Created by the Obamas with Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky, The Voyager Scholarship was designed to help develop leaders from different backgrounds and create meaningful change through exposure to new places and experiences, breeding understanding, empathy and cooperation in the process. 

“One of the things we believe is that if people of your talent and capacity, if we can make that easier for you both financially, but also through the connections and exposure to new ideas and new cultures that we hope this program gives you then the sky's the limit,” noted Obama.

Get to know: The Voyager Scholarship

Understanding the global need for young leaders to solve society's greatest challenges, this scholarship provides college students with financial aid to ease the burden of loans, meaningful travel experiences to expand their horizons, and a network of mentors and leaders to support them.

.@Bchesky and I were excited to meet with the inaugural class of Voyager Scholarship recipients at our Summit last year.

And we're proud to announce that applications for the second class of Voyagers are now open: https://t.co/rbtrjAlgPe pic.twitter.com/XCmwGPIBP4

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) January 25, 2023

The scholarship offers:

• Students will receive up to $25,000 per year in “bottom dollar” financial aid for their junior and senior college years. This financial aid should ease the burden of college debt so that students can pursue a career in public service.
• Students will receive a $10,000 stipend and Airbnb travel credit to pursue a Summer work travel experience between their junior and senior year of college. Students will design their own Summer trip to expose themselves to new communities and experiment in a chosen field.
• After graduation, Airbnb will provide students with a $2,000 travel credit each year for 10 years, for a total of $20,000. This will allow students to continue to broaden their horizons and forge new connections throughout their public service careers.
• Each Fall, students will be invited to a summit to help define and inspire their public service journey.
• Throughout the program, students will be invited to an ongoing speaker series, giving them access to a network of leaders. The network of leaders will expose them to new areas of service and innovations happening in their fields. After graduation, they will join the global Obama Foundation community, providing them with the foundation's resources and programming.

Who can be a voyager? 

The Voyager Scholarship is open to students entering their third year of college at an accredited four-year college or university in the U.S., who have demonstrated financial need, and who are U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or DACA recipients.

The program was designed for young people from all corners of the country who “share a curiosity about the world and a conviction to make a positive change in it, just like our founders. Students must have a passion for helping others, experience serving or building a community, and a broad vision of what is possible through public service,” highlighted the program.

Applications are open until Wednesday, March 22, 2023 at 3:00 p.m.

Click here for complete eligibility requirements.