The 50 Best Bars Scholarship

Creating opportunities for aspiring bartenders 

The 50 Best Bars Scholarship debuted in 2022, and is designed to give up-and-coming bartenders over the age of 21 with less than three full years of experience a once-in-a-lifetime, all-expenses paid opportunity to train at world-leading bars.

Applications closed at 12:00 BST on Friday 27 May 2026 

This year's lucky winner will get to experience one stage at Line in Athens – No.8 in The World's 50 Best Bars 2025 – and at Tres Monos in Argentina (No.10), both with all accommodation and travel covered, plus £1,000 per stage.

How can potential scholars apply?

During the open application window, candidates are asked to supply written statements on: 

• What they think the five skills for a modern bartender are 

• What they think are the most important issues faced by the modern bar world 

• Who they believe to be the most inspirational figure in the bar world and why 

• Their career goals, what a future in food looks like to them and to tell us what the greatest influence on their cooking/chef career has been so far. Examples could include a family member, your country/region's cuisine, formative travel experiences, an inspirational mentor etc. 

• A short video telling us why they should win The 50 Best Bars Scholarship 2026 

• Photos of them behind the bar or making cocktails without any branded bottles in hand or visible in shot
  
  

The selection process
The scholarship recipient is selected via a three-stage judging process:

Round one: Applicants answer questions about their career so far, their inspirations and motivations via written answers and a short video. These entries will be assessed by The 50 team.

Round two: A shortlist of 25 successful candidates is required to create and submit a cocktail that reflects their identity. They are asked to provide evidence of their research, development and creative process.

These submissions will then be judged by an international panel of experts including The 50 team and representatives from the host bar teams.

Round three: Five candidates will be invited to a final interview stage with representatives from The 50 and upcoming stage hosts.

Read about the other previous winners, Drew Fleming, Apoorva Kohli and Calliope Draper here.

As part of The 50's commitment to powering a more positive future in the hospitality, the scholarship programme extends to The 50 Best Restaurants, with a dedicated scholarship for aspiring chefs.