Scholars Program

Education is a key part of success, and we focus on bringing that to students in North America through our BK Scholars Program. The BK Scholars Program is the Foundation’s flagship program, established to honor the legacy of the Burger King brand’s co-founder James W. McLamore, whose commitment to philanthropy and education made him a pillar of community service throughout his lifetime. Through the program, we award scholarships to deserving high school seniors and Burger King employees and their families to help advance their education. Because of Jim, his legacy, and the support of franchisees, the scholars program has now awarded a total of $55 million in scholarships to more than 47,000 deserving students throughout North America since 2000.

Scholarships range from $1,000 to $60,000 and are intended to offset the cost of attending college or post-secondary vocational/technical school. Recipients are selected through an application process that takes into consideration their grade point average (GPA), work experience, extracurricular activities, financial need and community service. The application period is from mid-October to mid-December. In 2023 alone, the Foundation awarded over $3.2 million in scholarships to nearly 4,000 students.

The application period for the 2023-2024 cycle has closed. Scholarship recipients will be notified in April 2024.