the voyager scholarship obama

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The Voyager Scholarship: Everything You Need to Know

Gabriel Jimenez-Ekman is a content editor and writer at Scholarships360. He has managed communications and written content for a diverse array of organizations, including a farmer’s market, a concert venue, a student farm, an environmental NGO, and a PR agency. Gabriel graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in sociology.

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The Voyager Scholarship is an exciting opportunity offered as a joint effort by former President Obama and Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. The scholarship offers up to $50,000 in financial aid to help finish out your last two years of college, plus exciting travel benefits. If you are planning on enrolling full-time as a junior in college in Fall 2023, read on to find out how you might benefit from this scholarship.

Don’t miss: Scholarships360’s free scholarship search tool

What is the Voyager Scholarship?

The Voyager Scholarship is one of the Obama Foundation’s efforts, in conjunction with Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky, to help fund students’ college education. The scholarship is unique in that it does not only help pay for your education – it also offers you funds to travel and expand your studies beyond the classroom setting. Any student would be very lucky to receive this scholarship, as it helps lighten the load on your wallet and encourages you to travel the world for many years to come.

Who can apply for the Voyager Scholarship?

The application period for the 2022-2023 scholarship is now closed, and the foundation has not yet announced its requirements for the 2023-2024 school year. However, we have included last year’s requirements below. By all indications, they will remain similar or entirely the same next year.

• This includes students who are transferring from two-year to four-year institutions; if this describes your situation, you are eligible to apply!
• Applicants must have demonstrated interest and be pursuing a career in public service. This can have a wide range of applications, including teachers, medical professionals, politicians, environmental protection workers, social workers, firefighters, public policy-makers, and many more
• Applicants must demonstrate financial need. They use a formula similar to the federal methodology for determining your need ; they’ll collect their own financial data from you in the application and then it’ll undergo a similar analysis as your CSS Profile or FAFSA.
• Applicants must hold a minimum 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale
• Applicants must be US Citizens, Permanent Residents, or DACA holders

What benefits does the Voyager Scholarship include?

First and foremost, the Voyager Scholarship offers up to $25,000 per year for your two remaining years of college, totalling a whopping $50,000 in financial aid. Depending on the school you’re attending and your other financial aid, this could cover the majority of your costs. 

But it doesn’t stop there. The scholarship sets up recipients for success with a few other benefits, namely the Summer Voyage, the Fall Summit, a 10-year travel stipend, and access to the Obama Foundation professional network. Let’s get into what each of these benefits entails.

Related: Public Service Loan Forgiveness: What it is and how it can help you

What is the Summer Voyage?

Perhaps the most exciting of the additional benefits is the Summer Voyage. The summer between your junior and senior year, you will receive a $10,000 stipend, plus free housing through Airbnb, to pursue a work-travel experience of your own design. This gives you the freedom to broaden your worldview, meet new people, and explore new corners of the globe, entirely on the scholarship’s dime. Since it’s all up to you, you can really do whatever you’d like with the time and indulge any interest you may have.

You could take the opportunity to strengthen your proficiency in a foreign language, get hands-on experience in a context entirely separate from what you’d see in the United States, and more. At the end of the day, you’ll face few limitations with what you can do with the time; $10,000 on top of free housing is no small sum for a summer’s worth of exploration! Odds are, you’ll return a new person when your senior year comes around.

What will occur at the Fall Summit?

During the autumn of your junior and senior years, you’ll attend a leadership summit organized by the foundation, and meet your fellow Voyage Scholarship recipients. In 2022, both former President Obama and Brian Chesky were present at this summit. This is a great opportunity to meet peers with similar interests from across the country, and gain inspiration on how to pursue your career in public service.

Also see: Top 15 community service scholarships

How can I use my 10-year travel stipend?

As if the other benefits from the scholarship weren’t enough, they also throw in a $2,000 annual travel credit for the 10 years after graduation. That means you’ll receive $2,000 from Airbnb every year for 10 years, totaling $20,000 in benefits. As the scholarship is built around the importance of traveling the world to provide quality public service, they want to keep you mobile after you enter the professional world.

So, the benefits from this scholarship will end up lasting much longer than your college years. For an entire decade after you finish school, you’ll benefit from the ability to travel the globe on the dime of the Obama Foundation and Brian Chesky.

Additional networking opportunities

In addition to everything listed above, the scholarship provides lasting connections in the Obama Foundation network. Throughout your time in the program, you’ll receive invitations to a variety of summits and talks to help network and improve your leadership skills. And upon graduation, you’ll enter the worldwide foundation network and have the resources to communicate to prestigious professionals around the world.

