The Lilly Endowment Scholarship Program aims to improve Indiana’s level of educational attainment, raise awareness of the beneficial roles that local community foundations can play in their neighborhoods, and support efforts made by Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to collaborate with other citizens and state officials to enhance Indiana’s quality of life.
The Endowment holds that the personal, civic, and economic well-being of Indiana residents and communities depends on education at all levels. The goal of this initiative is to persuade many of Indiana’s most gifted youngsters to enroll in a state university and then seek professions there.
The 92 county-specific community foundations in Indiana actively participate in the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program, which is run by the Independent Colleges of Indiana.

- Host: Lilly Endowment foundation.
- Open to: Indiana Residents
- Type of Study: Full-time
- Study at: Independent Colleges of Indiana
- Deadline: September 15
- Number of Awards: 143 scholarships are awarded annually.
- Scholarship Value: Full-tuition, required fees and book stipend for four years. (Does not pay room, board or travel expenses.)
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Eligibilities for the Lilly Endowment Scholarship
- The recipients may enroll in any four-year institution—public or private—in Indiana that has been granted Higher Learning Commission accreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
- A high school diploma from a high school in Indiana that has been accredited by the State Board of Education or by a national or regional accreditation organization that has been approved by the State Board of Education is required of applicants.
- Residents of the state of Indiana are required to apply.
- County-specific selection criteria, selection processes, and application deadlines exist.
- Recipients are required to enroll full-time in an undergraduate degree program.
Benefits of the Lilly Endowment Scholarship
The following projects are funded by the 2024 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship:
- Full tuition (otherwise unreimbursed) and necessary fees for up to four years of undergraduate study at any Indiana public or private college or university leading to a baccalaureate degree; the total amount of the scholarship is based on the recipient’s chosen college’s tuition and necessary fees starting with the 2024–2025 academic year.
- A special budget of $900 is set aside each year for necessary equipment and books.
- NOT include lodging and meals.

How to Apply for the Lilly Endowment Scholarship
Visit the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Application page online to submit your application. When you apply for the first time, you must first create an account. The application is available beginning on August 1 and is due at 4:30 p.m. on September 15.
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Required Documents
- Your most current high school transcript.
- SAT/ACT Scores: Applicants have the opportunity to submit their test results. You will be required to submit additional supporting documents if your reported scores are not listed on your transcript.
- A professional portrait of you taken from the shoulders up.
OFFICIAL PAGE
History of the Lilly Endowment Scholarship
With grants of stock in Eli Lilly and Company, Lilly Endowment Inc. was formally founded in 1937. Col. Eli Lilly, J.K. Lilly’s father, established the pharmaceutical company in Indianapolis in 1876. Although J.K. Sr. and his sons’ initial gifts of 17,500 shares, valued at $262,500, were generous, they did not end there. After stock splits, their aggregate donations by 1971 totaled approximately 32 million shares, or around $94 million. Another 210,000 shares, worth $1.1 million, were provided by several non-family members. And Ruth Lilly, J.K. Jr.’s daughter, included the Endowment in her estate plan, resulting in gifts from her starting in 2003 totalling more than $200 million.
The Endowment has given awards totaling almost $10.9 billion to 10,048 charity organizations during the last 82 years. The Endowment had assets worth around $17 billion at the end of 2019 that will be used to help future generations.

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