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The 2025 SVA Alumni Scholarship Awards winners have been announced, with 92 thesis or portfolio projects out of 231 applications receiving a total of $63,000. This assistance helps the student artists realize their visions for the work by materially and emotionally supporting them during the challenging transition from upcoming graduation to entering the workforce.

Established in 1999, the Alumni Scholarship Awards are presented annually to SVA students. “The Awards have a tremendous positive impact on students as they complete their final projects and their time at SVA,” says Miranda Pierce, associate director of  Alumni Affairs and Development. “The scholarships provide much more than just monetary support—they encourage students to continue creating and inspire confidence not only in their work but in themselves.”

For MFA Illustration as Visual Essay senior Caitlin Du, the award provides a greater chance for her thesis project, We'll Figure It Out, to be seen by a broader audience. “I now have the funding for printing and distributing my work in fairs such as MoCCA fest and BICS. This scholarship will also make my thesis exhibition as best as it can be, as I have money for frames and potentially even wall paint. I am beyond motivated to continue inking.”

Hanbit Yang’s (BFA Illustration) thesis project Welcome to One Light World is a visual essay book focusing on her unique experiences growing up as a third-culture kid. To Yang, the award was a welcome boost of motivation. “Everything I’ve worked on has been worthwhile,” she says. “Thank you for reigniting the passion I was beginning to lose. With the Alumni Scholarship, I will definitely publish my senior thesis. I can't wait to share my work with the world.”

“This funding helps ease the financial burden of my creative process and allows me to complete my project with the quality and depth it deserves,” Xiaoyan Sun (BFA Illustration) says of her thesis project We Fear Fears, which explores childhood fears and how they shape us. “It is also a huge encouragement. I hope this project can help people recognize and understand their childhood fears—not as something to avoid, but recognize their own experiences, and find a sense of reconciliation with their fears.”

Scholarship winner Jake Breiter (BFA Comics) expressed great gratitude for the support to complete his Rhapsody Cool Cruise: The Royal Soda Fair project, an anthology of all the comics he made during his time at SVA. “This scholarship is going to give my thesis comic the professional introduction and execution that will allow me to enter the world of comic making with complete confidence,” he says. “Thank you!”

Each year, the SVA Alumni Society, an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit, administers over 25 scholarship and award funds, including the Alumni Scholarship Awards program, distributing funding to distinguished undergraduate and graduate students working in a variety of disciplines. A jury of alumni—working creative professionals whom the Alumni Society selects—adjudicates the awards. “This awards program would not be possible without our alumni jury who diligently reviewed over 200 applications,” Pierce says. “We are so grateful to them for contributing their time and expertise to select this year’s award recipients, always exuding such enthusiasm for the students’ impressive work.”

For the complete list of 2025 Alumni Scholarship Award recipients, click here. To donate to the SVA Alumni Society, click here. 100% of your donation goes directly to students; SVA covers all overhead expenses for the Alumni Society. For more information about the SVA Alumni Society and its scholarships, visit svaalumnisociety.org or email alumnisociety@sva.edu.