Thousands of dollars each semester. Luncheons with esteemed faculty. Throw in a free trip to Europe and you've got the life of a Jefferson scholar at the University.
While many students and their families struggle to cover the cost of college, 125 current undergraduates receive a stipend covering the full cost of tuition through the Jefferson Scholarship, the University's only merit-based scholarship.
During the 2006-2007 academic year, in-state scholars received $17,510 and out-of-state scholars received $35,610 to cover tuition and living costs. Over the course of four years, an in-state Jefferson scholar receives approximately $70,040 and an out-of-state scholar receives approximately $142,440, depending on yearly variations in tuition.
Last week, the University offered Jefferson Scholarships to 43 graduating high school seniors. The offers were extended after finalists attended the Jefferson Scholars Selection Weekend, a four-day visit to the University that marks the end of the scholarship selection process.
As one of the top public institutions in the nation, the University admits some of the brightest students from around the world. The question remains, how does the Jefferson Scholars Foundation choose prospective scholars out of such an academically talented and motivated pool of students?
A little background
According to University Dean of Admissions John Blackburn, the program began in 1980, under then-Dean of Admissions John T. Casteen, III, at the request of interested alumni. Originally administered by the Office of Admissions, the program is now run by the independent Jefferson Scholars Foundation. Despite changing hands, Blackburn said the program's goal has remained unchanged since its inception.
"The purpose continues today much as the way it was back then," Blackburn said. "We wanted to recognize not only the kids that are great students but also great leaders. The alumni have been very supportive of this."
In 2001, the program was extended to include graduate fellowships. Similar to the undergraduate program, fellows receive an annual stipend,currenly set at $30,000, for tuition and living expenses and also the opportunity to apply for research funds. Of the 42 total graduate nominees for the incoming class, 15 students were given offers. Ten scholarships where offered to students accepted in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and five to prospective Darden students. Six of the 42 nominees attended the University for their undergraduate education, two of whom received offers for the scholarship.
Picking the prospectives
Jefferson Scholars Foundation Director Jimmy Wright said there are three different avenues through which students can become scholars, the most common of which is being nominated by one of the 2,600 high schools invited by the University to recommend prospective scholars.
"We invite those schools to nominate the student in that graduating class who best exemplifies leadership, scholarship and citizenship," Wright said.
The two other avenues include being nominated by the University's Office of Admissions or by one of the nearly 50 international schools the foundation invites to nominate possible scholars.
Generally the foundation receives around 1,000 nominees, Wright said. The students are then examined and interviewed by regional committees to determine which students will be designated as finalists and attend the weekend at the University.
According to Wright, there are a set number of finalists allowed for each region, depending on a given region's size.
This year, 95 finalists visited the University from March 22 to March 25 to participate in interviews and seminars, undergo examinations in math and writing and learn more about the program. The Foundation also arranged for the prospective students to visit Monticello, take tours of the University, meet with current Jefferson Scholars and attend a dinner in the Dome Room of the Rotunda.
According to high school senior and prospective scholar Jesi Egan,, the weekend marked her first visit to Grounds and made her feel more comfortable about attending the University, especially after giving her the opportunity to interact with current scholars.
"They really go all out to make you feel welcome, I mean they fall all over themselves to make you want to come," Egan said. "It is an amazing opportunity, and I can't believe that anyone would pass it up."
At the end of the weekend a committee consisting of faculty, administration, alumni and foundation board members decided to extend scholarship offers to 43 of the 95 finalists.
Wright said the committee sought students who had taken challenging courses, done well on the SAT or ACT and held positions of leadership. He added that leadership does not always mean being class president; rather, it can also take less visible forms.
"People have created new organizations or gone out of their way to solve a problem," Wright said. "Really, it's just taking the initiative to make something good happen."
The final aspect the committee considers, citizenship, encompasses how a student strives to be a good citizen of his community, a quality that is best revealed during interviews, according to Wright.
As one example, Wright cited a Jefferson Scholar alumnus who started the Charlottesville Free Clinic.
"We are looking for people who have talents in scholarship and interest in leadership, not because they are trying to pad their resume but because they actually want to help society," Wright said.
The big payoff
For those who accept the University's offer, the biggest benefit of the scholarship is the stipend that covers the entire cost of attending the University.
Other benefits include enrichment opportunities such as a series of luncheons with esteemed faculty, the support of the Foundation staff and the opportunity to participate in a leadership institution.
Blackburn emphasized how these benefits can enhance a student's experience at the University.
"I often make the point that if we had the nurturing program for all the 13,000 students that the Jefferson Scholar program [provides], what a great thing that would be," Blackburn said.
The scholars also have the opportunity to participate in a foreign travel program between their second and third years. This year the rising third-years chose to participate in three-week programs in London, Italy or Japan. Funding for the scholarships is independent from the University; it comes from a Foundation endowment that is approaching $200 million, and provided entirely by interested alumni, according to Wright.
Grabbing their attention
According to Wright, the Jefferson Scholar program benefits the University by attracting students who might not have considered attending the school otherwise.
He said the scholarship is a "pretty effective recruiting tool," for both students who are offered the scholarship and those who simply went through the selection process. He noted that between nine and 10 percent of most incoming classes consists of students who participated in the competition but did not receive an offer.
The prospective scholars for the class of 2011 have until April 20 to accept the scholarship.
According to Wright, most Jefferson classes consist of 30 to 35 students, but he anticipates gradually increasing the program to support 40 students.
Six of the students offered the scholarship for next year are in-state students, while 32 are out-of-state and five international students.
Are they the best?
The current first-year class of scholars, consisting of 33 students, boasts a number of accomplishments including an average SAT score of 2246, 26 perfect scores of 800 on the math, verbal or writing sections of the SAT. The prospective class earned the highest score, 5, on 102 Advanced Placement exams.
Although the scholars are obviously academically talented, Wright was hesitant to state that they were the absolute top students at the University.
"I wouldn't want to say they represent the best of the best," Wright said. "We know that they are very, very talented people, and we know that they are especially talented in the areas of leadership, scholarship, and citizenship."
Some may question the limitations of the selection process. One potential problem with recruiting the top applicants through the current selection process is that only one student can be nominated from each high school, regardless of the number of qualified candidates at a given school.
"There may be four, five, six or seven people in that same high school class that another committee would have nominated," Blackburn said.
Despite this potential problem, Blackburn said he felt the current nomination process attracts more interest to the University among students than a simple application process would, and gives students from around the nation and the world the opportunity to be nominated.
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