Burger King Scholars Program
Offered by Burger King Foundation · Free to apply
Thousands of $1,000 awards go out through this program each year, plus three $60,000 James W. McLamore WHOPPER Scholarships for standout applicants. The form is short with no essay required, a 2.0 GPA floor, and no employment connection to Burger King, so it costs a senior about an hour. Reviewers look at GPA, work experience, activities, financial need, and community service, and applicants must be seniors in the United States, Puerto Rico, or Canada heading to an accredited two-year, four-year, or vocational-technical school. The window opens October 15 and closes at 11:59 p.m. local time on December 15, but it shuts the moment 30,000 applications arrive, which can happen well before that date. Recipients are announced in April.
How hard is the Burger King Scholars Program to win?
A large applicant pool chases this award. Apply if the student is a genuinely strong fit, but build the plan around better-odds awards first.
- Estimated odds
- roughly 1 in 2,000 applicants
- Modelled applicant field
- ~25,000 students
- Payoff per hour of work
- $15 / hr
What drives the odds here
Odds on a scholarship are mostly a question of how many students can enter. Each rule below changes the size of that field.
- More rivalsOpen nationwide, so the field is large
- Fewer rivalsOpen to a single grade level only
- Fewer rivalsRequires at least a 2 GPA
- More rivalsA large award draws far more applicants
How Solyo estimates this: We model the applicant field from how narrow the eligibility rules are, then divide the awards available by that field. Requirements such as essays and recommendation letters improve a serious applicant’s odds, because most browsers never complete them. These are estimates derived from each award's published structure, not reported acceptance rates, which almost no scholarship provider discloses. Treat them as a way to rank where the hours go, not as a guarantee.
Who can apply for the Burger King Scholars Program?
These are the eligibility rules Solyo verified against the official award page, translated into plain English. Your student must meet each one.
- Open to high school seniors
- GPA of 2 or higher (unweighted)
- Open to residents of the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada
- Burger King employees and their children and families may apply, but employment is not required
- The application closes early once 30,000 submissions are received, even before the posted deadline
- Selection weighs GPA, work experience, extracurricular activities, financial need, and community service
- Must plan to enroll in an accredited two- or four-year college/university or vocational-technical school
- The top-tier James W. McLamore WHOPPER Award goes to a small number of exceptional students each year; most awards are at the base level
What the application takes
No essay, recommendation letters, or transcript are required. This is one of the lighter applications in the directory.
Deadline and application cycle
The current deadline is December 15, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. local time. This award runs on an annual cycle, with deadlines around December 15 each year. Applications open October 15. Apply in the first days after October 15: the form closes as soon as 30,000 applications arrive, which can be weeks before December 15.
- Applications open
- October 15, 2026
- Closes at 30,000 applications
- Whenever the cap is reached, often earlier
- Application closes
- December 15, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. local time
- Recipients announced
- April 2027
Does your student actually qualify?
See if your student qualifies in 30 seconds. Solyo checks 20+ criteria against their real profile: GPA, state, grade level, intended major, and more, across every award in this directory at once.
Common questions about the Burger King Scholars Program
How much is the Burger King Scholars Program worth?
The Burger King Scholars Program awards $1,000 - $60,000 (most awards $1,000).
When is the Burger King Scholars Program deadline?
The current deadline is December 15, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. local time. This award runs on an annual cycle, with deadlines around December 15 each year. Applications open October 15. Apply in the first days after October 15: the form closes as soon as 30,000 applications arrive, which can be weeks before December 15.
When do Burger King Scholars Program applications open?
Applications open October 15, and close December 15, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. local time. Apply in the first days after October 15: the form closes as soon as 30,000 applications arrive, which can be weeks before December 15.
Who is eligible for the Burger King Scholars Program?
Key requirements: Open to high school seniors; GPA of 2 or higher (unweighted).
Does the Burger King Scholars Program require an essay?
No essay is required. The application is light on requirements. Expect to spend about 1 hour on it.
How hard is it to win the Burger King Scholars Program?
Solyo estimates the odds at roughly 1 in 2,000 applicants, against a modelled field of ~25,000 students. The pool stays that size because open to a single grade level only and requires at least a 2 GPA. At 1 hr of work, that is about $15 of expected value per hour. This is an estimate from award structure, not a published acceptance rate.
Is the Burger King Scholars Program free to apply?
Yes. The Burger King Scholars Program is free to apply. Legitimate scholarships never charge an application fee, and Solyo verifies every listed award against its official page.
More need-based scholarships
- Dell Scholars Program$20,000 (plus laptop, book credits, and support services)
- Hagan ScholarshipUp to $7,500/semester x 8 semesters (up to $60,000)
- Horatio Alger National Scholarship$25,000
- Jack Kent Cooke College Scholarship ProgramUp to $55,000/yr x 4 years
- QuestBridge National College MatchFull four-year scholarship to a partner college (worth $200,000+)
- RMHC U.S. Scholars Program$2,000+ (varies by local chapter)
Lists this award appears on
Award details are curated by Solyo and verified against the official scholarship page. Deadlines and requirements can change between cycles, so always confirm on the provider's site before applying.