The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is pleased to announce the Walter Byers Graduate Scholarship. Graduating seniors or who are enrolled in graduate study at a NCAA member institution, eligible to apply for the scholarship. The scholarship recognizes the contributions of the former executive director through encouraging excellence in academic performance by student-athletes. Annually by the association, one male and one female student-athlete are awarded a $24,000 Walter Byers scholarship in recognition of outstanding academic achievement and potential for success in graduate study.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a membership-driven organization dedicated to safeguarding the well-being of student-athletes and equipping them with the skills to succeed on the playing field, in the classroom, and throughout life.
Eligibility:
To be eligible for consideration, nominees shall:
- Have an overall undergraduate cumulative grade-point average of 3.500 or better (based on a maximum 4.000), or the equivalent in other recognized grading systems
- Have competed in intercollegiate athletics as a member of a varsity team at a NCAA member institution
- Be a graduating senior or be enrolled in graduate study at a NCAA member institution
- Have intentions of applying for admission into a graduate degree program at a properly accredited, nonprofit educational institution or into a post-baccalaureate professional degree program at a professionally accredited law school, medical school, or the equivalent, without restriction as to the national site of the institution
- Be committed to work on a full-time basis toward a graduate degree or a post- baccalaureate professional degree
- Have evidenced superior character and leadership
- Have demonstrated that participation in athletics and community service has been a positive influence on the nominee’s personal and intellectual development
- Enroll into a graduate degree program within five years of being named a Byers Scholar and
- United States citizenship is not a required criterion to satisfy eligibility requirements
How to Apply:
To be applying, the candidate can create an account for the Walter Byers Graduate Scholarship on-line application, the link is given blow:
https://web1.ncaa.org/CRS/exec/login
Supporting Documents:
- A personal essay outlining the nominee’s short and long-term goals, explaining the relationship of the proposed graduate study to these goals and describing the nominee’s personal and intellectual development, including the role played in this development by intercollegiate athletics. This statement shall be authored and signed by the nominee
- Official transcripts
- Four factual lists
- Four letters of recommendation
Financial Aid and Award Money:
- The stipend for each Byers Scholarship is $24,000 for an academic year
- If the graduate school where the Byers Scholar is enrolled provides evidence of the scholar’s satisfactory performance and progress, the grant may be renewed for a second year.
- Therefore, in any single year, $96,000 worth of scholarships are awarded ($48,000 to the current year’s recipients and $48,000 to the previous year’s awardees for their second year of graduate school).
Application Deadline:
The scholarship application opens on September 15, 2016, and will close on January 13, 2017, at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Link for more Information:
http://www.ncaa.org/walter-byers-graduate-scholarship
Contact Information:
If you have any questions regarding the NCAA Program Hub contactLori Thomas at the NCAA national office at 317/917-6683 or by email at: lthomas-at-ncaa.org
