Written by Christian Chinonso
Founder, LearnViaHub | Academic Credential & International Student Research
✓ Last checked: 20 October 2026
Quick answer
Knight-Hennessy Scholars (KHS) does not publish an acceptance rate. Its own figures let us calculate two. For the 2026 cohort, 87 scholars were chosen from 5,144 eligible applications (about 1.7%) and from 9,223 total applications (about 0.9%). KHS counts an application as eligible when it was submitted to both KHS and a Stanford degree program (KHS media FAQs).
KHS invites about 500 applicants to submit a video and selects approximately 180 finalists (KHS). With 87 scholars, that works out to about 48% of finalists, our calculation.
These are approximate and use different bases, so we show the working below.
The 2026 cohort numbers
| Figure | Value | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Total applications | 9,223 | KHS media FAQs |
| Eligible applications (submitted to both KHS and a Stanford program) | 5,144 | KHS media FAQs |
| Scholars selected | 87 | KHS 2026 cohort announcement |
| Selected, as a share of eligible applications | About 1.7% | Our calculation: 87 ÷ 5,144 |
| Selected, as a share of all applications | About 0.9% | Our calculation: 87 ÷ 9,223 |
| Total applications in 2025 (and change to 2026) | 8,570 (up 7.62%) | KHS media FAQs |
| Scholars to date, after the 2026 cohort | 682 | KHS 2026 cohort announcement |
Sources: KHS media FAQs and the KHS 2026 cohort announcement. KHS reports no acceptance rate, so both percentages are ours. The gap between them, 4,079 applications, is the number that were not submitted to both KHS and a Stanford program.
The selection funnel
KHS says it invites about 500 applicants to submit a video statement and selects approximately 180 finalists. The table pairs those stage sizes with the 2026 counts, so every percentage is approximate.
| Stage | Number | Share of 5,144 eligible (our calculation) |
|---|---|---|
| Total applications | 9,223 | n/a |
| Eligible applications | 5,144 | 100% |
| Video statement invitations | About 500 | About 10% |
| Finalists | Approximately 180 | About 3.5% |
| Scholars | 87 | About 1.7% (about 48% of ~180 finalists) |
Sources: KHS video statement page, finalist experience page and evaluation processes. Video invitations go out on a rolling basis throughout January, finalists are notified in late January, there is a virtual interview in mid-February and an Immersion Weekend in early March. KHS publishes the stage sizes, not stage-by-stage counts for each year, so treat the percentages as estimates. See our how to apply guide for what each stage involves.
Year by year
| Cohort | Scholars | Total applications | Eligible applications | Scholars ÷ eligible | Scholars ÷ total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 85 | 7,119 | 3,733 | About 2.3% | About 1.2% |
| 2024 | 90 | Not found | Not found | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | 84 | 8,570 | Not found | n/a | About 1.0% |
| 2026 | 87 | 9,223 | 5,144 | About 1.7% | About 0.9% |
Sources: KHS announcements for 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026, and the media FAQs. We could not find application totals for 2024 or eligible applications for 2025, so those cells are blank rather than estimated.
On KHS’s own figures, total applications rose from 7,119 in 2023 to 9,223 in 2026, about 30%, while the cohort stayed between 84 and 90. The share of eligible applications selected fell from about 2.3% to about 1.7%.
Who is selected
| Metric | 2026 cohort | 2025 cohort |
|---|---|---|
| Scholars | 87 | 84 |
| Countries | 31 | 25 |
| Graduate programs | 45 | 46 |
| Non-U.S. passport holders | 51% | 48% |
| U.S. scholars who identify as a person of color | 47% | 53% |
| First-generation college graduates | 21% | 18% |
| Served in the U.S. military | 9% | 11% |
| Undergraduate institutions | 58 (23 international, 21 first-time) | 58 (20 international, 20 first-time) |
Sources: KHS announcements for 2026 and 2025. Stanford’s headline calls the 2026 cohort “the most global cohort to date”, and it includes scholars with citizenship from Croatia, Portugal, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. For who can apply, see our eligibility guide.
How does it compare with the Rhodes Scholarship?
For the 2026 US Rhodes class, nearly 2,800 students began an application and 32 were selected, about 1.1%, and 32 of 238 finalists were selected, about 13% (Rhodes Trust, November 2025). KHS’s figure is about 1.7% of eligible applications and about 48% of approximately 180 finalists.
The two do not rank the scholarships. The Rhodes figure is for US applicants who began an application. The KHS figure counts applications submitted to both KHS and a Stanford program, from every country, and KHS finalist numbers are approximate. We do not give Gates Cambridge or Marshall rates because we could not source applicant totals for them.
How to read the rate
- A KHS application is also a Stanford application, so the eligible pool is people who completed both.
- The finalist stage is the largest single step up in your odds: roughly 1 in 2 finalists is selected, against about 1 in 10 eligible applicants invited to submit a video. Both figures are approximate.
- Your Stanford program decides separately. Being admitted to it does not select you for KHS, and the reverse.
- To plan an application, see our how to apply guide and the Knight-Hennessy Scholars overview.
Related guides:
Frequently asked questions
What is the Knight-Hennessy Scholars acceptance rate?
KHS publishes none. From its figures, 87 scholars were selected from 5,144 eligible applications in 2026, about 1.7%, and from 9,223 total applications, about 0.9%.
How many people apply to Knight-Hennessy each year?
KHS reports 9,223 total applications for the 2026 cohort, of which 5,144 were eligible, and 8,570 total for 2025. In 2023 it reported 7,119 total and 3,733 eligible.
How many finalists are there?
KHS says it selects approximately 180 finalists from about 500 video invitees. With 87 scholars in 2026, that implies about 48%, our calculation.
What does “eligible application” mean?
An application submitted to both KHS and the applicant’s Stanford degree program, according to KHS.
Is KHS harder to get than Rhodes?
The rates are not comparable. The 2026 US Rhodes figure is about 1.1% of those who began an application and about 13% of finalists. The KHS figure is about 1.7% of eligible applications and about 48% of finalists, on different bases.
How many scholars have been selected so far?
KHS says 682 scholars to date, after the 2026 cohort of 87.
What share of scholars are international?
In the 2026 cohort, 51% hold a non-U.S. passport, from 31 countries. In 2025 it was 48%, from 25 countries.
How we researched this
Last checked: 20 October 2026. We read KHS’s media FAQs, its cohort announcements for 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026, and its video statement, finalist and evaluation pages, and the Rhodes Trust’s November 2025 press release.
Limits: KHS publishes no acceptance rate, so all rates are our calculations from its figures. We could not find 2024 application totals or 2025 eligible counts, and stage sizes are KHS’s stated numbers (about 500, approximately 180), not counts for a specific year. We give no Gates Cambridge or Marshall comparison because we could not source their applicant totals.
This page is for general information. LearnViaHub is not affiliated with Stanford University or Knight-Hennessy Scholars.
Christian Chinonso is the founder of LearnViaHub, with 6+ years of research experience in international education — including GPA systems, scholarships, student financing, and study-abroad guidance — for students worldwide.