Undergraduate Scholarship

Undergraduate Awards

The Bailey Undergraduate awards are $4,000 awards ($2,000/semester) given each year to undergraduate students at the University of Illinois who have demonstrated positive impact and commitment as a result of service, community involvement, leadership, and action.

Leadership Awards

The Bailey Leadership Awards are $6,000 awards ($3,000/semester) given each year to four exceptional upcoming seniors who have made a demonstrated impact on the University of Illinois campus during their initial three years on campus in one or more of the following areas: Social Justice, Environment, Interfaith Cooperation, and Global Engagement. Students who have previously received a Bailey Scholarship and will graduate during the upcoming year may still apply, but a Bailey Leadership award and Bailey Scholarship cannot both be received in the same academic year.

All undergraduate students who will be enrolled at UIUC throughout the upcoming term are eligible to apply for an award of $4,000. Students who have previously received an award may reapply for the scholarship each year but must demonstrate a continued commitment to service and/or activism, academic achievement, and personal development. All undergraduate students who will graduate during the upcoming academic year are automatically considered for the Leadership Award.  You do not need to fill out a separate application.

Decision Criteria

• Qualified applicants will demonstrate positive impact as a result of service, community involvement, leadership, and action;
• Qualified applicants will demonstrate awareness and critical thought about the pressing issues facing the world today;
• Financial need and academic achievement will also be considered.

November 7 - Applications for Fall 2025/Spring 2026 open online

February 28 - Application submission deadline

March 5 - Recommendation form submission deadline

Early May - Applicants notified of decisions

The Bailey Scholarship for Cause-Driven Leaders Scholarship application consists of six sections: Community Involvement, Financial Information, Recommendations, Academic Information, Demographic Information, and Additional Information.

In addition to providing information about your academic and community activities, you must provide the following supporting documents.

• Essay Requirements - You must provide a short bio, respond to 2 short-answer questions, and 1 essay. The prompts for these questions can be found here.
• Community Involvement Resume - You will be asked to paste pieces of your current resume. Your resume should include volunteer and involvement activities for both campus and the general community.
• Recommendation Form - You must submit at least one reference to be considered for a Bailey Scholarship. In addition, applicants have the option to submit a second reference request. Applicants who will graduate during the 2025-26 term and would like to be considered for the Bailey Leadership Award are especially encouraged to submit two references.  All recommendation forms must be submitted by March 5, 2024. REFERENCES DO NOT NEED TO SUBMIT A LETTER. THEY WILL BE ASKED TO COMPLETE A RECOMMENDATION FORM IN THE SCHOLARSHIP PLATFORM. SEE EXAMPLE HERE.
• Financial Aid Information: You will be asked questions about your financial situation. If you are a current University of Illinois student, the answers to these questions can be found on your UI Financial Aid Award Letter. If you have not received your award letter for the upcoming term, you may upload last year's letter or contact bailey@universityymca.org for an alternative. If you do not have a Financial Aid Award Letter, please fill the financial information section with your best estimate.
• Academic Transcript or Academic History - Current U of I students, please submit your academic history report. You can obtain your academic history report by logging into the Enterprise Student Self Service. Please save your academic history as a PDF and then upload to the application. Incoming high school or transfer students, please contact your school's guidance or advising office for assistance obtaining your transcript or record of academic history.

All undergraduate scholars must participate in a minimum of 2 Leadership opportunities and 2 Enrichment opportunities during the academic year. These activities may be from a pre-approved list or may be arranged with approval of the Bailey Scholarship Director. Virtual participation in leadership and enrichment activities is allowed.

For a sample list of pre-approved leadership and enrichment activities click here.

Any returning scholarship recipients and/or leadership award recipients may plan and present a skill-based workshop on a topic of their choosing in lieu of the Leadership Requirement. To prepare you, you are required to work with Bailey Staff to create your workshop.

When can I submit an application?

‍Online applications for undergraduate scholarship and leadership awards will be available beginning November 7. The deadline to submit an application for the scholarship and leadership awards is February 28.

