Student funding, stipends + awards
Funding for impact & sustainability experiences, ventures and careers
Kellogg's distinctive social impact funding enables MBA students to pursue purpose without financial barriers.
At Kellogg, we believe financial constraints should not limit your ability to create positive change. Our comprehensive funding ecosystem supports your impact journey from initial exploration to post-graduation career launch, providing the resources you need at every step. Made possible through generous gifts from the Combe Family and other donors, these opportunities empower you to apply business acumen to address pressing social and environmental challenges.
Past students have received over $200,000 in direct funding across reimbursements and direct awards for experiences, entrepreneurship, and career launch.
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Project Impact Discovery Funding
Project Impact funding empowers students to explore social impact outside the classroom through experiences, travel, and entrepreneurship. Explore and discover impact and sustainability interests through reimbursement for experiences like conferences, competitions, executive shadowing, or research trips. All students are eligible for reimbursement of up to $2,500 per academic year.
Project Impact Venture Funding
We support social and sustainable entrepreneurs through reimbursement for expenses tied to student-founded ventures. Qualifying ventures are eligible for reimbursements of up to $5,000 per academic quarter.
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Summer funding ensures you can prioritize impact over income during this crucial experiential learning period, whether through internships or venture development.
Social Impact and Sustainability Internship Stipends
Gain valuable experience with organizations making a difference without worrying about summer income, allowing you to choose purpose over paycheck. Up to $7,000 summer stipend for students working in meaningful internships across the social impact sector. Eligible organizations include:
- Sustainability-focused businesses
- Climate Tech
- Nonprofits and Public Service
- Financial inclusion initiatives
- Health and human services
- Education Startups
- Impact investing firms
Social Impact and Sustainability Venture Stipends
Dedicate your summer to building your social enterprise with funding that allows you to focus full-time on creating impact. $10,000 summer stipend for founders to work on their social venture full-time over the summer months:
- Dedicated time to build your venture with some income replacement, which can be combined with other sources
- Recipients are also eligible for reimbursement of venture expenses
- ‘Test-run’ your venture for dedicated focus post-graduation
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Graduating students are eligible to receive substantial financial support to pursue purpose-driven careers with the support of direct funding or reduced burden of educational debt.
Kellogg Social Entrepreneurship Award
Launch your social venture with substantial seed funding that gives you runway to create impact as a full-time social entrepreneur. $70,000 seed funding to pursue a social venture full-time after graduation.
- Merit-based award given to 1-2 students per year
- Quarterly disbursements over 12 months
- Additional eligibility for loan assistance programs
Loan Assistance Awards
Loan Assistance awards are intended to remove the financial barriers to choosing impact over traditional career paths with significant loan forgiveness for exemplary graduates. Loan Assistance Awards are merit-based awards of up to $75,000 given to students dedicated to impact careers in social or sustainable enterprise, entrepreneurship, or nonprofit or service careers. Award amounts are determined by need, potential role, career trajectory, and demonstrated dedication to impact.
- Awards are applied to student debt over the course of the two years following graduation
- Available to students in for-profit, nonprofit, and public sector roles
- Competitive selection based on commitment to impact
Collins Family Loan Program
The Collins Family loan assistance program is designed to support alumni pursuing long-term careers in public and nonprofit sectors with decade-long support that makes these career choices financially viable. Up to $15,000 of debt forgiveness per calendar year for up to 10 years for graduates working in nonprofit or public service roles.
- Long-term support for public sector and nonprofit careers
- Income tested, but with generous eligibility ceilings
- Available to all qualifying alumni
Alumni with any questions about funding can email us here.
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The LAP pays a portion of a graduate’s Kellogg-related educational loan obligations while employed full time within the public or nonprofit sectors. Award recipients must reapply each calendar year. Graduates may continue to receive funds for up to 10 years post-graduation as long as they qualify or until their loans are repaid.
The amount contributed by the LAP is a function of an individual’s financial position and that of his/her immediate family as defined by the Kellogg Financial Aid Office guidelines. Recipients may be responsible for satisfying at least some portion of their annual loan obligation.
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The LAP has been supported by the Collins Family Foundation (Ron Collins ’98) and the Steans Family (Jennifer Steans ’89). Several graduating classes from the Full-Time MBA and Executive MBA programs have also designated gifts to the fund.
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A. Eligible Graduates
- The LAP is open to Kellogg graduates with financial need who borrowed U.S.-recognized financial aid loans while enrolled at Kellogg. These loans must have been certified by the Kellogg Financial Aid office. These loans include, federal, NU loans, or private education loans. Eligibility for this program is based on financial need. Need is defined as the cost of attendance minus the student's contribution and any scholarships or employer reimbursement. Please contact the Kellogg Financial Aid Office at finaid@kellogg.northwestern.edu if you have any questions.
- Kellogg alumni may participate in the program up to 10 years after graduation before their loan repayment schedules expire, provided they meet the income and employment requirements.
- Applicants must be current on loan repayments at the time of application and must be on the maximum length loan repayment schedule.
- Graduates who are eligible for and have received loan deferments or forbearance will not simultaneously be eligible for the LAP.
- Loan assistance will be terminated when individuals no longer meet the eligibility requirements listed below.
- Graduates employed by nonprofit organizations in the United States that are tax-exempt under sections 501 (c)(3), (4) or (6) of the Internal Revenue Code are eligible for the program.
