Admissions To:
Vanderbilt University
We are proud to have successfully guided students through the entire application and interview process for Vanderbilt's Ingram Scholars Program, Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship, and Chancellor's Scholarship, netting them $400,000+ full ride scholarships, plus extra perks.
It is for this reason that we have an entire page on our website dedicated to the "Harvard of the South," Vanderbilt University. The three scholarship opportunities they offer are a hidden treasure unknown to many qualified students which can provide them the opportunity to attend and obtain a degree, bragging rights, and an alumni network that will carry them into their dream career from an elite university without paying a penny.
We created this page to tell you about these three amazing opportunities, what you must do to qualify, and how we can help get you there.
Typical Admitted Student Profile:
GPA:
3.9–4.0 unweighted; top 5% of class
Test Scores:
SAT: 1500–1560
ACT: 34–35
Course Rigor:
At least 8–10 AP/IB/dual enrollment courses across disciplines; AP Calculus BC or higher preferred for STEM majors; strong showing in humanities and sciences for non-STEM applicants
Research:
Independent or mentored research projects (in STEM, social sciences, humanities, or arts); participation in summer research programs such as Vanderbilt's own VSA, Garcia, or local university partnerships
Competitive Achievements:
National Merit Finalist, regional/national awards in music performance (notably strong at Blair School of Music), debate, Model UN, science fairs, Scholastic Art & Writing, leadership awards (e.g., Eagle Scout, Girl Scout Gold Award)
Quantifiable Local Impact / Leadership:
Founding nonprofits or student organizations, leading major community initiatives, organizing tutoring programs, spearheading local advocacy campaigns (e.g., mental health awareness, education equity), becoming a household name in your local community by solving problems it faces from time to time, played a clear role in the passing of consequential legislation
If you have this profile, working with us is your best bet to get into Vanderbilt. If you want to attend Vanderbilt, whether you will be starting your freshman year soon or have just started your freshman or sophomore year, contact us, and we'll guide you in acquiring a similarly competitive profile that will get you into Vanderbilt.
The Ingram Scholars Program is the most sought-after scholarship from Vanderbilt University. To qualify as an Ingram Scholar, a student must either have established a profitable business that is improving the world in some quantifiable manner or have become a household name in their local community through impactful and intensive advocacy on behalf of its members.
Students who become Ingram Scholars don't merely set aside time for volunteering or community service; rather, service is interwoven into their lifestyle. They typically begin embodying this service-oriented lifestyle in 9th grade, sometimes earlier. These candidates for becoming Ingram scholars were active participants in local political or community business association meetings, where they ensured that both their voice and their community's voice were heard. Ingram Scholars have numerous people outside their family and school who can vouch for the positive impact they've had on their local community.
With an acceptance rate of just 1%-2%, Ingram Scholars typically choose between a full-ride scholarship at Vanderbilt or attending a Tier 1 Ivy League school. Beyond service, Ingram Scholars demonstrate above-average academic curiosity and drive. While they may not have top-tier research credentials or placements in national competitions, they typically maintain near 4.0 GPAs and have taken numerous AP and community college classes.
Standardized test scores don't play a large role in the selection of Ingram Scholars. However, consideration for the scholarship is decided by both Vanderbilt's admissions office and the Ingram family themselves. Therefore, you should submit the strongest possible application to Vanderbilt to ensure the admissions team gives you the green light.
Given that Vanderbilt will remain test-optional until 2027, if your standardized test scores fall significantly below Vanderbilt's average, it's best to apply without them. Note that for the 2023-2024 admissions cycle, only 25% of enrolled first-year students submitted either SAT or ACT scores. Going test-optional for Vanderbilt is perfectly acceptable if you aspire to become an Ingram Scholar.
If your applicant profile aligns with the above description, we absolutely encourage you to apply. For prospective entering first-year students, applications for the three Vanderbilt merit-based scholarships are due December 1st. The Ingram Scholarship requires its own set of essays one must write, which are reviewed by both the admissions committee and Ingram family when choosing finalists for the scholarship. If selected as a finalist, you must attend a 3-day in-person event at Vanderbilt. During this time, you will be socializing with fellow finalists, current Ingram Scholars, the Ingram family, and admission officers at Vanderbilt. On the final day of this event, you will be paired with another finalist and enter a room where you will be interviewed by a panel consisting of current scholars, admission officers, members of the Ingram family, and other people associated with the program. Afterwards, you will receive a decision a week later.
At Cosmic College Consulting, we provide in-depth interview and social skills training to finalists on how to approach the 3-day event so that they stand out and impress the Ingram family. We also know exactly what they are looking for in the essays and will guide you through the entire application process. We can help you jumpstart your journey of being of great service to your community by conducting in-depth research regarding your community's needs and helping you develop a long-term sustainable plan to address those needs. Whether it's building your extracurricular profile to an elite level or helping you excel in scholarship interviews, no matter how many rounds or how intense they are, Cosmic has a proven track record of providing everything you need to get into your dream university and secure their full-ride scholarship as well.
