Scholarship Application Information:
The General Society of Mayflower Descendants (GSMD) Scholarship Program offers scholarships to graduating high school seniors who are Mayflower descendants and will be attending a four-year college or university or two-year community college. In 2024, the GSMD added a Native American Scholarship for graduating high school seniors with proven descent to a Native American ancestor.
SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS
The General Society of Mayflower Descendants (GSMD) Scholarship Program is awarding three High School Senior students’ scholarships in the amount of: $6000, $5000 and $4000.
In addition, a $2,400 Mary Chilton Winslow Scholarship will also be awarded.
The 2026 Application Process is now open!
If interested in applying for this year’s application, please read the following requirements carefully:
ANCESTRY REQUIREMENTS:
For an applicant to be considered for a Mayflower Scholarship, the Applicant must provide the name of the Mayflower Ancestor(s) from whom they descend. They must also provide a valid GSMD membership number for either the applicant or for a parent, grandparent, or great grandparent of the applicant. This member must be active – not deceased, resigned or dropped.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
Each scholarship applicant must:
- Be a graduating senior
- Complete and submit the application form
- Complete and submit the essay
- Submit a recent transcript
- Enter a four-year college or university or two-year community college.
- Provide names/emails for two references: a teacher and a person in the community. Both will need to complete a required form.
Please Note: References must fill out the REQUIRED Reference Form provided by GSMD. A reference letter may also be included, but is not required. If the reference fails to fill out the provided form by the March 2nd deadline, the candidate will be disqualified. Students are responsible for making sure references return their forms on time. Once a reference form is received, the student will be notified on the acknowledgement email.
In the spirit of the Mayflower settlers seeking to better themselves by moving to a new and uncharted world, special consideration will be given to applicants who have demonstrated a commitment to bettering themselves.
The deadline for Application Submissions is March 2nd!
All forms must be submitted by the deadline, including the application form, transcript, essay, and two reference forms. Failure to send appropriate forms will eliminate your application from consideration.
Last-minute applications and reference information can result in incomplete or poorly written essays and/or missing references which could result in the applicant being ineligible for scholarship consideration.
Final Note to all applicants: All communications with the GSMD scholarship team should be made by the applicant. Communications from parents will be a cause for disqualification.
Native American Scholarship Information:
If you are interested in applying for the Native American Scholarship, please contact: Scholarships@
2025 Scholarship Winners:
There were 6 scholarships awarded in 2025:
The General Society of Mayflower Descendants 1st Prize – $6,000
The General Society of Mayflower Descendants 2nd Prize – $5,000
The General Society of Mayflower Descendants 3rd Prize – $4,000
The Mary Chilton Winslow Scholarship – $2,400
2 GSMD Native American Scholarships – $1,300 each
The 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize scholarship winners, along with the Mary Chilton Winslow scholarship winner are all descendants of a Mayflower passenger. The scholarships were awarded based on the student’s class standing and GPA, extracurricular activities, sports, awards and community involvement. Additionally each applicant had to submit one character reference and one academic reference as well as a two part essay on the Mayflower Compact.
The Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants also selected two winners for the Native American Heritage Scholarship. This scholarship was based on similar criteria, except the applicant’s ancestry must be tied back directly to a Native American tribe and their essay was based on the student’s Native American heritage.
All of the winners were selected by a scholarship committee, made up of five adjudicators and the committee chair.
First Prize: Noah Kerr
Second Prize: Lindsey Sobon
Third Prize: Kendall Chappell
The Mary Chilton Winslow Scholarship Winner: Kelsey Clayton
Native American Scholarship Winner: Major Elliott
