The 2026 Desire To Inspire Scholarship is a one-time financial award of $3500 (1st place – $2000, 2nd place – $1000, 3rd place – $500) dedicated to recognizing young individuals from historically underrepresented minority groups who are interested in a career in healthcare and are making a determined effort to inspire others in some way, shape or form. The award can be used for educational purposes that will help the recipients reach their goals and their full potential while continuing to inspire others!
The Review Process
After the submission deadline has passed (Sunday, July 12th, 2026), each eligible application will be thoroughly reviewed by several judges using the following criteria:
- Specificity & Detail
- Authenticity & Voice
- Reflection & Growth
- Spelling & Grammar
- Coherence & Organization
Each applicant will receive a score from each judge, and these scores will be averaged into one single score per applicant.
The Semi-Finalist Interview
Once all applications have been reviewed and scores tallied, a select group of top applicants will be invited to participate in a virtual interview with members of the scholarship committee as semi-finalists. The interview will consist of a prepared prompt as well as a small number of follow-up questions based on the responses from the scholarship application. Semi-finalists will be notified of their selection and contacted separately with interview details.
Each semi-finalist's interview will be scored by the committee across three dimensions:
- Authenticity & Ownership
- Empathy & Clarity of Message
- Connection To Healthcare Identity
The interview score will be combined with the written application score to determine the five finalists who advance to the voting round.
The Voting Round
The five finalists advancing to the voting round will be notified of their selection and will take part in an online voting competition to help determine the winners of the scholarship. This competition serves two purposes:
- It gives these incredible students a way to share with the world what they are doing to inspire others around them.
- It gives the public the chance to actively participate in a scholarship process that was funded by them.
The competition will take place on a separate page on this site, hosting the photos of the five finalists, links to their scholarship responses, and a poll where voters can make their selections. The outcome of the voting competition will constitute 10% of the overall score, with the judges' scores constituting 90%.
The Winners
After the voting competition ends, the final scores will be tallied and the winners of the 2026 Desire To Inspire Scholarship will be officially announced. The three winners will receive their scholarship awards and each of the five finalists will receive a certificate. In the unlikely event of a tie, the scholarship will be split between the individuals engaged in it.
Scholarship Timeline:
- Scholarship Application Submission Deadline: Sunday, July 12th, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
- Semi-Finalist Notification & Interviews: September 2026
- Finalist Notification & Voting Competition: October 2026
- Announcement of The 2026 Desire To Inspire Scholarship Winners: October/November 2026
Scholarship Criteria:
- Will be a U.S. High School Junior or Senior in the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 academic school year (Students graduating from high school in Spring/Summer 2026 are not eligible)
- Member of one or more of the following historically underrepresented minority racial or ethnic groups: (Black/African-American, Native American, Latinx-American)
- Interested in Pursuing a Career in Healthcare
- Minimum Cumulative GPA of 2.5
The questions and instructions found in the scholarship application can also be found below for your convenience:
Prompt 1: What Inspiration Means to You
Your Definition (25 words max): Complete this sentence: “Inspiration is…”
Your Moment (150 words max): Describe one specific moment when you inspired, supported, or uplifted another person. Include where you were, who was involved, and what happened.
Your Action (100 words max): What did you specifically do or say in that moment, and why did you choose that approach?
What You Took Away (75 words max): What was the outcome and what did it teach you?
Your Future Platform (100 words max): Name one specific audience you want to serve in your healthcare career, one method you would use to uplift them, and one way you would know your efforts are making a difference.
Prompt 2: Your Intentional Action
What You Do (75 words max): Describe one specific action you are currently taking to inspire or uplift people around you.
How Often and How Long (25 words max): How often do you do this? How long have you been doing it?
A Memorable Moment (100 words max): Describe one small moment, interaction, or detail from doing this action that has stayed with you. What makes it memorable?
The Difference It Is Making (100 words max): What have you seen change as a direct result of what you are doing?
Prompt 3: Who You Are When No One Is Watching
Behind the Scenes (100 words max): Describe one meaningful thing you do regularly that most people around you never see or recognize. Be specific about what it is, who is involved, how often you do it, and how long you have been doing it.
Why It Matters to You (100 words max): Why do you keep doing this, even without recognition or reward? What drives you to show up for it consistently?
What It Has Taught You (100 words max): Based on what you just described, what has doing this taught you about the healthcare professional you want to become? Point to one specific moment or realization that brought that lesson into focus.
Click “The 2024 Desire To Inspire Scholarship” link at the top of the page and you can submit your scholarship materials through the Kaleidoscope scholarship platform!