Student standing at podium in church

Catholic Scholars

Your Faith Lights Up Your Life . . . Use it to Light Up Our World

Share your light! Be part of a meaningful college program that prepares you for leadership in your Church, community and world — a program only available at St. John’s.

As an incoming St. John’s first-year student, you can apply for our Catholic Scholars Program, offering $5,000 for each of your four years of study. Applicants demonstrate a commitment to living the Catholic Tradition through leadership and excellence.

As a Catholic Scholars recipient, you will be a part of a multi-disciplinary community of Catholic Leaders who join professors and Campus Ministers in monthly meetings, lectures, retreats, courses and prayer experiences that integrate faith, reason and service.

The energy of our diverse, metropolitan campus will enrich your education as you explore the richness of the Catholic Tradition and its role in your studies and your future as a faith-inspired leader.

As a Catholic Scholar, you will . . .

  • Integrate faith and leadership, inspiring fellow students throughout your college years.
  • Develop a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ as a University student, preparing you for life.
  • Join an optional “living-learning” community with meetings, activities and leadership experiences to build your foundation of faith.
  • Participate in our Catholic and Vincentian leadership initiatives for each of your four years.
  • Have the option to participate in a special Study Abroad cohort focusing on Catholic leadership at our Rome, Italy campus.
  • Benefit from Campus Ministry, faculty and administrative mentors - and become a mentor yourself!
  • Take part in on- and off-campus colloquia on Catholic Social Teaching, social justice and faith formation.
  • Find meaningful ways to apply your faith-inspired leadership in your chosen field

How to Apply
This program is available to first-year students entering St. John's University. Please check back for when the application opens. The Catholic Scholars Program offers $5,000 for each of your four years of study. Applicants demonstrate a commitment to living the Catholic Tradition through leadership and excellence. 

The deadline for this scholarship is January 31, 2024. Apply Here.

For more information about this scholarship or application questions, contact Victoria O'Keefe, Director of the Catholic Scholars program, at [email protected]

As a body without a spirit is dead, so is faith without works.
- St. James 2:26

To schedule a meeting with a Campus Minister, please click here to set-up a call or video meeting.

Success at St. John's

Sarah Fagan Cioffi ’18C

Service Activities Aided Alumna in Her Search for a Career to Help Others

Sarah Fagan Cioffi ’18C discovered her pathway for a career in art therapy one Saturday morning as part of a printmaking class she took as a Fine Arts major at St. John’s University.

Sarah Fagan Cioffi ’18C St. John's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Highlight

Mrs. Cioffi, who was then working toward her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a minor in Psychology at St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, recalled that one of the most meaningful service opportunities for her at St. John’s was an Academic Service-Learning (AS-L) component of her Printmaking I class with Claudia Sbrissa, M.F.A., Professor, Department of Art and Design. As part of the AS-L project, they created rubber stamps and brought them to St. Mary’s Hospital for Children in Bayside, NY, to make art with the patients.