How do I apply?

Although the Voyager Scholarship is designed and funded by the Obama Foundation and Brian Chesky, it is officially administered by Scholarship America . When it reopens for the 2023-2024 school year, you’ll be able to find the full application there.

In 2022, they required a relatively comprehensive application, including transcripts, detailed financial information including tax forms for verification, and essays. To get updates on when applications open, you can sign up for the scholarship newsletter .

When are applications due?

Although application dates have not yet been announced for the 2023-2024 school year, we can use last year’s dates as a general guide as to when they will be. In 2022, the applications were open from May 16 – June 15. This is a relatively short application window, so make sure to start checking back in April of 2023 to get a head start on your application and maximize your chances of earning the scholarship.

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Application tips for the Voyager Scholarship

So, now that we’ve told you how great the Voyager Scholarship is, let’s get into the best ways to earn it. Since the essay prompts are not out yet for 2023-2024, we can’t break down the individual prompts, but we can offer you a guide to what you should emphasize in your application. The scholarship is driven by a very strong mission which they describe on their website: 

“An increasingly globalized world needs young leaders who can bridge divides and help solve our biggest challenges together… Exposure to new places and experiences generates understanding, empathy, and cooperation which equips the next generation to create meaningful change.”

As you can see here, the mission of the scholarship is to better-equip a generation of public service leaders by offering them the resources to travel the world and gain new perspectives, empathy, and expertise. So, there are a few angles from which you can approach this. One great method would be to describe meaningful travel experiences you’ve had in the past, and connect them with your desire to work in public service. 

What to describe in your essays

One possibility for students is to describe a travel experience to a country where you found that they did something differently than we do in America. Perhaps you went to Sweden and were impressed by the state of their welfare system. Or maybe you visited the Netherlands and noticed their use of bicycles instead of cars. You could write about how these experiences inspired you to push for similar change in the United States. On the flipside, you could write about a service trip you took to a country experiencing economic hardship, and the things you learned in working with people from other nations.

You don’t need to have traveled already

And if you haven’t spent much time out of the country, don’t worry! This scholarship is meant to send people on journeys who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to go. There are many different ways to show your passion for making international discoveries. 

You may have been inspired by a visit to the bodega down the block or a neighborhood that serves as a cultural enclave in your city. Maybe you have friends who are first or second generation immigrants, or there’s a book or a movie from another country that inspired you. You could have watched a documentary about something that took place in another country and been inspired by an aspect of their lifestyle. In our increasingly globalized world, there are countless ways to glean inspiration from other cultures, so be creative with it, and seek out these opportunities whenever you can.

Either way, make sure to emphasize your desire to help the world, and the ways in which travel can help you accomplish this goal. This isn’t just a scholarship for those who hope to make a positive change; it’s for those who know how to translate travel experiences into meaningful growth opportunities, and use what they learned to help people.

Don’t miss: Top study abroad scholarships

Key Takeaways

• The Voyager Scholarship offers up to $50,000 in financial aid for current college sophomores pursuing a career in public service who have demonstrated financial need
• The scholarship also comes with a variety of travel scholarships and networking opportunities, totaling over $30,000 in additional benefits
• Applications typically are open between May and June for the following autumn
• In order to maximize your chances, make sure to emphasize in your application your ambition for utilizing travel experiences to make the world a better place

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Overview and Introduction

Founded in 2022, the Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service provides up to $80,000 for the undergraduate education and professional development of outstanding young people from all corners of the United States who are committed to public service leadership. 

The funding comes from a joint collaboration between the Obama Foundation and a personal financial contribution by Airbnb Co-founder and CEO Brian Cheskey. The two-year scholarship program for US-based students in their junior and senior years of college offers unique opportunities for those who are committed to pursuing careers that serve the public and their communities. This scholarship defines “public service” to include careers in government, nonprofit, or the private sector, ranging from school teachers, community organizers, social workers, entrepreneurs with ideas for socially impactful businesses, journalism, arts, and design — a range of fields through which people are committed to creating a more connected, just, and equitable world. 

Students of all academic fields are encouraged to apply. 

