Brands from Burger King to Coke to Lockheed Martin are leaning in on scholarships to capture Gen Z

Keen to attract an elusive demographic that doesn’t consume media in traditional ways, companies big and small see education as a vital tool in their arsenals.

You may not have given it much thought, but the next time you buy an Impossible Whopper meal, you may be helping a local student pay their college tuition. That’s because Burger King, along with many other brands—a list that includes Coca-Cola, Google, Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, and tons of others—have incorporated scholarships into their broader marketing strategies.