Scholarship Opportunities

The NCAA awards up to 174 postgraduate scholarships annually, 87 for men and 87 for women. The scholarships are awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and who are in their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition. The one-time grants of $7,500 each are awarded for fall sports, winter sports and spring sports. Each sports season (fall, winter and spring), there are 29 scholarships available for men and 29 scholarships available for women. The scholarships are one-time, non-renewable grants.  

The Ethnic Minority and Women's Enhancement Postgraduate Scholarship for Careers in Athletics programs were developed by the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics and the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee. The NCAA awards 13 scholarships to ethnic minorities and 13 scholarships to female college graduates who will be entering their initial year of postgraduate studies. The applicant must be seeking admission or have been accepted into a sports administration or related program that will help the applicant obtain a career in intercollegiate athletics, such as athletics administrator, coach, athletic trainer or other career that provides a direct service to intercollegiate athletics.

Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Program

In 1988, the National Collegiate Athletic Association established the Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Program as a means of recognizing the contributions of the former executive director through encouraging excellence in academic performance by student-athletes.  Under this program, one male and one female student-athlete are annually awarded a postgraduate scholarship in recognition of outstanding academic achievement and potential for success in postgraduate study.  It is intended that an individual named a Byers Scholar will be recognized as one who has combined the best elements of mind and body to achieve national distinction for his or her achievements, and promises to be a future leader in his or her chosen field of career service. The Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship Program is separate and distinct from the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Program, which provides numerous annual awards with smaller stipends.  The stipend for each Byers Scholarship is $21,500 for an academic year.

The Freedom Forum, through a grant to the NCAA, supports eight $3,000 scholarships to college juniors who have career goals in sports journalism and major in journalism or have experience in campus sports journalism. The program assists deserving full-time students in their final year of study and is designed to foster freedoms of speech and press while promoting quality sports journalism education at the collegiate level. Applications for these scholarships are available in late August from the institution's NCAA faculty athletics representative, journalism department or school newspaper office.

The NCAA offers one-year internships at its national office in Indianapolis, Indiana, providing on-the-job learning experiences for college graduates from a four-year NCAA member institution who express an interest in pursuing a career in the administration of intercollegiate athletics.  These are paid, 12-month positions.  The areas of the NCAA that offer intern positions are administrative services, branding and communications, championships, corporate and broadcast alliances, Division I men's and women's basketball, diversity and inclusion, education services, enforcement services, governance, membership services/student-athlete reinstatement and the NCAA Eligibility Center.  Applicants are able to request their top three areas of interest in which they prefer to serve. 

In 2008, the National Collegiate Athletic Association established the Jim McKay Scholarship Program as a means of recognizing the immense contributions and legacy of pioneer sports journalist Jim McKay.  Under this program, one male and and one female student-athlete are annually awarded a $10,000 scholarship in recognition for outstanding academic achievement and potential to make a major contribution in the sports communication industry.  McKay scholars will be recognized as having demonstrated a unique aptitude and commitment to the communications field and promises to be a future leader in the industry.  McKay scholars also will demonstrate the highest level of professional integrity, including the principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability, with the element of compassion that so infused McKay's long and storied career.

The basic qualifications on which Jim McKay scholarship nominees will be reviewed are described in detail in the application.  Please read the application carefully and note that only the faculty athletics representative or the chief academic officer of the institution at which the nominee is a varsity student-athlete may nominate qualified candidates.  Please note the application deadline is January 19, 2009.  Applications must be postmarked no later than January 15, 2009.