Eligibility:

• Academics:  Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or equivalent.
• Citizenship: U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent residents (holders of a Permanent Resident Card), or individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA).
• Degree-Level:  Juniors in Fall 2024: Finishing sophomore year in Spring 2024. Applicants should be considered “juniors” based on the total number of earned credits at their institution by Fall 2024 or having two years of full time enrollment remaining before earning your Bachelor’s degree.Alternatively, students may be transferring from a two-year to a four-year college for their 2024-2025 junior academic year.
• Other:  Demonstrated commitment to public service, demonstrated financial need, plan to pursue a future career in public service upon graduation, able to commit to fully participating in once per month programming including individual meetings with coaches and network connections as well as developing an actionable Summer Voyage plan.

Application Deadlines

• National Deadline:  Thursday, March 27, 2024 at 11:59 PM United States Central Time (UTC-6.)
• Endorsement:  This scholarship does not require U-M endorsement. Applications are on the Voyager Scholarship website.
• Finalist Notification: May 2024
• Scholarship Awardee Notifications: June - July 2024
• Funds Disbursed: July - October 2024

Prospective Applicants

Prospective applicants are encouraged to reach out to ONSF for an advising appointment. If you are a U-M student or are a transfer student to U-M and would like to receive a link for this year’s U-M Voyager Scholarship Info Session, please email our office at [email protected]. 

Application Summary

Voyager applicants should refer to the Voyager Scholarship site for full, detailed instructions. Note: this application has only very brief essays, and requires no references. 

Fill out the Voyager Application on the Voyager website, which includes question categories:

Cataloging of your Public Service Experience, Work Experience, Other Activities, Other Leadership Programs

Short essays on your public service issue, summer voyage plans, curiosity in broadening your perspectives, challenges to your values, changes you have implemented, problems you wish to solve, and how you intend to take action after receiving your degree.

A brief description of any personal circumstances that affected your achievement in school and work.

A two-minute video that addresses the following:

What gives you hope for the future? 

How does public service fit into your vision for that future? 

How does bridge building and understanding play a role in this vision? 

How will the Voyager Scholarship help? 

What do you hope to learn from your fellow Voyagers?

Note: This video does not need to be of high production quality; it should contain nothing but you, talking about your plans. More details are available in the Voyager Scholarship application.

3. University Transcript(s). This includes U-M transcripts, and/or any transferring institutions transcripts.

Review full eligibility requirements and selection criteria on the Voyager Scholarship website .

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The Voyager Scholarship: Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service

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Administered by the Obama Foundation and funded by a $100 million contribution from Brian Chesky, Airbnb Co-Founder and CEO, The Voyager Scholarship:  Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship for Public Service helps students eligible for need-based financial aid pursue careers in public service by providing access to travel and education.

With a budget of $10,000, 100 students will design their own summer voyage between their junior and senior year of college. The experience will allow students to pursue internships or mentorship opportunities anywhere in the world that will broaden their horizons and prepare them for careers in public service. Students will also be able to stay in homes on Airbnb using credits provided by Airbnb.

Deadline: Wednesday, March 22, 2023 ( US Central Time)

Eligibility Requirements:

• Students who completed their sophomore year and will be Juniors in Fall 2023 with GPA of 3.0
• Demonstrated commitment to public service and plan to pursue a career in public service
• US citizens, permanent residents (Permanent Resident Card), or holders of deferred action status through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
• Demonstrated financial need through submission of 1040 tax forms of the student (and parent(s) if the student is a dependent)
• Preference may be given to applicants with no or limited prior engagement with other leadership programs in their undergraduate experience

Recipients will receive the following:

• Financial aid up to $50,000: Students will receive up to $25,000 per year in “last dollar” financial aid to cover remaining tuition and/or living costs for their junior and senior years of college (Applicants should check with their Financial Aid Officer to understand how this aid might affect their Penn financial aid package)
• Summer Voyage: With a budget of $10,000, students will design their own summer voyage between their junior and senior year of college. The experience will allow students to pursue internships or mentorship opportunities anywhere in the world that will broaden their horizons and prepare them for careers in public service. Students will also be able to stay in homes on Airbnb using credits provided by Airbnb
• 10-year travel stipend: After graduation, Airbnb will provide the students with a $2,000 travel credit every year for 10 years, totaling $20,000. This will allow students to continue to broaden their horizons and forge new connections throughout their public service careers
• Fall Summit: Voyagers will be invited to an annual Fall Summit. This fall, the summit will include a meeting with President Obama, Brian Chesky, and other leaders. They will also get access to a network of other Voyagers and alumni with whom they can connect with at the summit and beyond
• A network of leaders: Throughout the program, students will be invited to an ongoing speaker series, giving them access to a network of leaders. This network of leaders will expose them to new areas of service and innovations happening in their fields. After graduation, they will join the Obama Foundation’s global community, providing them with Foundation resources and programming

More information: https://www.obama.org/voyager-scholarship-faqs/

Application and required materials: https://learnmore.scholarsapply.org/obama-chesky-scholarship/

Sophomores who apply for the Voyager Scholarship who are planning graduate study in preparation for a career in non-profit or public service work (broadly defined) are strongly encouraged to consider applying for the Truman Scholarship for Public Service during the fall of their junior year.

