About the BBB of Chicago and Northern Illinois' Foundation Scholarship

Our 2025 Scholarship Program is NOW OPEN through March 31st, 2025!

Students may apply for one of ten (10) $3,000 college or higher education scholarships. Enter by creating a short video, no longer than 90 seconds in length, that presents your opinion with respect to the following prompt:

BBB Accredited Businesses pledge to uphold 8 Standards of Trust, which embody ethics and integrity. Choose one, state what it means to you, and explain how it contributes to a healthy, vibrant marketplace.

Your entry will be judged by a panel of judges considering two factors: Content and Need.

Content: This is the substance of your video. Demonstrate clarity and articulation in presenting your opinion on the importance of ethical business practices. You may wish to develop a witty and thoughtful motto to summarize your opinion.

Need: This is your motivation for applying for this scholarship. Illustrate your financial need in a written statement explaining why you desire this scholarship and how it will impact your further education (fill this portion out in the form at the bottom of this page).

Use the first portion of your video to introduce yourself and your current school. Entries to this scholarship will be evaluated based on content of the video and the written statement of need. What you say and how you say it are important. High production value (use of multiple cameras, graphics, etc.) will not influence judging.

This contest is open to all public and private high school seniors and college students residing in the following counties in BBB’s service area in Chicago & Northern Illinois. Students must have residence in one of the following counties to be eligible: (Boone, Carroll, Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, JoDavies, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside, Will, Winnebago).

Scholarship funds are sent directly to the relevant academic institution the student will be attending. The funds are strictly for tuition, no exceptions. The academic institution must be accredited by a nationally recognized accreditation group. The academic institution may be a college, university, two-year college, junior college, trade school, or other comparable institution. 

Video entries will be accepted during the contest period. The 2025 contest period is January 6th- March 31st, 2025.

Immediate family members of Better Business Bureau officers and employees, as well as its suppliers and vendors, are not eligible to apply for this scholarship.

The 2025 BBB Foundation College Scholarship Video Contest is sponsored by the BBB Foundation of the Better Business Bureau Serving Chicago and Northern Illinois, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.   

For questions and inquiries email scholarship@chicago.bbb.org

Ten(10) $3,000 scholarships will be awarded.

Entries must be submitted by March 31st, 2025.

Winners will be notified by email or phone at the end of May. The scholarship-winning students must receive their award in-person at the BBB Golf Outing (2025 date To Be Announced).

Scholarship funds are sent directly to the relevant academic institution the student will be attending. The academic institution must be accredited by a nationally recognized accreditation group. The academic institution may be a college, university, two-year college, junior college, trade school, or other comparable institution. 

For questions and inquiries email scholarship@chicago.bbb.org

Evaluation of the video entries and awarding of the scholarships will be accomplished by a panel of judges from businesses, colleges/universities, and non-profit organizations.

Judging will be based on:

• Completion of all appropriate online entry forms (found at the bottom of this page).
• Submitting your complete video entry and online form by the deadline date and time.
• Specificity and clarity in your written statement of need (included in online form).
• Articulation and thoughtfulness in your opinion on the importance of a business to conduct itself ethically in your video.
• Creativity and uniqueness of your entry.

For questions and inquiries email scholarship@chicago.bbb.org