Mental Health Changemaker Scholarship

Benefits & funding

• Grand prize of $3,000 USD toward mental health higher education or the winner’s own advocacy work.
• Mary Louther Changemaker Prize of $1,000 USD for the runner-up, on the same terms.
• Eight Mary Louther Finalist Prizes of $500 USD each, for tuition, board, project expenses and other educational materials.
• Payment is a check made out to the winner’s accredited institution after proof of enrollment, or made out to the winner for a personal project.
• The award must be claimed within five years of the win; anything left is forfeited.
• Every applicant receives the host’s mental wellbeing materials regardless of the outcome.
• Taxes on the award are the winner’s own responsibility, and winners outside the United States handle their local rules themselves.

Eligibility

• At least 13 years old at the time of entry.
• Currently enrolled in an accredited post-secondary institution — college, university or trade school — or enrolled no later than February of the year after the cycle.
• A record of study or advocacy in mental health that fits the host’s mission.
• The award must be for the applicant’s own use, not funding raised for a third-party organization.
• Open to every nationality and country of residence; the 2026 pool included entrants from 88 countries and territories.
• Extra consideration, not a requirement: applicants aged 13 to 26, members of a Letters to Strangers chapter or partner organization, and people underrepresented in the mental health field.
• Employees, officers, directors and agents of Letters to Strangers, their immediate families, and anyone living at their address cannot enter.
• Winners must verify their enrollment by 1 September following the win.

Application process

1. 1
   Wait for the annual window — the 2026 cycle ran from 1 February to 31 March at 11:59 PM Pacific.
2. 2
   Fill in the Changemaker application form linked from the scholarship page, or mail a hand-written application to the Letters to Strangers office in Claremont, California.
3. 3
   Send one entry only: one per person, e-mail address or phone number for the whole competition period, and all of it your own original work.
4. 4
   A judging panel scores entries on impact, complexity, wow factor and uniqueness, and challenge overcome.
5. 5
   Winners are notified by e-mail roughly four to five weeks after the window closes and must reply within 48 hours.
6. 6
   Sign the eligibility affidavit, liability release and publicity release if asked, then send proof of enrollment so the check can be issued.

Program timeline

1. Applications open for the 2026 cycle.

   Feb 1, 2026

2. Application deadline, 11:59 PM Pacific.

   Mar 31, 2026

3. Winners notified by e-mail, roughly four to five weeks after the deadline.

   2026-05

4. Deadline for winners to verify enrollment.

   Sep 1, 2026

5. 2027-02

   Latest point at which a 2026 winner may start post-secondary study.