Contact Information

Application questions may be directed to:   [email protected]

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For yale undergrads, obama ‘voyager’ scholarships offer access to the world.

Diego Lopez and Abnner Olivares

Diego Lopez ’24 and Abnner Olivares ’24 have a lot in common. Both are the first in their Latinx families to attend college. Both hail from Los Angeles and both share a deep interest in public service, addressing inequality, and seeing the world to learn more about the experiences and perspectives of others.

And last summer, the two learned of yet another commonality: They were among 100 American college juniors chosen to join the first cohort of Voyager Scholars. Established by the Obama Foundation and Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky, the Voyager Scholarship supports college juniors who plan a career in public service.

Scholarship winners, who were chosen from some 1,800 applicants, are “from every corner of the country and share a curiosity about the world and the conviction to make positive change within it,” former President Barack Obama and Chesky said in announcing the first Voyager Scholars.

In addition to receiving up to $25,000 in financial aid for both their junior and senior years, Lopez and Olivares will also receive a $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing to support work and travel during the upcoming summer. Then, after they graduate, Airbnb will provide a $2,000 travel credit to each of them every year for the next 10 years so they can “broaden their horizons and forge new connections throughout their public service careers.”

Lopez and Olivares met as members of Sube, the Yale Latinx Pre-Professional Association. They were also both involved in the New York City-based Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America, which promotes fair and equitable education for children and young adults, and have traveled together to Washington, D.C. to advocate for higher education policy reform.

Last November, they joined with other Voyager Scholars for the first-ever Obama Foundation Democracy Forum in New York City. During the event, they joined panel discussions and heard lightning talks featuring leaders and experts from around the world, examining such issues as the threats of disinformation, climate change, embracing pluralism in democratic societies, and how to build more inclusive economies. Speakers included university presidents and professors, former members of the Obama cabinet, journalists, and government officials from around the world. Obama himself addressed the crowd about ways to promote and strengthen democratic ideals worldwide.

“ It was a pleasure to meet President Obama,” said Lopez. “One of the reasons I’m involved in political endeavors now and would like to be in the future is because of him. Seeing him in person took my appreciation to a different level. It felt great to shake his hand. He has one of the firmest handshakes ever.”

A “HOPE” poster with an image of the nation’s first Black president hangs in Lopez’s dorm room in Berkeley College. Olivares’s bedroom at home in Los Angeles is also decorated with Obama posters.

“ For the longest time, I’ve told myself that I would meet Obama one way or another,” said Olivares, who remembers watching TV excitedly as a seven-year-old with his father when Obama was declared winner of the 2008 election. “I think it is just because of the kind of hope that he inspires, being our first president who is a person of color. It just heightens my confidence in the world and what the world can be moving forward.”

In monthly workshops, the Voyager Scholars gather for online discussions, often with governmental leaders. Most recently, they had the chance to talk with Cecilia Munoz, whose various positions in the Obama administration included serving as the president’s director of domestic policy.

At Yale, Olivares helped revive the organization formerly known as FLY (First-Generation Low-Income at Yale) and now called YFAM (Yale First Gen and/or Low- income Advocacy Movement), which advocates for and supports students who are the first in their families to attend college and/or are from families with low incomes. He is a first-year counselor in Silliman College [he was originally a member of the Class of 2023 but took a semester off during the pandemic] and is also active in the service-minded La Unidad Latina (LUL) fraternity on campus.

Olivares, who is majoring in global affairs, has designed his own summer internship, which will include visits to six U.S. cities to study urban inequality. In particular, he plans to investigate outcomes of the federal Opportunity Zones Program, which gives incentives to public and private stakeholders to develop economically distressed cities. He hopes to create a photographic docuseries based on his conversations with officials involved in development projects and with local citizens to illustrate his research findings.

Lopez is majoring in political science and is a Human Rights Scholar at Yale Law School. This summer he will be interning with Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agustín Pro Juarez in Mexico City, a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote and defend human rights in Mexico. Throughout his voyages, he is interested in in exploring the intersection of democracy, governance, and human rights to contribute to the construction of more just, equitable, and democratic societies.