If you're too busy unraveling the mysteries of the universe to be a force to be reckoned with in your local community or the world of business, then the Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship would be a good fit for you. The Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship represents academic excellence and intellectual curiosity at its pinnacle. Named after Vanderbilt's founder, this scholarship covers full tuition and offers scholars a chance to engage deeply in Vanderbilt's research and academic resources.
Competitive applicants for this scholarship will have received competitive national placement in academic competitions or would have been accepted into programs like MIT's RSI, or have published papers in reputable journals while conducting supervised research with a professor.
Like the Ingram Scholarship, this opportunity requires that applicants submit Cornelius-specific essays. When the Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship releases their essays for the 2025-2026 admissions cycle, we will cover on this page how to tackle them.
Lastly, Vanderbilt's Chancellor's Scholarship is for students who are underrepresented in their chosen field and elite education, and who express a commitment to promoting inclusivity in education and the workplace. The difference between this scholarship and the Ingram is that the Chancellor's Scholarship is aimed at people who specialize in a specific subset of service: increasing inclusivity in spaces essential to modern life. Inclusivity here means diversifying the number of varying perspectives that such places contain, ensuring they are as vibrant as possible.
If you are someone who has demonstrated leadership by unifying people with varying perspectives to work together toward common goals, if you are a bridge builder, this scholarship is for you. If you have created academic spaces, such as reading groups, which house people of diverse backgrounds, used DEI as a means of building a strong community, or simply been a force of reconciliation in high school that played a decisive role in fostering unified school spirit, then apply for this scholarship.
Students for this scholarship will have close to a 4.0 GPA and will have demonstrated an appetite to challenge themselves by consistently electing to take the most rigorous classes available. Most competitive Ingram Scholars applicants would be competitive contenders for the Chancellor's Scholarship, but a vastly smaller percentage of competitive Chancellor's Scholarship contenders would be competitive applicants for the Ingram. It is a scholarship that values a more specialized form of service.
Like the Ingram Scholarship, this opportunity requires that applicants submit Chancellor’s-specific essays. When the Chancellor’s Vanderbilt Scholarship releases their essays for the 2025-2026 admissions cycle, we will cover on this page how to tackle them.
Unlike the Jefferson Scholarship at the University of Virginia, Vanderbilt's merit scholarships are reviewed by both the private founders and the Vanderbilt admissions team. They will be reviewing both your scholarship application and your Common Application to Vanderbilt simultaneously. This means it is essential to make your Common App, supplemental essays for Vanderbilt, activity sheet, and recommendation letters outstanding. Fortunately, we know exactly what Vanderbilt is looking for in their supplemental essays and have guided many students to writing impactful submissions. In other words, we have cracked the code.
Vanderbilt also allows students to upload a video as part of their application to provide more context about who they are as a person. We absolutely encourage applicants to take advantage of this opportunity. At Cosmic, we'd be more than happy to direct the video that gets you into Vanderbilt and help you write the script.
If you want to learn how we can help you get into Vanderbilt with a full ride scholarship, or any college for that matter, schedule a complimentary consultation with an admissions expert today.
Once Vanderbilt updates their required supplemental essay for the 2025-2026 admissions season, we'll post it here and provide guidance on how to answer it. To see our recommendations for tackling their 2024-2025 supplemental essay, see our blog post: Acing Vanderbilt's 2024-2025 Supplemental Essays.
We will also include a breakdown of their latest Common Data Set when it is released, so you understand the nitty-gritty of who gets into Vanderbilt.
So stay tuned!
In case it is ever advantageous to talk about any of Vanderbilt traditions, here are some of them.
The Anchor Dash:
Freshmen run across the football field before the first home game of the season, a symbolic welcome to campus and the Commodore community.
Founder's Walk:
New students walk through campus during orientation, ending at Alumni Lawn where they're officially welcomed to the university.
Rites of Spring:
An annual spring music festival that brings major music acts to campus, dating back to 1971.
Melodores and other a cappella performances:
Vanderbilt has a strong a cappella tradition with groups like the Melodores, who won the national championship in 2015.
Blair String Quartet performances:
A musical tradition featuring the resident string quartet from the Blair School of Music.
Rand Bowls:
A campus dining staple where students create custom rice bowls at Rand Dining Center.
Athenian Sing:
A singing competition between fraternities and sororities that raises money for charity.
Commodore Quake:
A homecoming concert tradition that brings popular artists to campus.
The Black and Gold Ball:
A formal dance event typically held in the spring semester.
Spotlight Series:
Weekly performances by student artists in the Sarratt Student Center.
Dore Days:
Week-long orientation activities for new students.