Scholarships and Grants

Scholarship Awards

Johnson has over $14 million in scholarship funds to award each year to new students. We provide partial scholarships to a substantial percentage of our students. Merit-based scholarships are awarded without regard to citizenship. If a student is selected to receive a scholarship it will be included in their admission decision notification. Merit Scholarship recipients are selected by an Admissions Scholarship Committee. The same criteria are used to determine merit as are used to evaluate applicants for admission: demonstrated leadership and interpersonal skills, prior academic performance, exam scores, the range and depth of work experience, writing skills, extracurricular and community involvement, recommendations, previous achievements, focus, and goals.

Johnson Endowed and Annual Scholarships

Johnson is fortunate to have endowed scholarship opportunities made possible by the generous support of our alumni, corporate partners, and individual donors. Matriculating students who receive merit scholarship support will automatically be considered for these named awards based on criteria specified by the donor. If you are selected to receive a named scholarship award, you will be notified following the start of your program – our named scholarship opportunities provide an added point of distinction but do not provide additional funds to the recipient.

Merit scholarship award recipients are automatically considered for named scholarships funded by our alumni, corporate partners, and individual donors. A separate selection process to award named scholarships is conducted during the summer or fall semester. These named awards replace merit awards already received and do not provide additional funds to the recipient. These awards are considered academic honors that may be included on your resume.

Students who enroll without scholarship funding during their first year will not receive scholarship support in the second. The notable exception is the school’s prestigious Fried Fellowships. Fried Fellowships are awarded to five second-year students based on academic excellence and contributions to Johnson.

Consortium for Graduate Study in Management Fellowship – open to applicants applying to the Two-Year MBA program

Johnson became a member of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management in 2009. The mission of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, an alliance of leading American business schools and some of our country’s top corporations, is to enhance diversity in business education and leadership by helping to reduce the serious underrepresentation of African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans in both our member schools’ enrollments and the ranks of management. Candidates who apply and are accepted through The Consortium are considered for full-tuition, merit-based Fellowships and benefit from ongoing professional development opportunities. The Consortium Fellowship is open to qualified U.S. citizens and U.S. permanent residents from these underrepresented groups, as well as other persons who can demonstrate a commitment to The Consortium’s mission.

Park Leadership Fellowship – open to applicants applying to the Two-Year MBA program

In addition to our merit-based scholarships, we have Park Leadership Fellowships. The fellowship is a full-tuition grant that is awarded to up to twenty-five entering students each year. Park Fellowships are only open to U.S. citizens. If you have questions about the program, please see the Park Program’s web page, or contact the Admissions Office.

Forté Fellow Program

Johnson has been a partner of Forté since 2004 and participates in the Forté Fellows Program. Candidates of all nationalities and gender who support Forte’s mission of advancing women in business are eligible for consideration of the Forté Fellowship. The MBA admissions committee decides who will receive Forté Fellowships—no separate application is needed.

ROMBA Fellowship – open to applicants applying to the Two-Year MBA program

Johnson participates in the Reaching Out LGBTQ MBA Fellowship Program, which was created as a joint effort between top business school programs and Reaching Out to demonstrate that business schools are the top destination to develop the out LGBTQ and active ally business leaders of tomorrow. Two recipients will receive a minimum of $10,000 scholarship per academic year, and also receive access to exclusive mentorship and leadership development programming through Reaching Out. The admissions committee decides who will represent Johnson as a ROMBA Fellow. No application is needed.

Sage Scholars Program – open to applicants applying to the Two-Year MBA program

Johnson selects a small number of applicants each round to be named a Sage Scholar and awarded a scholarship on the basis of academic achievement as measured by undergraduate GPA and GMAT/GRE Score. Sage Scholars will be selected during the admissions process, no separate application is needed, but in order to be considered, students must submit a GMAT/GRE score during the admissions process.

The MD MBA – Dual Degree Program and Lee Family Scholarship

Weill Medical College of Cornell University has partnered with Johnson to offer medical students the option of earning an MBA degree in just 12 months. The MD/MBA dual degree is designed for students who want to pursue a career in medicine and business, preparing them for leadership roles in major health organizations, pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology firms, and other health-related businesses. One medical or graduate student each year (alternating years, two students) will be granted a full-tuition scholarship for the Johnson School portion of the Tech MBA program, thanks to the generosity of Charles R. Lee and the Lee Family Foundation.

Lester B. Knight M.Eng./MBA Scholarship

The Lester B. Knight Scholarship is designed to assist and encourage top students to earn M.Eng. and MBA degrees at Cornell.

The scholarship is the result of a generous gift by Mr. Knight and the continuing support of his family. Beginning with 2020-2021 academic year awards, Knight Scholarships may provide as much as $60,000 in tuition fellowship support. Knight Scholars receive a $15,000 tuition award per semester for up to two semesters while enrolled as graduate students in the M.Eng. degree program and a $15,000 tuition award per semester for up to two semesters while enrolled in an MBA degree program at Cornell. Students entering the M.Eng. degree program with Knight Scholarships may apply to the Johnson School up to five years after M.Eng. graduation and retain the MBA portion of their Knight scholarships.

Peter and Stephanie Nolan Veterans Scholarship

Cornell Trustee Emeritus Peter Nolan ’80, MBA ’82, and his wife, Stephanie Nolan ’84, have given nearly $2 million to help the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management support U.S. military veterans seeking an MBA. The Nolan Scholarship allows the Admissions & Scholarship office to identify and reward outstanding Veterans who, we believe, will be an asset to Johnson.

GI Bill® Assistance (Post 9/11 and Yellow Ribbon)

Cornell University and Johnson have entered an agreement with the U.S, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program, a supplement to the Post-9/11 tuition benefit.  Veterans eligible for VA benefits should contact their Veterans Administration regional office for eligibility. Cornell’s Office of the University Registrar will process enrollment each term to the VA.

New York State offers a variety of scholarships to veterans, which can be found at: https://www.hesc.ny.gov/pay-for-college/financial-aid/types-of-financial-aid/nys-grants-scholarships-awards/veterans-tuition-awards.html 

GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.

Outside Scholarships

Scholarships from outside the school are available from many sources. There is some effort involved in securing outside funds. The key is to apply early. Private scholarships may be based on various selection criteria: academic achievement, religious affiliation, ethnicity, memberships, civic activities, hobbies, or special talents. Start your scholarship search by contacting your employee benefits office, church, civic group(s), or any other organization you think may have scholarship opportunities.  We have compiled a list of outside resources to get you started. The list includes scholarship and grant opportunities as well as search engine links.  We highly recommend registering on only one search engine and using a separate email address, set up to only receive information on funding opportunities, to keep your personal email from being overrun with information.