Richard Ortner Thrive Scholarship Program

Thrive at Boston Conservatory at Berklee

Boston Conservatory at Berklee and Berklee College of Music have developed a comprehensive strategy to better support student success. Our goal is to ensure that all students can reach their full creative and career potential, regardless of their financial circumstances. Called Thrive, the program includes academic advising, career education, wellness programs, and directed financial assistance to advance the following three objectives:

• Enable students to graduate at higher rates with less debt; 
• Support students to have an engaging experience and high-quality education; and
• Prepare students for sustainable and purposeful careers.

A keystone of the Conservatory’s Thrive efforts is the Richard Ortner Thrive Scholarship Program, which provides additional scholarship funding to continuing students who demonstrate academic excellence and financial need. The goal of this program is to increase retention, on-time degree completion, and graduation rates, while reducing debt levels for Ortner Thrive Scholarship recipients so that they can more fully engage in their experience at the Conservatory and be better positioned to build sustainable careers.

Since the 2018-2019 academic year, Berklee has awarded more than 1,130 Thrive scholarships to College and Conservatory students. In 2023-2024, 129 students received $3 million in Thrive awards. The debt accrued by these Thrive scholars decreased by 65% and the disbursal of high-interest private loans was reduced by 78%—demonstrating the tremendous impact that these scholarships can have on our students' education and families.

Support the Richard Ortner Thrive Scholarship Fund Now

Would you like to learn more? Contact Greg Gordon to discover the variety of ways that you can support student success through Thrive.