“ The Voyager Scholarship opens so many doors and gives us access to the world,” Lopez said. “My advice to other students interested in applying for this great opportunity is just to believe in yourself and take a leap, and understand what public service means to you.”

Added Olivares: “Many different people contribute to creating a better world. You can run for office or you can be a doctor or you can lead a nonprofit. Leaders are needed everywhere. I think all you need to make a difference is a desire to help others.”

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Voyager Scholarship: Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service

Website: Obama Foundation

Description

An increasingly globalized world needs young leaders who can bridge divides and help solve our biggest challenges together. The Voyager Scholarship was created by the Obamas and Brian Chesky, Airbnb CEO, to help shape such leaders. Even though they come from different backgrounds, both the President and Brian believe that exposure to new places and experiences generates understanding, empathy, and cooperation which equips the next generation to create meaningful change.

This scholarship gives college students financial aid to alleviate the burden of college debt, meaningful travel experiences to expand their horizons, and a network of mentors and leaders to support them.

The scholarship provides ( see more extensive details ):

• Up to $50,000 in financial aid
• A $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing for a summer work-travel experience
• 10-year travel stipend of $2,000/year
• Annual fall summit
• Network of leaders

Eligibility

This scholarship program is looking for young people from every corner of the US who share a curiosity about the world and the conviction to want to make positive change within it—just like its founders. Students should have a passion for helping others, experience serving in or building community, and an expansive view of what’s possible through public service.

Applicants must meet all of the following eligibility criteria:

• Plan to enroll full-time in their junior year of study at an accredited four-year college or university in the United States in Fall. Eligible students are:
• Finishing sophomore year in Spring
• Or transferring from a two-year to a four-year college for their junior academic year next year
• Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, or equivalent
• Have demonstrated a commitment to public service
• Plan to pursue a career in public service upon graduation. The program has a broad definition of public service, which includes careers in government, non-profits or the private sector. A career in public service includes a range of occupations—from community organizing to social work and from entrepreneurship to the arts—all committed to solving our biggest challenges together.
• Be a United States (US) citizen, US permanent resident (holder of a Permanent Resident Card), or an individual granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA)

Preference may be given to applicants with no or limited prior engagement with other leadership programs in their undergraduate experience. Students must demonstrate financial need to be considered for the program.

Please see eligibility full requirements for additional details & FAQs.

• Permanent Resident
• Undocumented

Apply online at https://learnmore.scholarsapply.org/obama-chesky-scholarship/ . 

Application materials include:

• Information about education, work, public service experiences, leadership program experience and other activities
• Brief information about your public service path (250 character maximum): If chosen as a Voyager Scholarship recipient, tell us about the issue or field you’re interested in exploring during the program.
• 2-minute video on the topic: What gives you hope for the future? How does public service fit into your vision for that future? How does connection and understanding play a role in this vision? How will this program help?
• If you are chosen as a Voyager Scholarship recipient, what would you like to focus on during your Summer Voyage? What are you hoping to learn? How can travel and exposure to new experiences help with these goals?
• When was the last time your perspective changed? Who or what changed your perspective? How did this shape the type of impact you want to make in the future?
• What values motivate you? As you look back on challenges, what did you learn and how did those values guide you?
• Tell us about an experience in your life when you created positive change within a community. Describe the experience: What problem did you address? What community did you serve? What was the impact? How did this experience shape your view of public service?
• Please describe how and when any unusual family or personal circumstances have affected your achievement in school, your work experience, or your participation in school and community activities.
• What’s a problem that you’d like to solve? How would the world be different if it were solved? How would you use creativity, cooperation, and a shared vision to solve this? How are you already having an impact?  
• Based on the vision you shared in your previous response, what would you like to accomplish one year after graduation? What would success look like five years after graduation? How will you collaborate with others to get this done?
• Financial information

As part of your application, you must also upload the following:

• A current, complete transcript of grades. Grade reports are not accepted. Transcripts must display:
• Student name
• School name
• Grades and credit hours for each course
• Term in which each course was taken
• A copy of pages one and two of the most recently filed 1040 form used to complete the financial section of the application.
• If you are claimed as a dependent, please supply financial information and the tax form from your parent(s) or guardian(s).
• If you are independent, please supply financial information and the tax form for yourself.

Contact Information

Please see the very helpful FAQs , which answer most questions.

Please reach out to Scholarship America at  [email protected] for additional questions.

