The Michael and Christine Kolbuk Undergraduate Scholarship is awarded to an undergraduate economics student in good academic standing, with preference given to first generation students who are not in the U.S. on a nonimmigrant student visa. Michael Kolbuk earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the department in 1971. Both he and his wife, Christine, are committed to supporting hardworking and meritorious students at the University of Illinois.

Scholarship Eligibility

Michael and Christine Kolbuk Scholarship (up to $1,500)

Eligibility: A currently declared Economics student who has completed at least 60 hours of coursework, including at least 18 hours of economics, has GPA no less than 3.0/4.0 grade point average in all UIUC economics/statistics courses; and has a minimum 3.0/4.0 grade point average overall.

Application: Submit the scholarship application cover sheet, a résumé/CV, and a brief essay (250-500 words). The essay should describe your most meaningful achievements and their relationship to your economics major, and your future educational and/or career goals.

APPLY NOW - Deadline Sunday, March 29, 2026 (11:59pm)
 

Step 1: Application Cover Sheet: Fill out this scholarship application cover sheet (print or save document). This cover sheet must be submitted with your application materials.
Step 2: Email your application 
When emailing your application, you will include the application cover sheet, a résumé/CV, and required essay/s saved as 1 single file. Submitted file should be saved as Last Name, First Name.

Click here for information on all available scholarships.

Recipients
Spring 2025Tobias Lewis, Gabe Predescu
Spring 2024Cici Ren
Spring 2023Amy Exposito & Shaurya Gupta
Spring 2022Alex Hernandez & Alex Predescu
Fall 2021Mansi Bodalia  & Alex Wellman
Spring 2020Hana Abbed & Yi Li
Spring 2019Michael Zhuang
Spring 2018Jing Wang
Spring 2017Kornelia Chyla
Spring 2016Emily Schroeder