Athletics Merit Scholarships
The best competitors have offers from many schools. Make Bucknell’s the one they sign.
At Bucknell, we believe that athletic excellence begins with investing in exceptional people. Endowed scholarships allow us to bring talented, ambitious student-athletes into a community where they can challenge themselves, discover their potential, and prepare for lives of purpose and achievement.”
— Tim Pavlechko ’91, Vice President for Athletics & Recreation
Expanding Opportunity. Building a Lasting Legacy.
The Vision: Every recruit Bucknell pursues asks two questions: “Can I compete at the highest level here?” and “Does Bucknell truly want me?” Twenty-seven Division I programs answer the first. An athletic scholarship answers the second. This is where The Arena meets The Promise — making Bucknell the place the best competitors can afford to attend and have every reason to choose.
The Challenge: Bucknell student-athletes compete in two demanding arenas: NCAA Division I athletics and one of the nation’s most rigorous academic environments. Few students thrive in both, and the programs competing for them know it. More than 700 Bison across 27 varsity programs earn a 97% Graduation Success Rate — among the best in the nation. Sustaining that standard means recruiting the people who set it, and the scholarship on the table decides where they sign.
The Solution: Endowed athletic scholarships reward the talent, discipline and drive that set student-athletes apart on the field, on the court and in every arena of competition. They give Bucknell coaches the flexibility to recruit Division I competitors who raise the bar for our teams and our classrooms alike — for every season, for every generation of Bison to come.
Exceptional Students. Extraordinary Opportunities. Lifelong Impact.
In Competition: Attract and retain exceptional student-athletes whose talent and determination elevate their teams and carry Bucknell’s championship tradition forward.
In the Classroom: Bring student-athletes into a rigorous academic experience they pursue with the same intensity they bring to competition
Beyond Bucknell: Launch graduates whose years as Bison shape lives of leadership and achievement.
Your Gift. Their Potential.
An endowed athletic scholarship creates a lasting investment in generations of Bucknell student-athletes. Every scholarship opens a door. Every student-athlete carries its impact forward.
Donors can establish endowed athletic scholarships at three distinct levels:
Fully Endowed Scholarship: Transform a Student-athlete’s Future
Provides annual funding equivalent to the full cost of a Bucknell education for one student-athlete, creating an enduring opportunity for generations of Bison.50% Endowed Scholarship: Share in the Investment
Permanently supports half the cost of a student-athlete’s Bucknell education, helping attract and develop exceptional individuals.25% Endowed Scholarship: Create Opportunity
Permanently supports one-quarter of the cost of a student-athlete’s Bucknell education, expanding opportunity and establishing a lasting legacy.
Other Ways to Invest: Sport-specific ‘Now and Forever’ Funds provide permanent support that coaches can direct to evolving program needs, and annual Bison Club gifts strengthen the student-athlete experience for every team, every year.
Be the reason the best competitors choose Bucknell.
Invest in the Whole Student-Athlete
Give the Bison the resources to pursue championships, excel in the classroom and develop the skills and confidence to thrive in every arena that follows.