| Resume a previously saved form
Resume Later

In order to be able to resume this form later, please enter your email and choose a password.

LEDA logo


Welcome to the 2022-2023 LEDA Scholars Application!


LEDA is searching the nation for the next Cohort of 100 exceptional students to become LEDA Scholars. We’re excited that you have chosen to apply and are here to support you through the application process.


Please read ALL of the instructions below before starting your application.


The Application Process:


The application process consists of three rounds. The deadline for this round is December 12th at 11:59 PM PST. After each round, an applicant’s submitted material will be evaluated by LEDA staff and a decision will be made as to whether or not the applicant will advance to the next round. Applicants must successfully complete each round (Part I, Part II, and Part III) to be admitted to the LEDA Scholars Program. 


Part I of the application is the most extensive. Part II of the application verifies income eligibility and updated junior year grades. Part III is a 30 minute interview.


Who Should Apply:


1. Junior attending public high school in the U.S. graduating in 2024

2. U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status

3. Annual household income under $90,000

4. Minimum unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.5 


Successful Applicants Demonstrate:


1. A desire to be challenged academically

2. A strong commitment to their studies

3. A desire to be a leader in their families, schools, and communities

4. A connection to LEDA's core values of Excellence, Integrity, Compassion, and Community


LEDA’s review process is holistic, which means that all parts of an application will be considered before making a decision.


LEDA Application Sections:

 

Biographical Information

High School Information

LEDA Survey

Academic Information Request

Teacher Recommendation Request

Activities

Writing Sample Upload

Photo Upload

Family Information

Academic Release

Essay Questions

Optional COVID Supplement 

Supplemental Information


Saving your Application:


1. Select the save and resume later link (located at the top right and bottom right of the page).

2. Enter your email address and create a password. Make sure to enter your email address correctly. You will only be able to access your application with the exact email address and password you use. We recommend that you copy, paste and save the email and password exactly how you enter it on your device. You will need this to regain access to your application. 

3. You will receive an email with a link to resume your application. Do not create a new application if you do not receive an email. Contact recruitment@ledascholars.org and we will help you gain access to your account.

4. To resume, follow the link provided in your email and enter the email and password you used when saving your application.

5. We highly advise applicants to work on/save their long-form answers and activities on google documents or an alternative platform that saves information as they work on it. We cannot retrieve any information that is not saved on the application in the event it is lost.

6. You will receive a PDF copy of your full application upon submission. 


Application Timeline:


September 7th: 2022-23 LEDA Application is open

December 12th: Final deadline at 11:59 PM PST

December-April: Part I applications are reviewed by the recruitment and admissions team

Early March: All Part I applicants are notified

End of March/Early April: All Part II applicants are notified and finalists are invited to participate in a virtual interview

Mid April: All remaining applicants are notified and 100 LEDA Scholars are admitted to the program


Application Help


For questions about the LEDA Scholars program, application, or application process please use this form to submit a help request: Click here to submit a help request


Social Media


Follow LEDA on Social Media!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LEDAScholarsProgram
Twitter: https://twitter.com/leda_scholars
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leda_recruitment/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/LEDAScholars



Biographical Information











Mailing Information
Include apartment number if applicable.

You must be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or have DACA status to be eligible for LEDA. Should you be selected to advance to the next round you will be required to submit record of citizenship, permanent residence, or DACA status.





Check all that apply
Check all that apply
Check all that apply
Check all that apply
Check all that apply
Check all that apply
Biographical Information - American Indian or Alaska Native


High School Information
Select the state you attend high school in and then search for your high school in the High School Name search field below. If you cannot find your High school using this search please select the "Cannot find my high school" option and manually enter the school name in the field that appears.

Alaska





Alabama





Arkansas





Arizona





California





Colorado





Connecticut





Washington D.C.





Delaware





Florida





Georgia





Hawaii





Iowa





Idaho





Illinois





Indiana





Kansas





Kentucky





Louisiana





Massachusetts





Maryland





Maine





Michigan





Minnesota





Missouri





Mississippi





Montana





North Carolina





North Dakota





Nebraska





New Hampshire





New Jersey





New Mexico





Nevada





New York





Ohio





Oklahoma





Oregon





Pennsylvania





Rhode Island





South Carolina





South Dakota





Tennessee





Texas





Utah





Virginia





Vermont





Washington





Wisconsin





West Virginia





Wyoming





Home School













(mm/yyyy)
Guidance Counselor





Other High Schools Attended

LEDA Survey

Select LEDA representative if a LEDA representative presented at your school.

