Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship 2027: Who Qualifies & Deadline

The Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship is one of the largest college scholarships in the country. It is run by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, a private nonprofit — not the government. The award can pay up to $55,000 a year toward a bachelor’s degree.

There are two versions open right now. High school seniors apply for the College Scholarship by November 11, 2026. Community college students apply for the Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship by December 9, 2026.

This guide explains who qualifies for each, how the $95,000 income line really works, what your odds look like, and what the money does and doesn’t cover — using only the foundation’s own pages.

The Short Answer

• Who runs it: the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation in Lansdowne, Virginia. IRS data shows it is a 501(c)(3) private foundation (EIN 54-1896244, via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer). Since 2000 it has awarded $336 million in scholarships to nearly 4,000 students, according to the foundation.
• Award: up to $55,000 a year, paid after your college’s own aid (“last dollar”).
• Seniors: 3.75 unweighted GPA, a test score, family income up to $95,000. Deadline November 11, 2026.
• Community college students: 3.5 GPA, sophomore status by January 1, 2027, family income up to $95,000. Deadline December 9, 2026.
• Cost to apply: none. The foundation says “There is no cost or fee.” Any site that charges you to apply is not the foundation.

Who Qualifies: High School Seniors

These are the rules for the 2027 College Scholarship, posted on the foundation’s How to Apply page and FAQ:

• Senior year: you will graduate in spring 2027, after completing four years of high school in the U.S., a U.S. territory, or on a U.S. military base.
• College plans: you plan to start at an accredited four-year college in fall 2027.
• GPA: cumulative unweighted GPA of 3.75 or higher.
• Test score: you must submit at least one SAT, ACT, AP or IB score. There is no minimum score, but you must have taken one of these tests.
• Income: family income up to $95,000 (see the next section — the wording matters).

The FAQ also answers questions many families wonder about:

• Citizenship: not required. You must live in the U.S. or a U.S. territory and attend all four years of high school in the U.S.
• Homeschool: eligible. The foundation asks that your recommendations come from educators other than your parents.
• GED: not eligible.
• Gap year: not eligible. You must apply during senior year. Some winners may defer funding for a year if their college approves.
• Already in a bachelor’s program: not eligible.
• Early decision or early action: does not affect your eligibility.
• College outside the U.S.: allowed, if it is a fully accredited four-year school.

Got a letter from the foundation? That does not mean you qualify. The FAQ says it buys names of high PSAT and SAT scorers from the College Board, which does not share family income, so “some of the students who receive our mailing do not qualify financially.”

The $95,000 Income Line: Read It Carefully

The foundation’s own How to Apply page states the income rule two different ways:

• “We will consider applicants with family annual gross income up to $95,000.”
• “We will consider applicants with a family adjusted gross income up to $95,000.”

Those are not the same number. Gross income is everything your family earns before anything is taken out. Adjusted gross income (AGI) is the figure reported on your parents’ federal tax return after certain adjustments, and it is often lower. The application itself asks for your family’s AGI for the past three years.

What this means for you:

1. Pull your parents’ tax returns for the last three years and find the AGI.
2. If AGI is under $95,000 but gross pay is over it, email scholarships@jkcf.org and ask which number counts before you spend weeks on essays. The foundation asks you not to call.
3. Know that $95,000 is a ceiling, not a target. The foundation does a “full financial review” of all income and assets of you and your parents. Last year’s new College Scholars had an average family income of about $42,000.

If your family does not file taxes, you give estimated income for each year plus an explanation. If one parent is in prison or cannot be found, you can ask the foundation to waive that parent’s form.

Your Real Odds (2026 Numbers)

The foundation publishes its results each year. Here is what its own press releases and FAQ show for the last cycle:

Step	College Scholarship (seniors)	Transfer Scholarship (community college)
Applicants	From more than 4,100 high schools (total not published)	More than 1,300
Semifinalists	568 (January 2026)	485 (March 2026)
New Scholars chosen	60 (April 2026)	60 (May 2026)

One detail is easy to miss. The April 2026 recipient list has 114 names, and 56 of them are marked as current Cooke Young Scholars — students the foundation picked in 7th grade and has supported for five years. They received the College Scholarship too, but they did not compete for the 60 open spots. Two more winners chose not to be named.

So if you are applying as a senior, you are competing for about 60 places. That is why it makes sense to apply and keep working on federal aid and other scholarships at the same time.

Community College Students: The Transfer Scholarship

The Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship is a separate award for students finishing a bachelor’s degree after community college. The rules from its How to Apply page and FAQ:

• Where you are now: a current student at an accredited U.S. community college or two-year school with sophomore status by January 1, 2027 (usually about 30 credits), or a graduate of one since spring 2022.
• Next step: you plan to enroll full-time in a bachelor’s program in fall 2027. Starting in spring 2027 makes you ineligible.
• GPA: cumulative college GPA of 3.5 or higher, counting only grades completed by the December 9 deadline.
• Income: family income up to $95,000.
• No earlier four-year college: if you ever attended a four-year school (including outside the U.S.), you are usually not eligible. The exception is if you did not finish the equivalent of one full-time semester — email the foundation to check.

Things that surprise transfer applicants:

• No age limit, and no test scores are needed. Essays are not needed to submit a complete application; the foundation asks for them later from students who advance.
• Under 30? Your parents’ income counts. If you are under 30 by the deadline, both legal parents must submit their AGI — “Even if you are financially independent.”
• Old transcripts: you must send transcripts from every college you attended since 2011. Missing one makes the application incomplete.
• Help on campus: more than 400 community colleges have a Cooke Campus Representative. You do not need a nomination.

