Governor's Scholars Program

The selection process for the Governor’s Scholars Program is multi-tiered. Students compete first at the school and/or district level. At each level of the competition, some applicants may be eliminated. Those students selected at the district level are sent on to the state level for the final competition.

Once they arrive in Frankfort for the state level competition, the applications are divided into seven distinct sections. The first section, which contains all of the student’s biographical information, is filed separately and tied to the rest of the sections only through the "journal number" that is used to identify each applicant.  This allows each application to be read blindly, without any regard to the student's personal information, and insures fairness in the selection process.  The remaining seven sections are divided among the members of the Statewide Selection Committee, a panel consisting of college admission personnel, college and high school teachers, and education leaders from different areas of the state.  Each committee member reads and scores only one of the seven different sections.

How to Apply

Student Nomination Packets are sent to every public, private and parochial school district in the state. Application may be picked up in the school guidance office in late September or downloaded from our website. Before reaching the statewide competition, each student must first submit his or her application through his or her school and participate in the school and/or district level competitions. Only those students nominated by their district (or unaffiliated private school) may compete in the statewide selection process. The number of nominees each district may submit to the statewide process is based on the district-wide junior class enrollment. Approximately 1,900 applications are received at the state level each year, with over 1,000 students selected to attend.

Eligibility & Requirements

To be eligible for nomination and selection, a student must:

1. Be in the 11th grade at the time of selection and intend to return to a kentucky school district for the next school term (Students skipping their senior year to enter college are not eligible);

2. Be a current resident of Kentucky;

3. Have taken the ACT, PSAT, or SAT in the 9th, 10th or 11th grades.

Students must complete an application and be nominated by their school districts or private schools to be considered for admission.