Big Y's Scholarship Program

Big Y Foods, Inc. is one of the largest, locally owned supermarket chains in Southern New England. A family-owned and operated corporation, Big Y has represented excellence in the food industry since 1936.

In tribute to both its employees and its customers, Big Y offers an annual scholarship program. Established in 1981, the program includes a series of scholarships which honor Big Y's founders; the late Paul H. D'Amour and his brother, Gerald D'Amour. In addition, there is a scholarship series that was originally funded by Big Y employees to commemorate Big Y's 50th Anniversary, one recognizing the contributions of area law enforcement officers and firefighters and a category that acknowledges the tremendous sacrifice made by all Military Service members and their families.

All Big Y scholarships recognize academic merit and achievement. They are awarded to the most academically outstanding students in the Big Y market area. There are awards for both traditional and nontraditional students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Scholarship Application Timeline

A) The online application is available from Nov 1st – Feb 1st.

B) Notifications are emailed in early April. (Note: You may need to check your SPAM folder)

C) Scholarship recipient names are posted on bigy.com in early May.

Who Is Eligible

Big Y Scholarships are open to graduating high school seniors, undergrad and graduate students. Employees, their dependents, customers and their dependents are encouraged to apply.

To be eligible, a student's permanent residence, or school, must be located in Massachusetts or Connecticut. (All employees are eligible regardless of residence).

*Prior Big Y scholarship award recipients are not eligible to reapply.

How to Apply

A) Please visit our scholarship page on our official website at www.bigy.com (between Nov 1- Feb 1) and click the application link and to review the most up to date information.]

B) Paper applications no longer accepted.

C) After February 1st, any incomplete or late submissions will not be considered.

Please Note: You may find prior year paper applications on the internet and on 3rd party sites. These are not valid and will not be accepted

Supporting Documents

A) Academic Transcripts do not need to be official (digital copies – photos, PDFs, scans – are acceptable).

B) Two Letters of Recommendations are required. Only one must be from a teacher, or a college professor. High school Seniors and College Freshman can submit copies of letters written for college entrance.

C) Recommendations letters can be uploaded by a 3rd party (Example: school personnel). Please follow instructions on the online application system to request letters from your teacher, college/university professor, etc.

D) If you did not take any College Board exams (such as SAT or ACT), or it has has been more than 3 years since you took them, you can complete online application without them.

E) Personal resume/fact sheet detailing activities, achievements, awards, community involvement, leadership positions and class rank (if applicable).

High School, College, University Representatives:

A) Annually, Scholarship packets (poster and letter) are mailed to schools within Massachusetts and Connecticut in early Fall.

Please note: Please email, scholarship@bigy.com to request your school be put on our mailing list or removed from the mailing list.

A) If you receive an email request from a student, you will be provided a link to upload the recommendation letter. The student will not see the letter. It can only be viewed by the scholarship committee.

B) Academic Transcripts: We will accept unofficial transcripts.