Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program

PROGRAM SUMMARY

To support students in achieving success in the three pillars of scholarship and applied learning, campus involvement and leadership, and professional development, the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program provides students with the following:

An annual renewable merit scholarship, including tuition, fees, room and board (Approximately $22,000 a year)
Membership in the University Honors Program
Automatic acceptance into the Engineering Leadership Academy
$6,000 stipend to support housing and meals during a summer internship
$2,500 stipend for study abroad
Research and professional development opportunities
Laptop or comparable technology purchase
Opportunity to earn Engineering Honors through the multidisciplinary Senior Design Project team during the senior year
Admittance to special lectures conducted by national and community leaders
Priority registration
Housing in Levine Hall with students from other honors programs and merit scholars (guaranteed for the first four semesters)
Support and advising from the Albert Faculty Fellow

ADMISSION AND ELIGIBILITY

Applicants must be incoming first-year students being considered for full-time enrollment at UNC Charlotte in a baccalaureate program offered by The William States Lee College of Engineering for the fall term immediately following high school graduation
Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents
Applicants must hold an outstanding academic record of consistently advanced coursework, have had prior experiences which reflect ethical leadership and individual development, and demonstrate a commitment to community service
Preference given to students with an unweighted HS GPA = 3.50-4.00 OR weighted HS GPA = 3.80-5.00 AND SAT = 1320/1600 OR ACT 28/36
Demonstrated alignment with the mission and vision of the Honors College and the University Honors Program
Applicants should complete the Honors College application, including the required list of activities, two academic letters of recommendation (one of which also addresses your leadership potential), and honors essay 1. Applicants should also check the box indicating they wish to apply to the Albert Scholars Program and submit honors essay 2.

HOW TO APPLY:

The Albert Engineering Leadership Scholarship application is made available to qualified students through the Honors College Application.

To apply for the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program:

Complete the UNC Charlotte Admission Application by the early action deadline of November 1, 2026
Complete the Honors College Application by the priority deadline of December 1, 2026
Check the box in the Honors College Application indicating interest in the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholarship application and submit honors essay 2 by December 1, 2026

Required Application Materials

Prepare the following materials to apply to the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program:

1. List of Activities

Please list and describe your extracurricular activities, community service, summer enrichment, employment, and other accomplishments in the section below. If applicable, indicate your leadership responsibilities for each activity. This section is also an opportunity to list any recognition and awards you have received during high school.

You may share up to 10 total activities and awards. List your activities and awards in order of importance to you, with the first being the most important, the second being the second most important, and so on.

Number each item 1-10
Give the organization’s full name (not an acronym)
Indicate during which grades you participated
Include the start and end dates, how many hours per week, how many weeks per year
Indicate any leadership positions held

2. Two Essays

We are providing the essay prompts here, so you have time to thoughtfully prepare your response.

The purpose of these essays is to help us get to know you as a person and understand how you think. You should submit polished writing that demonstrates authenticity, creativity, and analytical reflection. The best essays will give the review committee a clear sense of the unique intellectual and creative contributions you are poised to make to the UNC Charlotte community.

Essay 1

The Honors College expects that applicants’ responses to the prompt are entirely their own and reflect their personal experiences, ideas, and language. While it can be a helpful tool, artificial intelligence (AI) should not be used in the production of this essay.
It is acceptable for you to use an essay you have submitted for another UNC Charlotte application if you feel it adequately addresses the prompt.
Plain text only. Formatting such as bold, italics, or underlined text will be removed upon pasting.
Be sure to specifically address the prompt provided in no less than 400 words and no more than 500 words.
To avoid losing your work due to session timeouts, write and save your essay in a separate word processor (like Google Docs or MS Word) before pasting it here.
Review your text in the box after pasting to ensure no formatting errors occurred during the transfer.

Honors Essay 1 Prompt:
Honors and merit scholars are intellectually curious learners. They ask questions, seek deeper understanding, and remain open to changing their perspectives. Tell us about an “aha” moment you had related to an idea or concept you were learning, either in a classroom or through independent exploration, that changed your thinking. Describe this concept or idea and how your thinking about it changed. How has this affected the way you approach learning today?

Essay 2

We value writing that is specific and true over writing that is polished and general; the strongest essays demonstrate authenticity, creativity, and analytical reflection.
The Honors College expects that applicants’ responses to the prompt are entirely their own and reflect their personal experiences, ideas, and language. While it can be a helpful tool, artificial intelligence (AI) should not be used in the production of this essay.
It is acceptable for you to use an essay you have submitted for another UNC Charlotte application if you feel it adequately addresses the prompt.
Plain text only. Formatting such as bold, italics, or underlined text will be removed upon pasting.
Be sure to specifically address the prompt provided in no less than 500 words and no more than 700 words.
To avoid losing your work due to session timeouts, write and save your essay in a separate word processor (like Google Docs or MS Word) before pasting it here.
Review your text in the box after pasting to ensure no formatting errors occurred during the transfer.

Honors Essay 2 Prompt:
People don’t come with user’s manuals; we have to figure each other out the hard way, through experience. What’s it like to work with you? Give your future colleagues a head start: write the manual for working with you on a hard problem. For example, what can they count on you for, where do you tend to struggle, and what should they do when you’re wrong? For each area you share, be sure to ground it in one real moment from your life.

Note: Finalists should expect to be asked follow up questions about this essay during their interview.

3. Two Academic Letters of Recommendation (one of which also addresses your leadership potential)

An academic reference is defined as a current or former teacher, or professor, who was your instructor for at least one academic course. Family members, friends, current/former employers or co-workers, leaders of faith-based or community organizations, etc. should not be used as academic references.

A leadership reference is an individual who has witnessed you in a leadership role. Choose an individual who can provide specific information about times when you have demonstrated leadership qualities or qualities you have displayed that indicate potential to be a leader. Your reference may also speak about organizations you are part of which develop leadership skills or allow you to serve in a leadership role.

We suggest that you select and approach your recommenders now. Teachers have busy schedules and writing detailed letters of recommendation is a time-consuming process.

Once you have completed the Honors College Application, your recommenders will receive an email with a link and must upload their letters by December 5th.

TIMELINE

Deadline	Action Required
November 1	Early action deadline to apply to UNC Charlotte to be considered for the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program and University Honors Program
December 1	Deadline to complete the Honors College Application
December 1	Deadline to submit honors essay 2 for the Albert Engineering Leadership Scholarship application
December 5	Letters of Recommendation due (via upload from recommenders)
Early February	Finalists and all other applicants are notified of their status via email
Mid-Late February	Virtual interviews take place for finalists
Early March	Albert Engineering Leadership Scholars Program offers extended and all other candidates are notified of their status