- Employees of local, state or federal governments also are eligible.
- Recipients of the Kellogg Social Entrepreneurship Award are also eligible.
- To assist in the determination of eligibility, graduates working outside the U.S. for public or nonprofit organizations are required to demonstrate the legitimacy of their organization, either by producing certification from the organization’s host country or by demonstrating accreditation by an international organization.
- An applicant working abroad also must demonstrate how any cost of living allowances or stipends impact his or her ability to repay educational loans.
- A reasonable amount of assets will not disqualify an applicant for the LAP.
- A substantial amount of physical and financial assets (real estate excluded), however, may lead to a reevaluation of the candidate’s financial condition.
- Qualifying graduates with adjusted annual incomes of $125,000 or less are eligible for aid.
- Adjusted income is calculated as half of the combined spouse’s and alumnus’ salaries or alum’s salary if higher minus $5,000.00 for the spouse and $5,000.00 for each dependent.
- In order to ensure that all qualified applicants receive some support from the LAP, the maximum amount that an applicant may receive is up to $15,000.00 per calendar year with a maximum aid period of up to ten years’ maximum after graduation date if their monthly loan payments for their need-based loans borrowed while in attendance at Kellogg justify that level of aid.
- To further clarify, this program only includes education loans borrowed while in attendance at Kellogg that were considered financial need-based loans by the Kellogg Financial Aid Office when determining a students’ financial aid package.
- Kellogg’s LAP support for applicants with non-need based loans will be determined by a special committee. The total loan amount considered cannot exceed the cost of tuition.
- Support from Kellogg’s LAP is dependent upon availability of funds for each year.
NOTE: As the University makes every effort to structure assistance to be tax favorable to the recipients, we also balance the need to expand the availability of this assistance to graduates who may not necessarily qualify under the tax-free loan forgiveness rules. To the extent that the University determines the loan repayment assistance may not qualify as tax-free, the University may report the payments on a Form 1099. Generally, the University treats as non-taxable, forgiveness if the borrower works for a 501(c)(3) or domestic government and the educational loan is domestic government sourced or Northwestern University sourced. Note, the 501(c)(3) employer cannot include Northwestern University. Generally treated as taxable are all other scenarios (when working for a 501(c)(4), a 501(c)(6), foreign government, when educational loan is privately or commercially sourced).
The University does not provide personal tax advice. We encourage recipients to contact a professional tax advisor for assistance with their personal income tax questions concerning their loan assistance award. The information herein is for general University informational purposes only and should not be relied on for personal tax assistance. -
Complete the CFLAP application and upload it using this secure upload link. After you have completed uploading the documents, please send an email to finaid@kellogg.northwestern.edu to notify them that you have uploaded an application.
Please note that the employer verification must come directly from the employer.
Please also review the required initial Loan Application Disclosure. Please see Rate, Fee and Cost Information.
Each applicant should also submit:
- Essay (1-2 pages) describing his/her background, involvement in the public/nonprofit/ngo sector as well as career focus
- Personal income and asset statement
- Summary of Kellogg educational debt
- Federal income tax return
- Verification of employment and salary level for the applicant sent by the employer directly to the Kellogg Office of Financial Aid
- Verification of employment and salary level for the applicant’s spouse (if applicable) sent by the employer directly to the Kellogg Office of Financial Aid
- Proof of employer’s nonprofit status or comparable documentation for nongovernmental organizations
- Documentation (payment schedules) of need-based loans for both Kellogg School and non-Kellogg related loan obligations.
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A. Disbursement
- Upon determination of eligibility, available funds will be distributed among eligible applicants. Due to the limited size of the LAP endowment, and depending upon the number of eligible applicants and available funds, applicants may receive less that the maximum amount possible under the program.
- Funds will be disbursed on a semi-annual schedule.
- The first payment will be released between Feb. 15-Mar. 1, contingent upon proof of employment and salary level.
- The second payment will be distributed on or about July 1 after the Kellogg Office of Financial Aid receives a complete tax return and May pay stub showing year-to-date income and current salary from the applicant.
- If the award recipient becomes ineligible during a year for which the LAP funds already have been disbursed, the recipient must repay the portion for which he or she has become ineligible. Therefore, award recipients are required to sign a promissory note for each disbursement, as if signing for an interest-free loan. The note will be canceled if the recipient remains eligible throughout the calendar year. If an applicant becomes ineligible once funds have been disbursed for the year, he or she must repay that year’s disbursement along with the balance of the educational debt. An applicant will become ineligible, and thus be required to repay his or her loan, under the following conditions:
- The applicant completes repayment of the original educational debt.
- The applicant leaves the qualifying employment
- The applicant otherwise fails to comply with program requirements, including administrative procedures.
- When a graduate no longer qualifies for the LAP and has not repaid his or her entire educational debt, he or she will begin to repay the balance of the loan in the following calendar year. The details will be handled individually with the program administrator. The specific terms of repayment will be based on the applicant’s salary upon leaving qualifying employment, generally according to the following repayment schedule:
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Kellogg’s Financial Aid Office will administer the program with input from an Advisory and Selection Committee. The Committee will review and evaluate the application in terms of the applicant’s income and debt levels with respect to the LAP’s objectives and available resources.
For more information, contact finaid@kellogg.northwestern.edu