UA Scholars Award

This page is for all past, present, and future UA Scholars Award recipients and their supporters. Our progress in this arena has been remarkable.

The UA Scholars Program is designed to reduce the number of Alaska's high school graduates leaving for education and jobs elsewhere. We offer the top 10 percent of students in each qualified high school graduating class in Alaska an $11,000 scholarship to attend the University of Alaska, as an incentive to stay in their home state. Before the UA Scholars Program began in 1999, only 44 percent of o

ur high school graduates attended college. The University of Alaska got 44 percent of those.Today, UA attracts over 440 new Alaska high school students who graduated in the top 10 percent of their class each year, which is an equilivent to roughly 43 percent of those who are eligible to receive the UA Scholar Award. This is truly wonderful progress. Our small population base will never allow us to provide all of the workers in all of the skill sets we will need. But in a state with no income tax, every one of those imported workers will use the roads, use the schools, and collect the permanent fund dividend. It is certain that we are best served by training, educating, and retaining every single Alaska resident we can. Some say that it is natural for youngsters to want to go out and explore. First off, it's not true. Nationally, more than 80 percent of students who go on to college go to college in the state where they graduated from high school. Second, there is something that can be done about it. Simply put, we have to tell them we want them to stay. More than 5,700 of our best and brightest have accepted the UA Scholars Award since its inception. Many of these young people, who would have gone “outside” and not come home, are home. We didn’t change the nature of those students; we changed their awareness and their opportunity. The icing on the cake is the little understood fact that many of our students take advantage of a wide range of exchange programs with universities in the lower forty-eight and with several foreign universities, so our students can have it all. Today the UA Scholars are changing the University; tomorrow they will change the state.

06/17/2026

Happy National Mascot Day to Spirit, Nook, and Spike!

These three always bring the fun!

.anchorage .system
University of Alaska University of Alaska Southeast University of Alaska Fairbanks UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage

Photos from Annette Island School District's post

06/16/2026

Check out this beautiful artwork by UA Scholar Elizabeth!

06/12/2026

Thanks for the reminder! Hope everyone is enjoying their summer break!

06/09/2026

This month's Scholar Scoop Newsletter features UA Scholar Florence Kargi from Hooper Bay. Florence joined the University of Alaska Fairbanks through the RAHI - Rural Alaska Honors Institute and went on to earn her degrees from the University of Alaska.

"My advice for young people who get offered this opportunity is: take advantage of it. Attend your classes, do your homework, and you’re going to go far."

https://youtu.be/M7aKJhGArSk

UAF College of Indigenous Studies

06/05/2026

Are you feeling unsure about the 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)?

Join the UAA Office of Financial Aid for weekly FAFSA Friday sessions via Zoom (through June 2026).

Attendees will also have the opportunity to ask live questions with a financial aid representative.

https://alaska.zoom.us/meeting/register/fq54woBcS8ihoK6_1sTLwg #/registration

For more information, or if any accommodations are needed to fully participate in the event, please contact the UAA Office of Financial Aid:

Phone: Enrollment Services Center | (907) 786-1480 | Option 4 for Financial Aid

Email: [email protected]

06/02/2026

🚨 UA SCHOLARS: 30 DAYS TO GO! 🚨

You worked hard for the UA Scholars Award; now make sure you lock it in. You have 30 days until the preferred deadline to secure your Award by applying for admission to the University of Alaska!
https://www.alaska.edu/alaska/apply.php

🗓️ Bonus Reminder: Qualifying for the Alaska Performance Scholarship (APS) too? Make sure your FAFSA is submitted by June 30!
https://studentaid.gov/

Don't wait until the last minute. Secure your funding today!

06/01/2026

These UA Scholars are already giving back to Alaska. Congratulations, you two, and thank you for working on something that is so important to Alaskans.

05/30/2026

Summer is here! Enjoy your break UA Scholars!

05/29/2026

UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage is hosting a fun gathering for UA Scholars. Curious about UAA Admissions? Check it out!

Hey, future UA Scholars! You’re invited to the UA Scholars Seawolf Social at the UAA Anchorage campus. 🥳 Family and friends are welcome to attend with you! 😎🤝😎
Register today using the link in our bio. 🔗

05/27/2026

Exciting news for University of Alaska Fairbanks. Welcome Col. Vander Lugt!

University of Alaska has selected Col. Russell Vander Lugt, Ph.D., to serve as next University of Alaska Fairbanks chancellor.

A 20-year Alaska resident and UAF alumnus, Col. Vander Lugt holds an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Arctic and Northern History from UAF and a master's degree in Arctic and Northern Studies, also from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He currently serves as Commander of the 11th Airborne Division's Arctic Aviation Command at Fort Wainwright and will join UAF on September 8, 2026.

Dr. Larry Hinzman, former UAF vice chancellor of research and current director of the UA Arctic Leadership Initiative, will serve as interim chancellor through the summer.

Full details: https://www.alaska.edu/opa/enews/2026/0527/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=ap_y3w5dud3t5

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Location

Fairbanks

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Website

http://www.alaska.edu/scholars

Address

PO Box 755120
Fairbanks, AK
99775

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 5pm
Thursday	8am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 5pm