encourage residents throughout our city's neighborhoods to apply to this program, and look forward to our city's leaders gaining the opportunities they deserve to succeed."

The City of Boston Scholarship fund is a need-based scholarship that provides up to $10,000 over four years towards tuition, and relies primarily on generous contributions from individuals, organizations and corporations to further the goal of having more Boston residents complete a post-secondary education. During the 2018-2019 academic year, the scholarship program awarded a total of $290,000 to over 115 students representing almost every neighborhood of Boston, who went on to attend 30 local colleges and universities. This year, the Fund will award 30 new recipients.

This year's scholarships were supported by generous donations from Arbella Insurance Foundation, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation, Herb Chambers Foundation, Pinnacle Leadership Foundation, and Rapid7 as part of their commitment to students of Boston.

"Investing in the education of our young people is paramount to not only their own success, but to the future of our local communities and businesses," said Corey Thomas, President and CEO of Rapid7. "We are thrilled to continue our contribution to the scholarship fund and commend The City of Boston for its tireless dedication to providing students the support they need to reach their educational goals."

The Scholarship Committee has worked in recent years to simplify and strengthen the application process. Highlights include an updated recommendation form that assesses college and career readiness, three short-answer questions in place of a longer essay, an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculator for students not eligible for FAFSA, and a clear recognition of financial need among continuing education students.

"This scholarship makes accomplishing my dreams a little easier. A college education is very expensive," said Juliana Vazquez, a resident of East Boston and a 2018 City of Boston Scholarship Recipient, "The amount of debt that young college graduates accumulate over four years can be astronomical and I commend the City of Boston for recognizing this. Our great city is working tirelessly to find ways to financially support as many city kids as possible in receiving a college education and for this, I am extremely grateful."

The City of Boston Scholarship program is part of Mayor Walsh's commitment to ensuring that all Boston residents are able to access and complete their post-secondary education. In 2016, Mayor Walsh launched tuition-free community college for Boston Public Schools graduates, providing a cost-effective entry point into higher education for Boston's young people. Participating colleges include Bunker Hill Community College, MassBay Community College, and Roxbury Community College.

This year, as part of his legislative agenda, Mayor Walsh proposed replicating Boston's Tuition-Free Community College (TFCC) Initiative launched in June 2016, making it available statewide. TFCC was launched by Mayor Walsh and currently serves 295 students attending Bunker Hill Community College, Roxbury Community College and MassBay Community College. Students enrolled through the program have an average graduation rate of 70 percent over three years, significantly higher than national averages.  

In 2018, Mayor Walsh, in partnership with the Frieze Family Foundation, launched the GRAD Last Mile Fund, an innovative scholarship program designed to provide financial support to Boston students nearing college graduation. Additional resources for residents pursuing higher education can be found on Mayor Walsh's Education Cabinet's Higher Education Resource page.

Candidates for the City of Boston Scholarship Program must be Boston residents who have graduated from high school or have completed G.E.D. programming by the time the awards are made. Additionally, candidates must be planning to attend, or currently attending, a two- or four-year accredited post-secondary institution in Massachusetts.

Residents who meet these eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply here. The deadline to submit applications is April 12, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. For applicants who are renewing their scholarship from a previous year, please email COBscholarship@boston.gov.

For more information on the City of Boston Scholarship, or to apply, please visit Boston.gov/scholarship.