The Presidential Scholars Program offers the premier university-funded undergraduate merit scholarship at Florida State University and invests in undergraduate students with extraordinary potential to be the transformational leaders of their generation. The program provides four years of support, and the application is open to high school seniors who are admitted into the Florida State University Honors Program.
Among those selected as Presidential Scholars, five students will also be named Stamps Scholars based on the program’s established selection criteria and their demonstrated potential for leadership and impact. These students will enjoy all the benefits of the Presidential Scholars Program, along with additional financial and experiential opportunities through the national Stamps Scholars Program.
To be considered for the Presidential Scholars Program, incoming first-year prospective students must:
1. Apply to Florida State University
To be considered for the Presidential Scholars Program, first-year applicants must first submit an application to Florida State University by Dec. 1, 2026, and select "Yes" to the question “Are you interested in applying to the Honors Program?”
- When applying through the FSU Application, this question is located on the Additional Academic History page.
- When applying through the Common App, this question is located under Academics in the Questions section.
Once the university application has been submitted, please allow some time for the University Honors Application to become available on the Application Status Check. For students applying through the Common App, this may take up to 48 hours.
Note: The application essay for the Presidential Scholars Program and Stamps Scholarship is the same as the University Honors Program application essay.
2. Complete the University Honors Program/Presidential Scholars Program application essay.
Students must indicate their interest in and complete their supplemental University Honors Program application essay by 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 1, 2026, to be considered for the University Honors Program and the Presidential Scholars Program.
Incoming prospective first-year students will be notified of their admission status to FSU and to University Honors on Feb. 18, 2027.
Applicants will also be notified on this date if they are selected to be semi-finalists for the Presidential Scholars Program.
3. Semi-finalists complete the supplemental video responses.
Semi-finalists will be required to submit video responses to two prompts to be considered finalists for Presidential Scholars. These are due Feb. 28, 2027, by 11:59 p.m. EST.
The following informational video addresses frequently asked questions about how to create your applicant videos:
4. Finalists attend interview and recruitment weekend in Tallahassee.
Finalists for the Presidential Scholars Program will receive notification and an invitation in early March to a required on-campus interview during Recruitment Weekend, April 2-3, 2027.
All finalists for Presidential Scholars are also admitted into the University Honors Program.
5. Students are notified about invitation into Presidential Scholars.
Students will be notified by email shortly after Recruitment Weekend about their admittance into the Presidential Scholars Program. Students will be provided a participation agreement, which they should sign to be officially enrolled in the program.
Presidential Scholars nominated for the Stamps Scholarship will be invited to interview with a member of the Stamps Scholars Program’s national leadership team as the final step in the selection process.
Questions about Presidential Scholars?
Email FSU Presidential Scholars
