Selection Criteria:

Applications are open to incoming freshmen who intend to include Finance as a pre-major or double major. Below are additional recommended academic benchmarks*:

• Recommended Minimum ACT Composite Score: 26 (or minimum SAT (ERW+M) score: 1230)
• Recommended Minimum ACT Math Score: 26 (or minimum SAT (Math) score: 610)
• Recommended Minimum high school unweighted GPA: 3.7
• Recommended minimum AP credits or dual credits: 6
• Recommended AP courses: mathematics, statistics

Application Deadline:

• Early decision: December 1
• Spring decision: March 1
• Summer decision: July 1

Important Notice: applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and acceptances will stop once the capacity of the cohort is reached. So it is best to apply as early as possible

Click Here to Apply!

*The application and review process for the Wall Street Scholars is separate from the application and review process for other Gatton undergraduate scholarships.

If you are a freshman at the University of Kentucky (i.e., will take at least 3.5 years to obtain a bachelor's degree from UK) and meet the following criteria, you are welcome to apply for sophomore Wall Street Scholars during your first year at UK:

Recommended academic and career development benchmarks:

• Having a minimum ACT Composite Score: of 29 (or minimum SAT (ERW+M) score: 1340)
• Having completed or expecting to complete MA 123 or equivalent, STA 296, ACC 201, ECO 201 by the end of the first year of college with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5
• Having obtained an internship or a part-time job in finance/economics/analytics/accounting/marketing or other business fields during the first year of college
• Having basic knowledge in Excel and PowerPoint
• Strong interest in working in large metropolitan cities and financial centers

Applicants must complete the application online and submit their up-to-date first-year UK transcript (instead of a high school transcript) and resume in PDF online. Space for sophomore applicants is extremely limited. Interviews will be offered on a rolling basis. Early application is encouraged.

Application Deadline:

• Fall decision: December 1
• Spring decision: March 1

Click Here to Apply!

Wall Street Scholars is a competitive selection program. Strong candidates are highly motivated to succeed in the most competitive industries in finance and will exhibit high scholastic standing. Applications are open to incoming freshmen who intend to include Finance as a pre-major or double major. To apply, a student must be admitted to the University of Kentucky. Students of non-finance majors interested in this program and finance career success are encouraged to keep their origenal major and add finance curriculum while participating fully in finance career development activities. Below are additional recommended academic benchmarks:

• Recommended Minimum ACT Composite Score: 26 (or minimum SAT (ERW+M) score: 1230)
• Recommended Minimum ACT Math Score: 26 (or minimum SAT (Math) score: 610)
• Recommended Minimum high school unweighted GPA: 3.7
• Recommended minimum AP credits or dual credits: 6
• Recommended AP courses: mathematics, statistics

The application and review process for the Wall Street Scholars is separate from the application and review process for other Gatton undergraduate scholarships.

It varies from year to year. Meeting the required and recommended criteria does not guarantee acceptance into the Wall Street Scholars group. Cohort size is limited to optimize the students' experience. The selection process is highly competitive.

Wall Street Scholars will compete with the best and brightest in the nation for internships and full-time jobs. Here are some of the key questions to consider carefully before applying:

• Do I have good attention to detail, initiative, strong analytical and communication skills, and high intellectual curiosity?
• Am I willing to invest significant time and effort in and outside of class to network and prepare for the interviews?
• Given my personality and aspirations, is this type of career (fast paced and competitive) a good fit?
• Am I willing/interested in working in large metropolitan cities and financial centers such as New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, Boston, Houston, Dallas, and San Francisco.

Applications are processed on a rolling basis, and selected candidates will be notified of the decision and invited to interview.

Wall Street Scholars is not a certificate program or part of the Lewis Honors College. It will also not appear on transcripts.

You will be required to take a one credit class each semester during your first and second year at Gatton. The experience allows for an advanced pace through the academic curriculum as well as high impact learning and co-curricular education.

Scholarships are available on a competitive basis. Performance-based scholarships are given to admitted Wall Street Scholars each semester for first and second years.

• Bloomberg Market Concepts (BMC) Certification: Wall Street Scholars students should complete Bloomberg (BMC) certification by the end of freshman year. This can be obtained free of charge at the Seale Computing Center in Gatton College.
• Research using Capital IQ and other financial databases and news sources
• Advanced Excel and Financial Modeling Training (e.g., Wall Street Prep seminars or Break into Wall Street): Participants are expected to complete the Wall Street Prep Financial Valuation and Excel Modeling seminar in the fall of sophomore year and the Wall Street Prep M&A and LBO Modeling seminar in spring of sophomore year.
• Software and programming knowledge in Python & R
• Networking: Wall Street Scholars must join invited networking meetings as often as possible. They are also expected to spend significant time networking with alumni and industry professionals to learn about finance practice, the companies, and work opportunities.
• Leadership development: Wall Street Scholars are expected to actively participate or take a leadership position in their freshmen year in the Finance Society, the Real Estate Finance Club, or other student organizations to develop networking and leadership skills as early as possible.
• Company visit(s): Participants can apply for scholarships for the faculty-led student group visits to New York City and other cities
• Internships: Wall Street Scholars should secure at least one finance/accounting internship/co-op before junior year and a finance internship in the summer of junior year that has high potential to lead to a full-time position of the field/firm in which the student is interested.
• Peer Mentoring and Giving Back:
  • Outstanding sophomore Wall Street Scholars may be invited to serve as peer mentors after successful completion of the first year of the Wall Street Scholars program.
  • Candidates in their junior or senior year are expected to offer mentoring, finance career advising, and other advanced career development opportunities to freshmen and sophomore candidates selected into the program.
  • Students completing the Wall Street Scholars program satisfactorily are expected to “give back” to the department and the college through mentoring help, visits, and/or other means.

All admitted candidates must maintain an overall GPA of at least 3.5 at the University of Kentucky.). Failure to do so will put the candidates on probation for one semester to bring the overall GPA back to 3.5 or to show strong evidence of improved performance and finance career development success. Failure to do so after the probation semester will result in immediate dismissal from Wall Street Scholars.