2024 Rhodes Scholars

Harvard. University of Alabama. Stanford. Davidson College. Duke. Rice. Eastern Mennonite University. University of Chicago. Coe College. MIT. University of Iowa. Yale. University of New Mexico. Penn. Pepperdine. Columbia. West Point. These are the colleges that this year produced winners of arguably the most competitive scholarship in the world: Rhodes Scholars.

Rhodes Scholars are selected through a multi-step process. Applicants must be endorsed by their college or university, then regional Committees of Selection choose the strongest applicants in their region for interviews, which this year were of course conducted virtually. This year nearly 3,000 students applied; 865 were endorsed by 243 different colleges and universities. This past weekend, 238 applicants were considered in the final selection process, with 32 receiving scholarships.

Including this year's selections, 3674 Americans have won Rhodes Scholarships, representing 329 colleges and universities.

The Rhodes Trust pays all university expenses plus a living stipend for study at Oxford, typically for two to four years depending on the field of study. The average annual award is $75,000.

Rhodes Scholars are traditionally announced shortly before Thanksgiving. My annual tradition is to use that press release to remind you that Ivy League credentials are not required to compete at the highest levels. There are many, many colleges and universities across the country and around the world that do an excellent job of preparing students for lifelong success.