Select LEDA Scholar if a LEDA Scholar did a presentation at your school or told you about LEDA

Select CBO if anyone associated with a community based organization, college access, college preparedness, or college bound program told you about LEDA. This person may be a counselor or advisor who works in the school but is hired by a CBO outside of the high school e.g., college possible, college crusade, college advising corps.









Select all that apply. To select more than one, hold down CTRL while selecting.


What other summer programs are you applying to?
.
Academic Information Request
Enter the full name and email address of a school counselor who can submit a transcript and provide academic information on your behalf. Once you submit their name and email address and save your application, they will receive an email invitation to provide academic information in support of your application. 

Please check-in with the recipient at least three weeks prior to the application deadline to confirm that the request was received and that they intend to complete it. We will not review applications that do not have complete academic information. You will receive an email confirmation once your academic information has been submitted. 
Please provide the first and last name, as well as email address, for the person who will be providing academic information:




If your counselor or school administrator does not receive the email invitation Click here to submit a help request. 
Letter of Recommendation
Enter the full name and email address of a core subject academic teacher (History, Language, Literature, Science, Math) who will submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf. We recommend that you speak to your teacher to describe the program, why you are applying, and ask if they are willing to write you a letter of recommendation before entering their name here. Once you enter your teacher's name and email address and save your application, an email invitation will be sent to them to complete the form.

Please check-in with the recipient at least three weeks before the application deadline to confirm that the request was received and that they intend to complete it. Your application will not be considered complete until this information is submitted. We will reach out to you if we don't receive your recommendation near/after the deadline.

Please provide the first and last name, as well as email address, for the person who will be providing the letter of recommendation:




If your teacher did not receive the email invitation Click here to submit a help request.
Activities

LEDA would like to learn more about your life and how you spend your time. 


Activities may include arts, clubs, community and family responsibilities, hobbies, music, sports, work, volunteering, other experiences that are meaningful to you, or that take up a lot of your time. 

  • Please answer all questions for each activity.
  • To add activities select the additional activities link on the bottom right hand corner of this box.
  • If you have held different positions within an activity, do not list the same activity multiple times. Enter your most recent position, and list the other positions you have held within the activity description field.







Writing Sample
Scan and upload one essay written during your sophomore or junior year of high school that you feel represents your academic writing ability. Do not submit poetry or science/math reports/projects. 

The writing sample must be uploaded as a word document or a PDF. You will only be able to upload one file. If you scan multiple pages of an essay you must condense it into one file in order to upload. You can do this by copying and pasting each image into one word document or by any other method you are comfortable with.

Photo copies are acceptable, but must be legible and in one file.

Email recruitment@ledascholars.org if you have trouble submitting a writing sample or have follow-up questions.

Upload Recent Photo of Yourself


Family Information
To be completed by a parent/guardian. If you have a question about who should fill out this section, please email recruitment@ledascholars.org.

If you are the legally adoptive parent(s) of the applicant, complete the following forms as they apply to you. If you do not have information for one of the parents/guardians enter 0 in that category.
 


Mother/Parent 1








Check all that apply
Check all that apply




Father/Parent 2








Check all that apply
Check all that apply



Parent Education Information








Custody Information
We understand that the following questions are personal and may be difficult to answer. We appreciate your honesty. This information is required to apply for financial aid at most colleges. Answering the questions honestly will better allow us to advise Scholars on how to complete their financial aid forms as well as what colleges to consider for best financial fit.












Enter the first and last name of the custodial parent. In the case of joint custody, list parent with whom the applicant has most often resided within the last 12 months.





Grandparent Details












Sibling Education
Enter information about all of the applicants siblings below. To add an additional sibling select the Additional Siblings link located at the bottom left hand corner of this box.





First Generation College Student

A first generation college student is defined as being the first in one's immediate family to attend a four-year college or university. If the applicant has a sibling who attends or has attended college, the applicant is still considered to be a first generation college student. If either parent attended a four-year college, but did not graduate, the student is considered to be a first generation college student.
With whom does the applicant live?

List all members currently residing in the household and their relationship to the applicant. To add a resident click the Add resident link at the bottom right hand corner of this box.




Please calculate the total number of household members listed above including the applicant.
Income Information
LEDA follows certain income eligibility guidelines, however each candidate is considered on a case by case basis. Income information will remain strictly confidential. In order for a candidate to be considered, the information requested below MUST be completed by a parent or guardian.

Please be aware that if the applicant is asked to continue to the next round all parents and step-parents (with whom the applicant has contact) will need to provide a copy of their most recent federal tax return. Write 0 if a question does not apply to you.

During senior year of high school LEDA works with our Scholars and their families to complete financial aid and scholarship applications for college. In order to consider applications for financial aid, private colleges and universities require financial documentation from both parents including the non-custodial parent and/or step-parents or other guardians (when applicable). We therefore ask that you complete this section thoroughly so that we may best gauge the applicant’s financial need as will be evaluated during the college application process.

