Kotzen Scholarship

This is the most prestigious award offered at Simmons, and acknowledges excellence through focus on study abroad, scholarly research, and intellectual curiosity.

The Kotzen Scholarship provides full tuition, room & board, plus an additional $3,000 for academic pursuits such as study abroad, research support, and more. This scholarship is awarded for the duration of a four-year period of full-time undergraduate study, and supersedes any previously awarded merit scholarship.

Students applying for the Kotzen Scholarship must meet the following criteria:

• Apply as a freshman for the fall semester
• Students applying for the Fall 2021 will not be required to submit standardized test scores. For those choosing to submit test scores, a 28 or higher on the ACT is recommended and a 1300 or higher on the SAT.
• Non-native English speakers must submit TOEFL and SAT or ACT scores
• GPA of 3.3 or higher, unweighted
• College preparatory curriculum including an advanced level math course during, or prior to, your senior year of high school
• A record of taking honors, advanced placement (AP) and international baccalaureate (IB) courses, as available in their high school systems

Students who meet the criteria above are often also interested in the Honors Program at Simmons.

Application process

The application consists of a short answer and a formal essay in response to the prompts below, as well as a resume including activities and involvements. Students should submit their essays and resume in PDF or Word Doc via email with the subject line “Kotzen Application,” by December 1. Each page of the document should include the student’s full name and date of birth.

Please note: it is the student’s responsibility to submit a working file in the proper format (PDF or Word) as we will not convert or accept incompatible files (i.e. Google Docs, Pages, etc.)

Essay prompts

• Short Answer (of no more than 250 words): How would you use your additional annual award of $3,000 (for study abroad, short-term courses, summer internship tuition, and/or research support)?
• Formal Essay (of no more than 500 words): Some people argue that leaders are born, not made, while others defend the opposite view, namely that leaders are “made.” Write an essay in which you defend one view or the other. Use a specific example of a leader, either from history or from your own personal experience, to support your argument.

Finalists chosen for scholarship consideration will be required to complete an interview in February.

Application deadline

Applicants must complete and submit both their scholarship application and their admission application to the University by December 1.

Finalists for scholarship consideration will be notified in mid-January. Recipients will be notified by March 1.