The Kessler Scholars Program, a Bobcat First Program, provides holistic support for a diverse community of high-achieving students who are the first in their family to pursue a four-year college degree. Through peer-connections, co-curricular activities, workshops, academic support, and individualized guidance, the Kessler Scholars Program provides first-generation college students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed and thrive on campus and beyond. 

Each fall, the Kessler Scholars Program welcomes a new cohort of students to take advantage of this multi-faceted, transformative support, and to become active contributors to a close-knit Kessler Scholar community they help to create. Engagement with the program allows students to discover how to be their best and explore how their Bates degree empowers them to shape the future.

Read more on the Kessler Scholars Collaborative

Become a Kessler Scholar

Are you a Class of 2027 first-generation student interested in the Kessler Scholars and Bobcat First Programs? Please complete this form and our team will reach out with more information.

Program Benefits and Expectations

• An exclusive first-year summer pre-orientation experience
• A close network of peer, faculty, and staff mentors
• Academic success and professional exploration workshops
• Individualized academic advising meetings
• Opportunities for personally and professionally transformative summer experiences
•  Financial literacy and planning workshops
• Support for graduate school exploration trips, including law and medical school
• Recreational and community building activities developed through student input including field trips, game nights, group dinners, swim lessons and more!