Scholarships

*Note: The below dates and deadlines pertain to the 2017-2018 school year. Scholarship applications for the 2018-2019 school year will go live on January 1st or in early January. Dates and deadlines will be updated accordingly at that time.

​Each year the NJREF strives to award as many students as possible with scholarships and ultimately continue giving more year after year. This is possible with the help of all our supporters. Without them, we would not have the ability to pay it forward to our youth and future industry leaders. By supporting our youth, you are also supporting New Jersey’s economy.

The future of the New Jersey food service and hospitality is at the hands of our aspiring chefs and entrepreneurs. Without their dreams of careers in these industries, our state would not only lose chefs and managers, but also restaurants, hotels, and tourists. A huge part of the New Jersey economy depends on restaurants and hotels.

​By supporting the NJREF, you are not only investing in the future of our youth, but also in our state.

All interested applicants should read the Giving Guidelines, listed below.

Scholarships Offered in 2018

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Giving Guidelines

All scholarship applications will be available until April 1, 2018. Any applications received prior to January 1, 2018, will not be considered. Any applications received after April 1, 2018 will not be considered, and will be discarded unopened.

All scholarship essays should be in the following format:

• Font: Times New Roman, 12 pt., double-spaced; 14 pt. bold for title
• Left Margin: Name, mailing address, email, phone, and name of scholarship for which you are applying

Scholarship awards will be given to the student. The check will be made out to the college the student has indicated in their application. It will be the student’s responsibility to mail the check to the corresponding college in a timely fashion. If the student decides to attend another college, the NJREF will need to know immediately via email with proof of acceptance to the new college.

All scholarship checks will be given to the student at Culinary Student Day on Tuesday, May 15, 2018.

All scholarship recipients are required to attend in order to receive their scholarships. Each student will be allowed to bring 2 guests. The student’s instructor will also be invited to attend. A formal invitation will be sent to the student upon selection of the scholarship. In the event that a student cannot attend Culinary Student Day due to schedule conflicts, the NJREF should be notified at least 2 weeks prior to the event in order to qualify for the scholarship.

The National Restaurant Educational Foundation offers matching scholarship funds to students who are awarded scholarships on the state level. In the event that the NJREF is awarded matching funds for the 2018 scholarship program, all scholarship recipients will be notified. A check for the matching scholarship will be sent directly to the student’s college or university.

Scholarships and matching funds are never guaranteed. Please be advised that if you submit a scholarship application, you may or may not be selected to receive an award. All scholarship recipients will receive a formal letter in April.

Incomplete scholarship applications will not be considered or reviewed by the NJREF Scholarship Granting Committee.

All questions regarding scholarship applications should be sent via email or phone to Sarita Curry, Education Coordinator, at the New Jersey Restaurant Educational Foundation: SaritaC@njrha.org or (800) 848-6368.
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The Garden State Silver Plate Scholarship is for ProStart students only. If you are unsure whether you are a ProStart student, you can find out by contacting your instructors or the NJREF.

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