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Summary
Table of Content
Programme Overview
The Duchossois Leadership Scholars Program at Illinois Tech is a nationally preeminent, elite scholarship program aimed at top students from across the country who have demonstrated exceptional leadership potential and academic success in their projected field. Students interested in the Duchossois Leadership Scholars Program will complete a special application, interview, and selection process. The selection will emphasize students from different disciplines and areas of interest. The program is open to undergraduate students who are United States citizens or permanent residents.
Benefits
The program will challenge scholars—through course study, mentorships, internships, service, and leadership development activities—to think boldly and creatively in their field and across disciplines. The program will provide scholars with the opportunity and support to experiment and pursue extraordinary work.
Duchossois Leadership Scholars will receive the following scholarship benefits to allow them to attend and participate in leadership and academic activities at the Illinois Institute of Technology:
- Full Tuition—Duchossois Leadership Scholars will be provided a full-tuition scholarship for undergraduate study at Illinois Tech for up to four years, provided they maintain the criteria of the scholarship. Scholars may petition to have the tuition benefit extended to a maximum extent of up to five years under certain conditions, such as for students pursuing a joint B.S./M.S. program or a baccalaureate degree program that normally requires five years to complete, provided they continue to meet the criteria of the scholarship.
- Housing and Food Allowance—Duchossois Leadership Scholars will be provided with support to cover 100 percent of their meal plans and housing on Mies Campus during the first four years of study at Illinois Tech, including during summer sessions in which the student is registered. The housing allowance covers a double-occupancy rate in Rowe Village/Kacek Hall/McCormick Student Village residence halls or fraternity/sorority housing. Students who choose to live in single-occupancy rooms will be required to pay any additional costs not covered in the housing allowance. A requirement of the Duchossois Leadership Scholars Program is that scholars must live on campus for their first two years. No housing and food support will be provided for scholars who choose to live off-campus after their second year.
- Summer Educational Experience—Duchossois Leadership Scholars will take part in a fully funded summer educational experience after the students’ first, second, or third year at Illinois Tech. Summer educational experiences may be led by one of the four Duchossois Leadership Professors and could include an international experience, a community or government service experience, a summer internship with a corporate entity, or another leadership and service activity designed by a Duchossois Leadership Professor.
- Fall Retreat—Duchossois Leadership Scholars will take part in a fully funded team-building experience once per academic year. Previous retreats have included a Segway tour of Chicago, a cooking class, and a room escape adventure.
- Mentoring—Each Duchossois Leadership Scholar will receive ongoing mentoring and leadership support by both an assigned Duchossois Leadership Professor and third-year Duchossois Leadership Scholars. These close, supportive relationships will support scholars’ ongoing projects in their areas of interest and nurture their leadership activities on campus or in the community. Scholars and Duchossois Leadership Professors will be paired according to disciplinary interests, personal background, personal relationships, and career goals.
- Duchossois Leadership Scholars Dinner—Each year, at the end of the spring semester, all Duchossois Leadership Scholars and Duchossois Leadership Professors will be invited to a celebratory dinner to report on their academic and community leadership progress, to discuss summer plans, and to reflect on their time as participants in the Duchossois Leadership Program.
- Duchossois Scholars will be provided the opportunity to meet with the donor each year. Illinois Tech will work with the donor to schedule and organize this meeting.
- The students will bear their expenses for books, fees, reference materials, computers, and/or other learning tools.
Requirements
The goal of the Duchossois Leadership Scholars Program is to attract promising young leaders to Illinois Tech and develop them into future leaders of business, government, and academia. The Duchossois Leadership Scholars represent the highest level of our nation's high school talent pool who have demonstrated exceptional leadership abilities and provided exceptional services to their communities.
Duchossois scholars may be selected only before entering Illinois Tech as first-year students; currently enrolled students are not eligible. Students majoring in any program are eligible. Students competing for the scholars' program must be United States citizens or permanent residents, and satisfy high selection standards including:
- An outstanding academic ability with a minimum 3.5 high school grade-point average
- Strong leadership potential with demonstrated extracurricular leadership activity
- Outstanding communication skills, a positive personality, and a capacity for original thought
- A sense of caring that reaches beyond self
Students must complete a supplemental application for the Duchossois Leadership Scholars Program (including an essay, résumé, and two letters of recommendation) in addition to the regular application for admission to Illinois Tech. If selected as a finalist from the pool of applicants, students must interview during Scholarship Weekend in mid-February on Illinois Tech's Mies Campus in Chicago. Finalists will interview with a committee that will include the Duchossois Leadership Professors and current Duchossois Leadership Scholars. The interview committee will make recommendations to a final selection committee staffed by senior Illinois Tech administrators.
Students coming from households with an annual income of $300,000 or more (adjusted gross income) are not eligible for the Duchossois Leadership Scholarship.
Application Deadline
November 15, 2024How To Apply
- Apply via the Early Decision I (binding) or Early Action I (non-binding) application deadline.
- Complete and submit an application for admission through the Common Application
- Complete and submit an application, which will include:
- An essay (500-word limit) describing the importance of leadership and service; please provide specific examples of how you will contribute to those ideals at the Illinois Institute of Technology
- Résumé
- Two letters of recommendation from individuals who know you well and can assess your commitment to leadership and service. The scholarship application contains the option for you to share information about your recommenders. You may also use letters submitted through the Common Application if they are on-topic
- Students who are selected as finalists for the Duchossois Leadership Scholarship will be required to participate in a final interview at the Leadership Symposium, which takes place on campus in early February.
For more details visit: Illinois Tech webpage.