The foundation’s pages give two numbers for the transfer award: “approximately 65 scholarships awarded each year” on one page, and “In May 2026, 60 Scholars were selected” in the FAQ. The May 2026 press release confirms 60.

What the Money Covers — and What It Doesn’t

How the amount is set. The foundation calls this “last dollar funding after all institutional aid.” In plain words: your college builds its aid package first, then the foundation fills in some or all of what is left, up to $55,000 a year. Your award letter usually comes about four weeks after the foundation gets your college’s cost of attendance. The money goes straight to your school.

What it can pay for: tuition, room and board, books and required fees, at any accredited college, in any major. The College Scholarship is meant to cover up to four years; the Transfer Scholarship up to three.

What it does not cover:

• Online-only programs. “Accredited online four-year programs are not covered.”
• Non-degree programs.
• The graduate year of a combined bachelor’s/master’s program.

It is not automatic after year one. The scholarship is renewed each year “at the Foundation’s sole discretion” after a review of your grades, finances, conduct and progress. Scholars are expected to keep a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better and sign a Scholar Agreement. New Scholars must attend a three-day Scholars Weekend in Northern Virginia, usually in early August; the foundation pays the trip, and family members are not invited.

Part of it may be taxable. The foundation warns that “a portion of each scholarship award may be considered taxable.” Here is why: under IRS Publication 970, a scholarship is tax free only when it pays for tuition, fees and required course materials. Money used for room and board does not qualify. Because this award can cover living costs, keep your award letters and ask a tax preparer about it. Our guide to free tax help explains where to find free filing help through VITA.

How to Apply, Step by Step

High school seniors (deadline November 11, 2026):

1. Open the Common App and add “Jack Kent Cooke Foundation” the same way you would add a college. It appears in your college list.
2. Fill in the foundation’s section: eligibility questions, test scores, several short essays, activities and honors, intended major, and three years of family AGI.
3. Self-report your test score in the Testing section of the Common App.
4. Invite three recommenders through the Common App: an 11th-grade teacher in a core subject (English, math, social studies, science or a foreign language), a second core teacher or professor, and your school counselor (or principal if your school has no counselor). Your counselor also sends the School Report.
5. Transcripts: the How to Apply page says to submit unofficial transcripts and that an official one may be requested if you become a semifinalist. The FAQ says your official transcript “will be submitted by your school counselor.” To be safe, ask your counselor to send the official transcript through the Common App before November 11.
6. Submit. The Common App will not accept an incomplete application and emails you a confirmation.

If you use AI tools, the foundation asks you to report it in the application, and says AI-written stories “tend to be generic.” Write your essays yourself.

Community college students (deadline December 9, 2026): apply through Common App for Transfer. Add the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation under “Add Program,” then complete “Program Materials.” Invite two academic recommenders (an adviser, instructor or professor) from your current or most recent school. You do not need to apply to your four-year colleges through Common App to use the scholarship there.

Need a test score first? The SAT fee waiver can cover the test for students with limited income — see our SAT fee waiver checklist. And if application fees at your colleges are the worry, our guide to college application fee waivers shows the four ways to apply for free.

If You Need Other College Money

Most applicants will not win, so build your plan B now:

• Federal grants: file the FAFSA and check Pell Grant eligibility. If the difference is confusing, read Is FAFSA a Pell Grant?. The foundation also requires its own Scholars to apply for aid at their college every year.
• Other national nonprofit scholarships: Hispanic Scholarship Fund, UNCF and Scholarship America.
• A campus job: federal work-study.

How We Checked This

We opened and read every page below on October 2, 2026.

• Rules and dates come from the foundation’s College Scholarship page, its How to Apply page and FAQ, and the Transfer Scholarship’s main page, How to Apply page and FAQ.
• The 2026 numbers come from three foundation press releases: 568 semifinalists (January 22, 2026), 2026 College Scholars (April 1, 2026) and 2026 Transfer Scholars (May 12, 2026). We counted the names on the April list ourselves: 114 names, 56 marked as Young Scholars, plus two unnamed winners — which matches “60” new Scholars plus “56” Young Scholars.
• Nonprofit status comes from IRS data shown on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. The IRS’s own lookup tool blocked our request, and the foundation’s pages we read do not state its tax status.
• The tax rule comes from IRS Publication 970 (the version for 2025 returns).

Where the foundation’s own pages disagree with each other:

• Gross income or AGI? The same How to Apply page says “annual gross income” in one place and “adjusted gross income” in another, both “up to $95,000.” The Transfer FAQ says “annual gross income”; the Transfer How to Apply page says “adjusted gross income.” The application asks for AGI.
• Official or unofficial transcript? The College How to Apply page says “unofficial”; the FAQ says “official,” sent by your counselor.
• How many transfer awards? “Approximately 65” on the How to Apply page vs. 60 chosen in May 2026.
• When winners hear. The timeline says recipients are announced in “March 2027”; last cycle’s announcement was posted April 1, 2026.

What we could not verify. The foundation does not publish the total number of College Scholarship applicants, the average award amount, or how many Scholars lose the award at renewal. We did not contact the foundation. We did not confirm which income figure — gross or AGI — it actually applies, so ask scholarships@jkcf.org if you are near $95,000. The foundation’s site is in English only; we found no Spanish-language version of these pages.

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is a private nonprofit; its scholarships are not a government program, and the foundation alone decides who is selected. Rules and dates above are for the 2027 cycle (applications August–December 2026, for college in fall 2027) and apply nationwide. All sources were verified on October 2, 2026.

This is general information, not legal or financial advice.