Award Details

Number of Awards: 100

Award Amount: $50,000 financial aid, $10,000 travel stipend and more

• June: Deadline

Copyright © 2007–2024 University of Washington . Managed by the Center for Experiential Learning & Diversity , a unit of Undergraduate Academic Affairs .

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OURS National Scholarships

Voyager scholarship.

Next deadline: March 2025

The Voyager Scholarship (Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service) provides “last-dollar” scholarships of up to $50,000 to help shape 100 young leaders who can bridge divides and help solve our biggest challenges by giving college students financial aid to alleviate the burden of college debt, meaningful travel experiences to expand their horizons, and a network of mentors and leaders to support them in their public service careers. Recipients will also receive a $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing to pursue a summer work-travel experience between their junior and senior year of college, as well as a $2,000 travel credit for the next ten years.

Prospective applicants should make an individual advising appointment with Keila Diehl in the OURS National Scholarships Office.

Eligibility Requirements:

Applicants must meet ALL of these eligibility criteria, both at the time of application and upon enrollment for the Fall 2025 term:

• Plan to enroll full-time in their junior year of study at an accredited college or university in the United States in Fall 2025 • Be completing their sophomore year in Spring 2025 or transferring from a 2-year to a 4-year college or university for their junior academic year. (“Junior” is defined as having earned the needed number of credits at your institution to be considered a “Junior,” or having two years of full time enrollment remaining before earning your Bachelor’s degree.) • Demonstrate financial need (this is calculated using a similar formula to the FAFSA) • Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0, or equivalent • Have demonstrated a commitment to public service • Plan to pursue a career in public service* upon graduation • Be a US citizen, US permanent resident (holder of a Permanent Resident Card), or an individual granted deferred action status under DACA • Be able to commit to fully participating in once per month programming, including individual meetings with coaches and network connections as well as developing an actionable Summer Voyage plan.

*”Public service” includes a broad range of paths that advance greater societal good. This work most frequently occurs through the nonprofit and government sectors but can also include the arts, social entrepreneurship, and advancing corporate social responsibility for instance.

Please note: Preference may be given to applicants with no or limited prior engagement with other leadership programs in their undergraduate experience.

Selection Criteria

• Possess an interest in building bridges across communities • Demonstrate curiosity and dedication to being a life-long learner • Demonstrate a values-based and collaborative approach to leadership • Demonstrate a willingness to learn from and share with other Voyagers in a group setting

Application Requirements

• Applicants must create an account to access complete requirements, which include, in part: • short responses to 8 prompts • 2-minute video • current, complete transcript of grades that includes student name, school name, grades and credit hours for each course, and term in which each course was taken • financial aid information

For more information about this opportunity, visit the Voyager Scholarship website  (opens external site )

Announcements

• Junior Tiffany Mar Selected as Udall Scholar for Environmental Work
• Two Alums From Class Of ’22 Selected As Knight-Hennessy Scholars!
• Junior Eli Glickman Awarded Truman Scholarship!
• Campus application deadline for Global Rhodes Scholarship: July 15, 2024 (noon)
• Campus application deadline for Rhodes Scholarship: August 15, 2024 (noon)

Featured News

Junior Tiffany Mar Selected as Udall Scholar for Environmental Work May 8, 2024

Two Alums from Class of ’22 Selected as Knight-Hennessy Scholars! May 7, 2024

Junior Eli Glickman Awarded Truman Scholarship! April 29, 2024

• Gates Cambridge
• Knight-Hennessy
• Quad Fellowship
• Samvid Scholars
• UK Summer Fulbright

Voyager Scholarship

• Scholarship Searches

The Voyager Scholarship (Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service) provides up to $80,000 ($25,000/yr of financial aid for junior and senior year, $10,000 for a summer experience, and ten years of $2,000 Airbnb credits) for students focused on public service careers. U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or DACA recipients who are entering their junior year with a 3.0+ GPA and demonstrated financial need are eligible.

The scholarship is awarded to students who plan to pursue a career in public service. A career in public service includes a range of occupations in government, non-profits or the private sector, from community organizing to social work and from entrepreneurship to the arts—all committed to solving our biggest challenges together.

2023-24 Voyager Scholarship Winners

Voyager Scholarship Information Sessions

January 28, 2025  from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in 514 IUB.

Students are encouraged to submit drafts of their Voyager application well in advance of the priority deadline to receive feedback from us. Attach your scholarship application materials in an  email , along with a few potential meeting times no earlier than 2 business days after your submission to receive feedback. We are willing to work with students through numerous revisions. 

