Scholarships
The Colorado Chapter of the ACFE supports the education of Collegiate Accounting and Criminal Justice students who aspire to become Certified Fraud Examiners (CFEs).
Each year, the Colorado Chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners accepts applications for academic scholarships for the upcoming school year. Scholarships awarded are paid directly to the student’s academic institution. We begin accepting scholarship applications in the fall (one year prior to the award term period) with the submission deadline occurring at the end of March (again prior to the school term award period).
2026/2027 Scholarships
The Colorado Chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners is accepting applications for two academic scholarships in the amount of $5,000, each to be awarded for the 2026-2027 academic year.
ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible, the applicant must be an ACFE Student Associate member currently enrolled full-time (9 semester hours undergraduate; 6 semester hours graduate, or equivalent per term) at an accredited Colorado college or university with a declared major or minor in accounting, criminal justice, or other field related to fraud examination. If you need financial assistance or information on joining the organization, please contact jfincampo@gmail.comfor further information. Previous applicants may reapply.
The following persons are not eligible for the CO-ACFE Scholarship:
- Past scholarship winners or
- Students who are related to any CO-ACFE Board Member or Scholarship Committee Member.
- The scholarships will be awarded based on: (a) overall academic achievement; (b) three letters of recommendation; (c) an interest in fraud detection, deterrence, and prevention, demonstrated through courses of study or career goals.
APPLICATION
Scholarship applications will be accepted beginning on February 3, 2026 and the deadline to submit a scholarship application will be on April 28, 2026 at midnight. Scholarship recipients will be notified by 5 pm MDT on May 19, 2026. Formal recognition of the scholarship recipients will be conducted at the Colorado Chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners breakfast meeting on June 18, 2026. Recipients should plan on attending the breakfast meeting. Funds will be distributed directly to the recipient’s school prior to the start of the Fall 2026 term.
To be considered for the award applicants must submit a packet in a single (not multiple files) PDF, by 5 pm MDT April 28, 2026. The application packet should include the following items:
1) Scholarship application – Click on the “Apply Now” button below.
2) A copy of unofficial transcript(s), showing all completed college or university courses (scholarship winners may be asked to provide official transcript(s))
3) Three letters of recommendation, at least one of which must be from an accounting or criminal justice instructor. Additional recommendations may come from advisors, faculty members, or employers.
4) An original 250- 500-word essay explaining why the applicant is seeking the scholarship and how fraud awareness will affect his or her professional career development.
5) Submit the completed application to John Incampo by email. (jfincampo@gmail.com)
Ritchie-Jennings Memorial Scholarship
ACFE Scholarship Awards are available to full-time accounting and criminal justice majors. The program provides $1,000 scholarship awards for up to 30 students. Students will also receive a free one-year Student Associate membership to the ACFE. This is a scholarship awarded by ACFE, not COCFE.
Please check this website periodically for information about the scholarship and application. Alternatively, you can check the ACFE website at www.acfe.com
Awards
Each chapter in the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners has the opportunity to nominate individuals for various awards throughout the year.
The Distinguished Achievement Award
This award is reserved for those individuals who have excelled in the profession of preventing, deterring, investigating, or prosecuting white-collar crime. Click here for more information.