2021 2022
Mother/Parent 1 annual income
Stepparent 1 annual income (if applicable)
Father/Parent 2 annual income
Stepparent 2 annual income (if applicable)
Child support received by custodial parent per month (if applicable)
Alimony received (if applicable)
Annual social security benefit amount (estimated, if applicable)
Annual public assistance amount (estimated, if applicable)

If married, include both parents' combined annual income. If remarried, include the parent and the step-parent's combined annual income.



Assets
Enter the total amount of money in each of these accounts. (Do not enter the account #'s).
Amount in Checking Accounts Amount in Savings Accounts
Custodial parent(s)
Applicant

Home Value Information

Approximate value of real estate other than home:
Please enter only a number here, with no decimals. If this question is not applicable, just enter 0.
I certify that ALL the information provided above is true to the best of my knowledge. If the applicant is advanced to Part II I will submit proof of this information by providing a copy of my most recent tax return or proof of benefits. I understand that if the income information requested is not provided, the applicant will not be eligible for the LEDA Scholars Program.



Applicants who are advanced to Part II of the application will be asked to provide tax documents for all parents/guardians with whom they have regular contact. If LEDA has questions about the information provided, or about missing financial information we will contact the applicant. If you prefer that LEDA not contact the applicant, please provide the information of the person you would like us to contact below.





Academic Records Release Form (completed by parent/guardian)*

Important Information

Please note that this section MUST be filled out by the parent/guardian.
Applicant Information

Spanish Language Family Section
Información Familiar
Debe ser completado por un padre/tutor. Si tiene alguna pregunta sobre quién debe completar esta sección, envíe un correo electrónico a recruitment@ledascholars.org.
 
Si usted es el(los) padre(s) legalmente adoptivo(s) del solicitante, complete los siguientes formularios según correspondan a usted. Si no tiene información de uno de los padres/guardianes, ingrese 0 en esa categoría.

 


Madre/Padre 1








Marque todo lo que corresponda
Marque todo lo que corresponda




Father/Parent 2








Marque todo lo que corresponda
Marque todo lo que corresponda



Parent Education Information








Información de custodia
Entendemos que las siguientes preguntas son personales y pueden ser difíciles de responder. Apreciamos su honestidad. Esta información es necesaria para solicitar ayuda financiera en la mayoría de las universidades. Responder las preguntas con honestidad nos permitirá asesorar mejor a los Alumnos sobre cómo completar sus formularios de ayuda financiera, así como qué universidades considerar para la mejor situación financiera.












Enter the first and last name of the custodial parent. In the case of joint custody, list parent with whom the applicant has most often resided within the last 12 months.





Detalles de los abuelos












Educación de Hermanos
Ingrese información sobre todos los hermanos de los solicitantes a continuación. Para agregar un hermano adicional, seleccione el enlace "Additional Siblings" ubicado en la esquina inferior izquierda de este cuadro.






Estudiante universitario de primera generación

Un estudiante universitario de primera generación se define como el primero en la familia inmediata en asistir a un colegio o universidad de cuatro años. Si el solicitante tiene un hermano/a que asiste o ha asistido a la universidad, todavía se considera que el solicitante es un estudiante universitario de primera generación. Si alguno de los padres asistió a una universidad de cuatro años, pero no se graduó, se considera que el estudiante es un estudiante universitario de primera generación.
¿Con quién vive el/la aplicante?

Indique todos los miembros que residen actualmente en el hogar y su relación con el solicitante. Para agregar un residente, haga clic en el enlace Agregar residente en la esquina inferior derecha de este cuadro.




Calcule el número total de miembros del hogar enumerados anteriormente incluyendo el/la solicitante
Información de ingresos
LEDA sigue ciertas pautas de elegibilidad de ingresos, sin embargo, cada candidato se considera caso por caso. La información de ingresos permanecerá estrictamente confidencial. Para que un candidato sea considerado, la información solicitada a continuación DEBE ser completada por un padre o tutor.

Tenga en cuenta que si se le pide al solicitante que continúe con la siguiente ronda, todos los padres y padrastros (con quienes se haya comunicado el solicitante) deberán proporcionar una copia de su declaración de impuestos federales más reciente. Escriba 0 si una pregunta no se aplica a usted.
 
