The cost of higher education is one of the biggest obstacles students face when they enroll in college. Scholarships have long been offered to University of Utah students, but without a comprehensive platform of available scholarships or a way to bypass repetitive application tasks, students often didn’t have the time or resources to apply to very many, if they even knew of their options.

To address these issues, the university adopted an integrated scholarship platform called Scholarship Universe. As of July 2026, the cross-functional team leading this work through the Student Experience Project has migrated 2,235 University of Utah scholarship opportunities into the system, representing nearly every institutional scholarship currently identified by the university. Students can now search, filter, and apply for every scholarship they might qualify for in one place, including institutional and external scholarships.

This work would not have been possible without the efforts of staff and faculty members across campus. Their collaboration has transformed how scholarships are managed and made it easier for students to discover and apply for available funding.

A campus-wide effort

Identifying scholarship opportunities on campus and then changing the process behind marketing them, accepting applications, and distributing funds has been a huge group effort. Anthony Jones, Executive Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid, led the project with his team, but he shares that they “partnered with almost every department across campus, because we literally have hundreds upon hundreds of institutional scholarships.” Each college, center, department, or office offering scholarship funding contributed, and some departments also participated in a pilot to evaluate Scholarship Universe’s features and capabilities before broader rollout. Their invaluable insights helped to guide full institutional migration.

Heather Clarkson, Student Scholarship and Funding Administrator for the College of Nursing, piloted Scholarship Universe for the College of Nursing. “I think departmental applications are easier for students to find and complete. The previous system required them to complete a general application before allowing them access to a department’s application. It caused some confusion,” said Clarkson. “Students sometimes believed they’d applied for scholarships from the College of Nursing when they’d only completed the general application.”

Similar complications existed in many units across campus. Some even still relied on paper applications, making it difficult for students to know the scholarship opportunities existed, let alone submit an application. Since implementing Scholarship Universe, the College of Nursing alone has seen a 150% increase in applicants, and the implementation team anticipates seeing similar improvements across campus units. For students, that means scholarship opportunities are becoming easier to find and more likely to reach those who qualify.

University Advancement team members also played an essential role in implementation. Generally, University Advancement is responsible for fundraising for all initiatives of the university, which covers everything from research and healthcare priorities to student scholarships. Using their close relationships with donors and expertise on donor-funded scholarships, the team identified scholarships that needed to be migrated and participated in building processes and systems to steward both donors and students.

“University Advancement is thrilled to see Scholarship Universe launched and a more central and easier way for students to find and access the support offered by generous scholarship donors,” says Lindsay Nelson, Principal Director for Student Success on the University Advancement team. “Our scholarship donors are eager to see their generous funds benefit students in the most impactful way, and utilizing Scholarship Universe will be a great way to ensure that students who need the support can find what is available for them.”

Without faculty and staff cooperation, this project would not have been possible. Not only did faculty and staff identify scholarship opportunities across campus, “they’ve all jumped in to test, build it, and give us feedback,” says Jones.

A simpler student experience

As the transition to Scholarship Universe has unfolded, students have been benefitting from using the platform. Jones says that his favorite piece of feedback was when a student told him, “I thought I did something wrong because I was done with the application so quickly.”

Simplifying the logistical aspect of applying for scholarships changes the game for people who rely on scholarships to pay for school. “For me, scholarships have never felt supplemental. They have been a real part of making college possible. Because of that, I treated applying almost like another class,” said student Logan Bogesvang. “I used AcademicWorks, Google searches, department pages, emails, staff recommendations, word-of-mouth, and my own spreadsheets. That approach can work, but only if a student already knows where to look and has the time to stay organized.”

By bringing scholarship opportunities and applications together in one place, Scholarship Universe significantly reduces the need for students to search across multiple websites, emails, and departmental processes.

The platform is designed to help all students, but for many nontraditional students, the tool can be particularly impactful. Katie Brimhall shared, “Through Scholarship Universe, I was connected with and ultimately received the Heidi and Greg Miller Single Parent Scholarship. Receiving that scholarship has been life changing for me as a nontraditional student and single parent pursuing a degree in social work.”

Reducing the burden of paying for school certainly alleviates stress and financial challenges, but that scholarship meant even more to Brimhall. “It feels like a vote of confidence in my future, and that encouragement has inspired me to push myself academically and stay committed to my goals,” she said. “As a student, that kind of support means more than people may realize.”

A new platform

As Jones says, “The Scholarship Universe platform is considered one of the best in the industry because of its ability to match student data.”  Using a sophisticated filtering system, the platform can narrow down thousands of scholarships—both institutional and external—to only the ones relevant to that student.

Applying through Scholarship Universe also means that students don’t have to fill out the same information repeatedly. Once they’ve noted basic information, Scholarship Universe automatically includes it in every application, leaving students to complete only scholarship-specific requirements such as essays or portfolios.

“With the process being easier and less confusing, it helps them find funds that are available in a more timely manner,” says Jones. “Plus, any external scholarships in the platform are vetted to make sure they don’t charge you or spam you, so students can trust that all of the scholarships are legitimate.”

The platform also gives administrators data to better understand student needs and make more informed decisions. With all scholarships available on one site, the university has the ability to analyze broad data trends about students’ interests and needs, including where more funding may need to be prioritized.

As Nelson explains, “When we can tell a donor that over 200 students were eligible to be matched with their scholarship and were in need of funding, but we were able to award just two of those students, we have a better story to tell about the need our students have for scholarship support, using data from the Scholarship Universe system.” Administrators can use these insights to advise donors and departments on where scholarship funding is needed most.

Knowing that Scholarship Universe vets external scholarships also makes it easier for staff and faculty members to point students toward credible opportunities without doing hours of tedious research themselves. It also streamlines workflows for faculty and staff because there’s a central place to submit recommendation letters and other supplemental materials.

As the University of Utah moves forward with this platform, the project team plans to continue gathering feedback and making improvements to the system. “Once this process becomes habit, we’ll have the capacity to work on getting new scholarships in and expanding further,” says Jones. With a more complete view of scholarship demand across campus, the U will be better positioned to identify needs, secure additional scholarship dollars, and demonstrate the impact of those investments on student success.