Scholarship Criteria

Darren Walker Scholars Requirements

  • Be admitted to UT Austin for the 2025-2026 academic year as a first-time freshman
  • Qualify to receive the Texas Advance Commitment full-tuition scholarship, currently available to students with an adjusted gross income of less than $100,000 per year
  • Students will be required to complete a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) or the TASFA (Texas Application for State Financial Aid)
  • Demonstrate academic achievement defined by high school record and supplemental application materials
  • Demonstrate interest in community service and furthering their understanding of public service, leadership and ethics
  • Be a high-potential future leader based on one or more of the following factors: community involvement; student leadership; and a genuine commitment to advancing principles of access and belonging
  • Demonstrate academic achievement defined by high school record and supplemental application materials

Complete an application that includes an expanded resume, and short-answer responses. Semifinalists will need to complete an interview with the scholarship selection committee.

UT will choose final recipients with input from an alumni advisory board.

Our goal is to recruit eight to ten students from Texas who meet these exacting standards and who have the most potential to fulfill the university’s mission statement “What Starts Here Changes the World.” To accomplish this aim, UT and the program’s donors seek to provide every Darren Walker Scholar with a full cost-of-attendance scholarship valued at approximately $30,000 annually.