Next Course Scholarship
The Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation has established a scholarship program to assist children of team members who plan to continue their education in college or vocational school programs.
Next Course Scholarship
The program is administered by Scholarship America®, the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarships and other education support programs for corporations, foundations, associations, and individuals. Eligibility for individual programs is determined at the sole discretion of the sponsor and eligible applications are reviewed by Scholarship America’s evaluation team.
Eligibility
Applicants to the Next Course Scholarship Program must be:
- Dependent children*, age 25 and under, of full-time or part-time Darden team members who have a minimum of six (6) months employment with the company as of the application deadline date.
*Dependent children are defined as biological, step- or legally adopted children living in the team member’s household or primarily supported by the team member. - High school seniors or graduates, or current postsecondary undergraduates, who plan to enroll in full-time undergraduate study at an accredited two-year or four-year college, university, or vocational-technical school for the entire upcoming academic year.
Children of team members above Director level are ineligible.
Awards
If selected as a recipient, the student will receive a $3,000 award. Up to 125 awards will be granted.
Awards are not renewable, but students may reapply to the program each year they meet eligibility requirements.
Awards are for undergraduate study only and may be used for qualified education-related expenses such as tuition, fees, books, and required supplies only.
Notification
All applicants will be notified in March.
Notifications are sent via email. When setting up your account, avoid using a school or work email. Instead, use an active, personal email address that you will continue to have access to.
Please make sure to add studentsupport@scholarshipamerica.org as well as the program email address as safe senders in your email contact list.
Payment of Scholarships
Scholarship America processes scholarship payments on behalf of Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation. Payment is made in August.
Selection of Recipients
Scholarship recipients are selected on the basis of:
- Academic record
- Demonstrated leadership and participation in school and community activities
- Work experience
- A statement of educational and career goals and objectives
- Unusual personal or family circumstances
- An online recommendation form
Financial need, as calculated by Scholarship America, must be demonstrated for the student to receive an award.
Selection of recipients is made by Scholarship America. In no instance does any officer or employee of Darden Restaurants, Inc. Foundation play a part in the selection.
Not all applicants to the program will be selected as recipients and all applicants agree to accept decisions as final.
Requirements
As part of your application, you must upload the following:
- A current, complete transcript of grades. Grade reports are not accepted. Transcripts must display:
- Student name
- School name
- Grades
- Credit hours for each course and term in which each course was taken.
NOTE: If you are providing SAT or ACT test scores, and those scores are not listed on your high school transcript, you will need to upload a copy of your test score report(s) separately. If you are uploading a college transcript, those scores are not required.
One online recommendation form must be submitted on your behalf no later than January 14, 2026 at 3:00 PM Central Time.
Your application is not complete unless all required materials are submitted electronically.
