Knight-Hennessy Scholars is Stanford University’s multidisciplinary leadership development program for graduate students. Scholars enroll in a full-time Stanford graduate degree and join leadership programming alongside peers from across Stanford’s seven schools.
The 2027 cohort is open to applicants worldwide who meet the graduate-admission and first-degree timing rules. The program is based at Stanford, California, and a new cohort joins each year.
Benefits & funding
- A fellowship covers tuition and associated fees for up to three years, with the actual period determined by degree length.
- Scholars receive a stipend for living and academic expenses and a travel stipend for one economy-class round trip to and from Stanford each year.
- Newly enrolling scholars receive a one-time relocation stipend, while second- and third-year scholars may apply for supplemental academic-enrichment funds.
- For degrees lasting longer than three years, support after the KHS period follows the graduate program’s standard funding commitment.
Eligibility
- Applicants must apply to, be admitted to, and enroll in an eligible full-time Stanford graduate degree, subject to the published routes for concurrent applicants, deferred admits, students adding a degree, and first-year Stanford PhD students.
- For the 2027 cohort, the first bachelor’s degree or equivalent must have been earned in January 2020 or later; current students remain eligible if they complete it by September 2027.
- Applicants with military service receive a two-year extension and must have earned the first degree in January 2018 or later.
- There is no nationality, residency, age, field-of-study, or career-aspiration restriction; DACA recipients, undocumented applicants, and applicants without formal citizenship may apply.
- The Honors Cooperative Program, Master of Liberal Arts, JSD, MLS, coterminal degrees, and certain current-Stanford degree combinations are excluded as detailed on the eligibility page.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
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Education required
Bachelor Enrolled · Bachelor · Master Enrolled · Master · PhD Enrolled · PhD
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Application process
- 1Confirm that the intended full-time Stanford graduate degree and first-degree date satisfy the 2027 eligibility rules.
- 2Create an account in the KHS application portal and submit the KHS application by October 6, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
- 3Submit a separate Stanford graduate-program application by the earlier of that program’s KHS applicant deadline or December 1, 2026; deferred admits and the specified first-year Stanford PhD route do not submit another graduate application.
Program timeline
Knight-Hennessy Scholars application deadline.
October 6, 2026, 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time
Latest possible Stanford graduate-program application date for KHS eligibility when the program’s own KHS deadline is not earlier.
By December 1, 2026
Scholars begin KHS with the aligned full-time Stanford graduate program.
Autumn 2027