The Kummer Vanguard Scholars Program is a new competitive program established through a portion of a generous gift of $300 million from June and Fred Kummer, longtime supporters of Missouri S&T. The Kummers’ vision is to provide greater opportunities for qualified and deserving students to pursue college degrees in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Fred earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from S&T and went on to establish HBE Corporation, a leading design-build firm for hospitals and health care facilities. His wish for the scholarship that bears the Kummer name is to provide today’s students with the same world-class education he received at S&T.

Overview of benefits

The Kummer Vanguard Scholars Program is limited to 350 to 400 STEM scholars each year. Each Kummer Vanguard Scholar will receive $1,000-$3,000 a year for four years. These scholarships may be combined with other university scholarships to provide a broader array of financial support for students. Students from around the world will be selected based on academic and non-academic criteria.

Kummer Vanguard Scholars will engage in a breadth of special opportunities and programs, including the following:

• Free attendance at one of the Kummer Miner Immersion three-day* events on the S&T campus during the spring prior to the start of their first semester.

• The Kummer Vanguard Scholars kickoff event prior to Opening Week.

• Opportunities to serve on the Kummer Vanguard Scholars Student Council.

• Mentorship provided by a previous Kummer Vanguard Scholar, a senior-level faculty member, Kummer Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) Doctoral Fellow or a university leader.

• Participation in a rotational program with focus areas in entrepreneurship, undergraduate research, leadership, community services and more.

• Participation in the annual Kummer Vanguard Scholars Day, a two-day conference showcasing experts from industry and academia.

• Opportunities, beginning with their sophomore year, to serve as mentors to newly admitted Kummer Vanguard Scholars.

General Guidelines

Interested candidates will need to meet these general criteria:

• A cumulative GPA of 3.4 on an unweighted 4.0 scale and a 26+ ACT/1240+ SAT score*.

• Pursued a rigorous course of study in high school in math and science courses.

• Show evidence of readiness for and commitment to pursuing STEM majors, including biological/life sciences, physics, chemistry, computer science, information sciences, engineering or mathematics.

• Joining S&T as a first-time freshmen for the Fall 2021 semester.

• Admission to a STEM program at S&T and completion of the advising and registration (A&R) process by securing a spot for A&R and paying the A&R deposit fee. If you have not completed the A&R process, please visit https://pro.mst.edu/minerorientation/datesandschedules/

• Students may remain a Kummer Vanguard Scholar for eight academic semesters by continuing in a STEM major, maintaining a 3.2 GPA, and making satisfactory academic progress toward the degree, which is reviewed annually. The student must maintain full-time status as a Missouri S&T student.

• Due to the competitive nature of the program, applications will be reviewed in batches.

  1. 1. Deadline 1 – January 15, 2021

     2. Deadline 2 – February 15, 2021

     3. Deadline 3 – March 15, 2021

     4. Deadline 4 – April 15, 2021

After each deadline, the eligible pool of candidates will be reviewed. Those who do not receive the scholarship in the first pool of candidates will be automatically moved to the candidate pool for the next deadline and so forth. This review process will continue until deadline 4 or until the scholarship funds are exhausted. Students should expect to receive a decision within 7 business days of each deadline.

For more detailed information and deadlines, please review the scholarship criteria HERE.