McNair Scholars Program

Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the McNair program prepares undergraduates from first generation, low-Income and underrepresented backgrounds to pursue and attain an advanced degree to enter careers in research and academia. Students are paired with faculty mentors and are provided with academic advising, research opportunities and workshops tailored to the graduate school experience and application process. Additionally, through the O'Neill Library, students receive special library privileges, including graduate student borrowing status and an assigned librarian. All disciplines are encouraged to apply.

The McNair Program is named in honor of the late Dr. Ronald E. McNair, one of seven crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger. Despite social and economic barriers, Dr. McNair earned many outstanding achievements such as completing a Ph.D. in Physics from M.I.T. at the age of 26 and was the second African-American to fly to space. In addition, Dr. McNair received many distinguished awards, including the National Ford Foundation Fellowship and the Presidential Scholarship. We honor and hope to continue to live out his legacy.

If you are a first generation college student and are interested in pursuing a Master's degree or a Doctoral degree post your baccalaureate career at Boston College, please visit us at the Mentoring and Academic Achievement office.