2026 Medtronic Spark Scholarship

Scholarship:
The Medtronic Spark Scholarship is designed for students who demonstrate academic potential and leadership capabilities, who are pursuing associate’s degrees, bachelor’s degrees and/or job-ready credentials (and global equivalents) in health tech and healthcare related fields. It is available to students from low-income households across the globe who live in eligible locations.

The Medtronic Spark Scholarship program aims to change the trajectory of recipients’ lives, with a goal of improving college graduation rates and early career success. Scholarship recipients are eligible for financial support to meet education expenses (renewable for up to four years) and career-building experiences which may include Medtronic mentorship, coaching, networking support, and more.

The application deadline is January 30, 2026, at 11:59 PM Central Time (US).

Scholarship Benefits:
The Medtronic Spark Scholarship offers the following:

Scholarship Funds: Funding of up to USD$15,000 (in the U.S.) or up to USD$10,000 (outside of the U.S.) per year, renewable for the duration of the degree* (up to 4 years); credential programs are one-time non-renewable awards.
Emergency Funds: Opportunity to apply for additional funding for emergency needs during the scholarship period (for example, unexpected medical expenses, housing instability, transportation disruptions, etc.).
Student Supports: Participation in a virtual kick-off session and check-ins with IIE academic advisors.
Mentorship, Career Panels, Networking: Engagement with Medtronic employees in person and virtually through mentorship, career panels and other networking opportunities.
*This scholarship is renewable if eligibility requirements continue to be met.

This scholarship is designed to cover the remaining cost of a student’s education after all other sources of funding, such as federal/state government grants, institutional aid, and private scholarships, have been applied. The Medtronic Spark Scholarship can be used to cover the remaining cost of tuition and fees, room and board, books, supplies, and equipment required for education programs.

Payment of Awards

Scholarship payments will be made directly to the academic institution. Payments to individuals may only happen in extenuating circumstances and require IIE and Medtronic Foundation’s approval.

Watch the Medtronic Spark Scholarship Webinar!
Discover how the Medtronic Spark Scholarship empowers students pursuing health tech and healthcare careers. Learn about eligibility, application tips, and how this program supports future innovators. You can watch the recording here and view the presentation slides.

Eligibility
All applicants must meet the following criteria:
Field of Study: Pursuit of a career in health tech or related healthcare field at an accredited institution.
Geographic Requirements: The Medtronic Spark Scholarship is available to students globally who live in eligible locations. For European Union (EU) students, they may study in an eligible EU country through Freedom of Movement.
Financial Need: Open to students who demonstrate significant financial barriers to covering the full cost of their education expenses. Priority will be given to students from low-income households.
Additional applicant criteria include:
This scholarship is only for undergraduate degrees and credential programs. Graduate-level degrees such as master’s, PhD, MD, or other advanced degrees are not eligible.

Applicants pursuing 2-4 year undergraduate degrees must meet the following criteria:

Academic Requirements: Strong academic performance. Minimum 2.5 GPA out of 4.0 (or international equivalents).
Student Year of Study: Open to incoming 1st year, 2nd year, 3rd year students of their undergraduate degree programs (or international equivalents). Students in the final year of a two-year or four-year undergraduate degree program are not eligible.
Applicants pursuing accredited job-ready credential programs must meet the following criteria:

Academic Requirements: Completed high school/secondary education.
Student Year of Study: Will enroll in and start a credential program no earlier than June 2026 and no later than May 2027.
Other Details:

Program Start Date: Individuals must be applying for a program that starts no earlier than June 2026 and no later than May 2027. Applicants will not be able to delay or defer this scholarship.
Proof of Enrollment: Applicants do not need to be accepted into a program at the time of application; however, if selected for a scholarship, proof of full-time enrollment will be required along with full financial aid package details before scholarship funds can be released.
Medtronic Affiliation: Current/former Medtronic interns and dependents of Medtronic employees are welcome to apply. Current Medtronic employees are not eligible to receive this scholarship.

Application
Application and Selection
Online applications are available in the following languages: English, Arabic, Chinese, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish and Turkish.

Submission of Applications

The application will be closed at 11:59 PM Central Time (US) on January 30, 2026.

A complete application will include:

Responses to a series of short essay questions.
Recent academic transcript (not required for credential applicants).
Recent financial information and supporting documents including household income, education expenses, Financial Aid (for students who study in the U.S. only), and any additional scholarships or financial awards received.
Agreement to privacy statement, communications release, social media acknowledgement, and participation statement.
A self-introduction video submission (up to 30 seconds): This video will only be considered as part of the selection process if the applicant reaches the final review stage.
Only applications completed by the deadline will be reviewed. Falsifying or plagiarizing any portion of your application will result in automatic disqualification. Additionally, submitting AI-generated content without meaningful personal input or misrepresenting your experiences using AI tools is not acceptable. We value authenticity and transparency and expect all applicants to reflect their own voice and experiences in their submissions.

Selection of Scholarship Recipients

Scholarship applicants will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Academic achievement
Financial need
Achievement and potential in health tech or healthcare fields
Demonstrated creative problem-solving and resilience
Scholarship recipients who are not able to produce proof of enrollment by the date indicated in the award letter will no longer be eligible and an alternate candidate will be selected. Scholarship recipients will also need to agree to the terms and conditions of the scholarship program to receive this award.

Medtronic Spark Scholarship Application Timeline

November 2025: Online application opens
January 30, 2026: Application deadline
April 2026: Notification*
*Applicants will be notified in April whether or not they have been selected to receive an award. The Medtronic Spark Scholarship program is a competitive program; not all applicants will be selected as recipients.