February 27, 2025, at 12:00 p.m. (noon)

The Voyager does not formally require a university endorsement. Thus, an applicant may choose to independently submit application materials. However, if you are interested in obtaining feedback on your Voyager Scholarship application from a campus committee, then you need to submit materials by this deadline. University faculty and staff who are familiar with the award will review materials received by this date. If materials are submitted late, only the National and International Scholarships program will provide feedback.

Required information includes:

• A signed  Scholarship Waiver  (either scanned or in hardcopy).
• A PDF of your Voyager Scholarship application, including the seven short answer questions and descriptions of activities.

Optional information includes the Voyager-required 2-minute video.

March 27, 2024

A complete Voyager Scholarship application must be submitted online by this date. We would appreciate a copy of all materials prior to submission.

The Voyager will select scholars before the program begins in September.

For official information on the Voyager Scholarship (which supersedes any information provided here) and access to application materials, please visit their  website .

The Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service- Voyager Scholarship

The Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service- Voyager Scholarship Program is a two-year, leadership development and scholarship program, that gives college students financial aid to alleviate the burden of college debt, meaningful travel experiences to expand their connections to new communities, and a network of mentors and leaders to support them. The Scholarship includes:

Up to $50,000 in financial aid: Students will receive up to $25,000 per year in “last dollar” financial aid for their junior and senior years of college to alleviate the burden of college debt so that students can afford to pursue a career in public service.

$10,000 Summer Voyage stipend and free Airbnb housing to pursue a summer work-travel experience between their junior and senior year of college; students will design their own Summer Voyage to gain exposure to new communities and experience in a chosen field.

10-year travel stipend: After graduation, Airbnb will provide the students with a $2,000 Airbnb travel credit every year for 10 years, totaling $20,000. This will allow students to continue to broaden their horizons and forge new connections throughout their public service careers.

Eligibility:

• Plan to enroll full-time in their junior year of study at an accredited four-year college or university in the United States at the start of the scholarship.
• Be United States (US) citizens, US permanent residents (holders of a Permanent Resident Card), or individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA)
• Sophomore at the time of application
• Demonstrated finanicial need.
• Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or equivalent
• Demonstrated a commitment to public service and plan to pursue a future career in public service upon graduation

Application Materials: 

• A completed application
• Personal statement (1,000 words) describing your background, interests, plans for graduate study, and career aspirations
• Three letters of recommendation from Penn State faculty members
• Curriculum vitae or resume

The program Timeline:

Application Open: February 

Application Deadline: March

Notification of Program Finalists: May 

Scholarship Notifications: June - July

Funds Disbursed: July - October 

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The Obamas and Brian Chesky announce Voyager Scholarship recipients

Key Takeaways

• The $100 million the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service supports students pursuing careers in public service with an academic scholarship, exposure to travel, and connections to a network of leaders

Today, President and Mrs. Obama and Brian Chesky, Airbnb co-founder and CEO, announced their inaugural cohort of Voyager Scholarship recipients, 100 rising college juniors who plan to pursue a career in public service. These “Voyagers” are from every corner of the country and share a curiosity about the world and the conviction to want to make positive change within it–just like the scholarship’s founders. 

“Michelle and I know that change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged, and come together to create it,” said President Obama. “These young Voyagers believe in a fairer and more inclusive world, and they’re ready to help us address important challenges in new ways. I can’t wait to see what they accomplish through public service.” 

“Through their stories, it’s clear that each of these Voyagers has a commitment to serving their communities, a deep curiosity about the world and big plans for the future,” said Chesky. “Traveling to new places and connecting with new people will help them turn those plans into reality and I can’t wait to see where they go from here.”

Learn more about the inaugural cohort of Voyagers here . 

Funded by a $100 million personal contribution from Chesky to the Obama Foundation, the Voyager Scholarship is a two-year program for students in their junior and senior years of college from across the United States who are committed to pursuing careers that serve the public and their communities. Voyagers will receive:

• Up to $50,000 in financial aid : Students will receive up to $25,000 per year in financial aid for their junior and senior years of college. This financial aid should alleviate the burden of college debt so that students can afford to pursue a career in public service. 
• Summer Voyage : Students will receive a $10,000 stipend and free Airbnb housing to pursue a summer work-travel experience between their junior and senior year of college. The students will design their own Summer Voyage to gain exposure to new communities and experience in a chosen field. 
• 10-year travel stipend : After graduation, Airbnb will provide the students with a $2,000 travel credit every year for 10 years, totaling $20,000. This will allow students to continue to broaden their horizons and forge new connections throughout their public service careers.
• Fall Convening : Students will be invited to a fall convening to help define their public service voyage. At this year’s gathering they will meet with President Obama and Brian Chesky to discuss the role of empathy and understanding in leadership and public service. They’ll also hear from guest speakers on different approaches to service and connect with other scholarship recipients.
• Network of leaders : Throughout the program, students will be invited to an ongoing speaker series, giving them access to a network of leaders. This network of leaders will expose them to new areas of service and innovations happening in their fields. After graduation, they will join the Obama Foundation’s global community, providing them with Foundation resources and programming.

