Applications Now Open to Apply for the BOLD Women's Leadership Scholarship!

By Samantha Elebiary, December 9, 2021

Calling students who identify as women or female and will graduate in 2024 to apply for the BOLD Women's Leadership Network (BOLD Program Scholarship)!

Dear students,
I am pleased to announce the application process for the BOLD Women’s Leadership Scholarship is open. The BOLD Program is an innovative women’s leadership initiative funded by the Helen Gurley Brown Foundation. BOLD scholars are awarded a two-year scholarship of up to $27,500 per year, and those selected will become part of a cohort of about 10 students. I invite you to review the details on the IC BOLD website at https://www.ithaca.edu/bold-womens-leadership-network carefully and read the information below. If you are interested in applying to become a BOLD Scholar, please complete the information as outlined. We are very excited to offer this amazing leadership and career networking opportunity to our current sophomore students who identify as women or female that will be graduating in 2024 (likely current sophomores that will be juniors in the fall, but please contact me if you have any questions about class standing).

I look forward to speaking with you at one of the three information sessions being held. These are not required, but encouraged. If you choose to attend, you only need to attend one, as they will all be the same.

BOLD Scholars
If you are interested in applying for the BOLD Scholarship for the 2022-2024 academic years, please do so by Monday, January 10th, at 11:59pm. The application can be found here: https://www.cognitoforms.com/IthacaCollege21/IthacaCollegeBOLDWomensLeadershipNetworkApplicationForm

A complete application consists of the application form, a recommendation from at least one current Ithaca College faculty or staff member (link to the recommendation form is below), and a PDF copy of your unofficial transcript sent to bold@ithaca.edu. The criteria candidates must meet to be considered for the BOLD scholarship are:
• Class of 2024 - planning to graduate in May, summer, or December of 2024
• Students who identify as women or female
• Full-time enrollment with good academic standing (minimum of 2.5 cumulative GPA. Applicants with a cumulative GPA of 2.2-2.5 will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the selection committee)
• Exceptional leadership potential including strong critical thinking skills
• Demonstrated ability to work well in groups and capacity to facilitate challenging discourse
• BOLD Scholars are NOT required to reside on campus for the duration of the program (meaning you can live off-campus or be a commuter student)
• The scholarship is need based and determined based on your FAFSA and current financial aid package – please contact financial aid if you have questions about your eligibility based on financial need

Please be sure to ask a faculty or staff member to complete the recommendation form on your behalf, which can be found here. You must have at least one recommendation, but you can have more than one if you feel they can speak to different areas. 

Students will be selected via a two-stage interview process. The first is a group interview, where a group of finalists will be selected to participate in an individual interview. From the pool of all applicants, the final cohort of about 10 students will be selected around February 11th.


Please keep these important dates in your calendar:

  • Application will be open from Wednesday, December 8th, at 12:01am, through Monday, January 10th, at 11:59pm
  • Application and unofficial academic transcript must be submitted by Monday, January 10th, at 11:59pm
  • At least one recommendation must be submitted by Friday, January 21st, at 11:59pm
  • Group Interviews will be held during the weekend of January 17th - January 23rd. Please hold time on your calendar for these interviews. All eligible candidates will be invited to participate in the group interviews.
  • After group interviews, approximately 20-25 students will be invited to participate in the next phase, which is the individual interview.
  • Individual Interviews will be held from January 31st - February 4th (you will receive information about scheduling a date/time that works for you)
  • The final cohort will be selected, and notifications will take place around February 11th 

Any questions or concerns can be sent to bold@ithaca.edu.

Warmest regards,
Samantha Elebiary, BOLD Program Director