Scholarship for Service

Scholarship for Service is a federally-funded program to train and place qualifying students as cybersecurity experts in federal, state, local, and tribal government positions. SFS provides full tuition, a stipend, professional development funds, and more in exchange for an equal-length commitment of post-graduate employment at an SFS-approved agency.

Applications are currently being accepted for the AY 2025-2026 cohort.

Benefits

  • Full tuition
  • $27K/year stipend for B.S. students
  • $37K/year stipend for M.S./Ph.D. students
  • $6K professional development funds
  • Cybersecurity career advising and mentoring

Obligations

  • Complete your degree program
  • Complete a summer internship at an SFS employer
  • Serve in a post-graduate position at an SFS employer for an equal amount of time to the support received
  • Attend the annual SFS job fair in the Washington D.C. area
  • Report your job search progress to OPM

Eligibility

  • CS, CY, IS, and ECE full-time majors
  • Last 4 semesters of B.S. or M.S. supported
  • Last 6 semesters of B.S./M.S. or Ph.D. supported
  • Minimum 3.0 undergraduate GPA
  • US citizens or permanent residents
  • Ability to obtain a security clearance

Apply Now

AY 2025-2026 applications are due May 2 AoE. All applications received by the submission deadline will be reviewed by the admissions committee. Decision notifications will be issued by May 30.

Please note that applications are not considered complete unless all requested documents and reference letters are received.

NSF Processing Pause

Due to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the federal budget, the National Science Foundation has currently halted processing of new SFS applications until they receive FY 2025 and 2026 budget information. We nor NSF know when processing will resume or at what rate when it does.

Because of this processing pause, we may be unable to adhere to the planned admissions schedule. Therefore, we strongly encourage applicants to have a backup funding plan even if they have been accepted to the SFS program.

We realize that this lack of certainty is frustrating. We will share any updates as soon as we receive them, but for the moment this is all that we are able to relay on the matter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are there conditions on where postgraduate obligations can be met?

Yes. SFS employers are drawn from a list of approved agencies across the Federal executive branch, state/local/tribal agencies, national laboratories, academic institutions, and FFRDCs. In addition, Congress and NSF requires 80% of all placements to be at federal executive branch agencies.

Are students with an international visa eligible?

Students must be either a US citizen or permanent resident and able to obtain a security clearance.

Can SFS students take classes across the Northeastern network?

Yes, with the caveat that we require students to take technical cybersecurity courses that might only be available at particular campuses. Applicants must submit a proposed plan of study with a suitable course sequence.

What is the acceptance rate? How many students are accepted per cohort? What is the distribution of students by degree program?

We do not have a strict acceptance rate target. We aim to build a strong cohort each year that will succeed in obtaining internship and postgraduate placements at SFS employers and contribute to filling national cybersecurity needs.

Can students be supported for less than 4 (B.S., M.S.) or 6 (B.S./M.S., Ph.D.) semesters?

We will consider such applications, but strongly prefer full applications.