Durante el último año de la escuela secundaria, LEDA trabaja con nuestros becarios y sus familias para completar las solicitudes de ayuda financiera y becas para la universidad. Para considerar las solicitudes de ayuda financiera, las universidades privadas requieren documentación financiera de ambos padres, incluido el padre sin custodia y/o los padrastros u otros tutores (cuando corresponda). Por lo tanto, le pedimos que complete esta sección atentamente para que podamos evaluar la necesidad financiera del solicitante, tal como se evaluará durante el proceso de solicitud de ingreso a la universidad.

2021 2022
Ingreso anual de madre/padre 1
Ingreso anual del padrastro/a 1 (si corresponde)
Ingreso Anual padre/padre 2
Ingreso anual del padrastro/a 2 (si corresponde)
Manutención infantil recibida por el padre con custodia por mes (si corresponde)
Pensión alimenticia recibida (si corresponde)
Monto anual del beneficio de seguridad social (estimado, si corresponde)
Cantidad anual de asistencia pública (estimada, si corresponde)

Si está casado/a, incluya el ingreso anual combinado de ambos padres. Si se volvió a casar, incluya el ingreso anual combinado del padre/madre y del padrastro/a.



Los Bienes
Ingrese la cantidad total de dinero en cada una de estas cuentas. (No ingrese los números de cuenta).
Monto en Cuentas Corrientes
 Monto en Cuentas de Ahorro
Padre (s) con custodia
Solicitante

Valor de la casa

Valor aproximado de bienes inmuebles que no sean casa:
Ingrese solo un número aquí, sin decimales. Si esta pregunta no es aplicable, simplemente ingrese 0.
Certifico que TODA la información provista arriba es verdadera a mi saber y entender. Si el solicitante avanza a la Parte II, presentaré prueba de esta información proporcionando una copia de mi declaración de impuestos más reciente o prueba de beneficios. Entiendo que si no se proporciona la información de ingresos solicitada, el solicitante no será elegible para el Programa de Becarios LEDA.



A los solicitantes que avancen a la Parte II de la solicitud se les pedirá que proporcionen documentos fiscales de todos los padres/tutores con quienes tienen contacto regular. Si LEDA tiene preguntas sobre la información proporcionada o sobre información financiera faltante, nos comunicaremos con el solicitante. Si prefiere que la LEDA no se comunique con el solicitante, proporcione la información de la persona a la que desea que nos comuniquemos a continuación.




Formulario de divulgación de registros académicos (completado por el/la padre/madre/tutor)*

Información Importante

Tenga en cuenta que esta sección DEBE ser completada por el/la padre/madre/tutor.
Información del Solicitante

Essay Instructions

Take your time answering each essay prompt. We recommend that you complete each essay in a word document before copying and pasting them here. 


Each essay should be a minimum of 300 words and a maximum of 500 words.

Essay #1
LEDA seeks to bring together a community of scholars whose diverse life experiences have shaped their perspectives and goals. Tell us your story. How has your life experience shaped the person you are today?

Essay # 2
Describe a problem that you want to help solve-it can be local (in your school, community, or town) or global(state, country, globe). Why does this problem matter to you?

COVID - Optional
We understand that this has been an incredibly difficult time and want to provide space for you to describe how the COVID pandemic has impacted you both academically and personally. If you would like to, please share more information about your experience below. 

Supplemental Application Section - Optional
If you would like to submit creative materials to demonstrate your diverse interests and personality please do so here. If you feel you were able to express yourself through the rest of the application, do not feel obligated to upload anything here. Examples can include art work, videos, or any other materials.



Your file cannot be larger than 25MB.
Save your application before you submit. If there is an error and you are unable to submit you will lose information that has not been saved. If you are unable to submit, scroll through your application and resolve all red error messages. If you are unable to resolve the error save the application and submit a help request or email recruitment@ledascholars.org.

Once you submit you will not be able to edit or access any part of the application. Make sure to review your application before submitting and save any portions you may want access to in the future. We encourage you to save your entire application on your computer before submission, as we will not send a copy of the form to you. You will receive a confirmation email if your submission is successful. 

*Please only click the submit button once. After clicking submit, wait for the page to complete loading before clicking anything else. Page load times may vary due to high traffic or internet connection. If the page does not load, do not press submit again. Save your application and submit a help request. You will be allowed to submit your application even if it is after the deadline*
IF YOU ARE HAVING TROUBLE SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION, DOUBLE CHECK THE HIGH SCHOOL SECTION OF THE APPLICATION. YOU MAY NEED TO RE-SELECT YOUR HIGH SCHOOL IN THE HIGH SCHOOL DROP DOWN OR THE STATE IN THE STATE FIELD USING A TWO LETTER STATE ABBREVIATION ONLY. ONCE YOU'VE ADJUSTED THESE SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE AND THEN CLICK SUBMIT. 
Save my progress and resume later | Resume a previously saved form

Contact Information