When will I be notified if I have been selected?

Applicants will be notified in May as to whether or not they have been selected to receive a Bailey Scholarship.

Do I have to submit an official transcript?

You may upload an unofficial academic history OR an official transcript.

To retrieve your unofficial academic history from UIUC, please visit your Self Service account. If you need help finding that, please visit this page.

To retrieve an official transcript from UIUC, visit the Registrar Transcript Site.

If your high school does not offer an electronic transcript option, use a scanner to create a pdf of your transcript or contact Jen Romine, Bailey Scholarship Administrator, at (217) 337-1500 for more options.

DON'T wait until the last minute. It can take your guidance office approximately 5 days to process your request. The YMCA will give a 5-day grace period after the deadline to receive transcripts but you don't want all of your hard work to be wasted because you did not order a transcript!

Am I eligible for a Bailey award if I plan to graduate this fall?

Yes, you may apply for a Bailey Scholarship even if you will not be enrolled in the spring. However, the Bailey Scholarship award is divided amongst two semesters so you would only receive ½ of the total award possible (i.e. $2,000 for one semester if you are chosen for a scholarship or $3,000 if you are chosen for the Bailey Leadership award.

Is there an income requirement?

There is no income requirement to be eligible as a Bailey scholar. However, financial need is considered in evaluating applications.

How many recommendations do I need?

Every application must include at least one reference request with the option of including a second. In considering whether to submit a second reference, consider the following:

• How familiar are your references with your leadership, service, and activism? It is better to have one strong recommendation that speaks directly to the Bailey decision criteria than two recommendations that do not.
• Are you involved in multiple organizations or initiatives? Would having more than one recommendation create a fuller picture of your involvement?

Upperclassmen, especially rising seniors, are strongly encouraged to submit two reference requests.

REFERENCES DO NOT NEED TO SUBMIT A LETTER. THEY WILL BE ASKED TO COMPLETE A RECOMMENDATION FORM IN THE SCHOLARSHIP PLATFORM. SEE EXAMPLE HERE.

What is the deadline to submit letters of recommendation?

All recommendation forms must be submitted no later than March 5, but you must identify and provide contact information for your references when you submit your application. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all recommendations are submitted by the March 5 deadline. We highly recommend that you contact your references personally before submitting their email to the application to ensure they look for the email generated by the application system and are aware of the deadline.

Who should I ask to be a reference?

A good reference should be familiar with your involvement and impact in your community. References can be an advisor, an instructor, a fellow organization member, a volunteer supervisor, a community leader, or anyone else who can speak to your character, passions, leadership, and how you are making a difference.

How can I apply for the Leadership award?

All undergraduate students who will graduate during the upcoming academic year are automatically considered for the leadership award. You do not need to fill out a separate application.

I received a Bailey scholarship previously. Can I still apply?

Students who received a Bailey Scholarship may reapply for the scholarship. If you plan to graduate during the upcoming year, you will also be eligible for a Bailey Leadership Award. For more information, contact Jen Romine, Bailey Scholarship Administrator, at baileyscholar@universityymca.org or call (217) 337-1500.

Will this scholarship affect my financial aid package?

All Bailey Scholarships are reported to the University of Illinois Office of Student Financial Aid office and are considered part of your total financial aid. Every individual student's financial aid package is unique, and therefore this award may have no effect on one student's financial aid package while it could replace a grant, loan, or other award in another student's financial aid package. The Fred S. Bailey Scholarship program does not have access to individual student's award information. To learn more about how the Bailey Scholarship could impact your financial aid, we encourage you to contact the Office of Student Financial Aid at finaid@illinois.edu or (217) 333-0100.

Who evaluates my application?

Bailey Readers are the volunteers responsible for selecting Bailey Scholars. They are University YMCA board members, Y alumni, community leaders and activists, and University of Illinois faculty and staff. To learn more about volunteer opportunities with the Bailey program, email bailey@universityymca.org or call (217) 337-1500.