The inaugural cohort of Voyagers represent 35 states and territories and 70 colleges and universities. They are an inspiring group of young people who are eager to bridge divides and take on the world’s biggest challenges. 

“My goal is to promote U.S. interests abroad while ensuring the safety and security of the global community,” said Munahil Sultana, Inaugural Voyager from Valley Stream, New York. “By traveling and experiencing the cultures and communities of which I hope to work with in the future, I will be able to bring those experiences back to the U.S. and become a true diplomat. This program allows me to turn that dream into a reality. It allows me to hold the pen, to write my own fate without being chained down by the financial burden that often comes with this level of global understanding.”

Munahil’s experience as a South Asian woman growing up in a Muslim family has motivated her to explore the varying cultural perceptions of femininity and the human rights of women in the MENA region, which she plans to do by studying in Egypt and Lebanon during her Summer Voyage. She hopes to pursue a career as a Foreign Service Officer in the future, with immediate plans to apply for a Fulbright Scholarship to research the intersection of Islam and gender policy in the Middle East. 

The Obamas and Brian Chesky believe that exposure to new places and experiences generates understanding, empathy, and cooperation, which equips the next generation to create meaningful change. It’s why the Obamas and Chesky came together to create the Voyager Scholarship—to shape the next generation of leaders like Munahil.  

For more information about the Voyager Scholarship visit voyager-scholarship.obama.org . 

Airbnb’s Brian Chesky Tells Us What He’s Doing With His Billion-Dollar Payday

Elizabeth Casolo , Skift

May 5th, 2024 at 7:52 PM EDT

Brian Chesky’s pay package leaves a lot of money to potentially give away. With an Obama Foundation scholarship, he’s hoping to use his money to go beyond Silicon Valley.

Elizabeth Casolo

We reported last month that Airbnb Co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky’s compensation package could top $1 billion over a decade . It’s a lot, no doubt, but he’s also said he plans to give a lot away.

In a recent interview with Skift, we asked Chesky about his donations so far. He has said he plans to give $100 million in shares to the Airbnb Host Endowment to support hosts. He has also put up money to help house refugees from Ukraine. 

One donation he feels strongly about: “The big thing I did was I donated $100 million — $20 million a year over five years — to the Obama Foundation. He and I created the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service, which I’m really, really proud of,” Chesky said.

What inspired it?

“I remember [Obama] telling me that he had student debt until he wrote his book ‘Audacity of Hope.’ So basically he had student debt almost up to the point he ran for president,” Chesky said. 

He said Obama knew not every student could pursue public service for financial reasons.

“[Obama] told me: I could have gone to corporate law, but I became a community organizer. But a lot of people don’t become community organizers, and then don’t go into public service, because they feel like they can’t afford to,” Chesky said.

This spurred the Voyager Scholarship , also known as the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service.

What do scholarship recipients get?

Along with up to $50,000 to cover remaining college expenses, scholarship recipients get a stipend and free Airbnb housing to cover a work-travel experience, according to the Obama Foundation’s website. Winners also get a total of $20,000 in Airbnb travel credit over 10 years for future travel.

“I feel like a lot of people are getting more and more tribal, more and more insular,” Chesky said. “If you’re gonna serve others… the best education is travel.”

The website says the program also hosts coaching and networking opportunities.

Why look beyond Silicon Valley?

Chesky saw the scholarship as an opportunity to look outside already steep Silicon Valley investments, offering a chance for youth to explore other careers.

“There’s tons of money in the Valley. So I wanted to create, based on this conversation, a scholarship for kids who want to go into public service, but feel like, ‘Well, college is really expensive. I just don’t know if I can afford to,’” Chesky said. “My parents were social workers — and so I was really passionate about that.”

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Tags: airbnb , brian chesky , ceo interviews , ceo pay , ceos , donation , scholarship , short-term rentals , study abroad

Photo credit: Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky (left) spoke with Skift founder Rafat Ali at Skift Global Forum in Manhattan November 21, 2022. Source: Skift Skift