By Vega Subramaniam, Assistant Director, Undergraduate Scholarship Office
If your goal is to attend the University of Washington-Seattle, and you would like to find funding for your undergraduate years and beyond, here are some thoughts to get you started.
1. The best thing you can do is talk to people who are looking out for you: people who know you and know what you have done and what you want to do – AND who have the knowledge, experience, or connections to help you find resources. This could be a professor, an advisor, your supervisor, the director of an organization that you volunteer for, a family friend.
2. The best thing you can do after you’ve talked to people who are looking out for you is to follow their advice. If they suggest that you talk to someone else, set up a meeting with that person. If they suggest that you revise your resume, revise your resume and send it to them. They’ve made these suggestions for a reason: because they see or know something that could be of benefit to you. Take the opportunity!
3. Look into the three scholarships specifically targeted to community college students transferring to the UW: the Martin Achievement Scholarship, the Martin Honors Scholarship, and the Washington NASA Space Grant Community College Transfer Scholarship.
The Martin Achievement Scholarship
Application deadline: April 9, 2007
http://www.washington.edu/students/ugrad/scholar/students/incoming/martinach.shtml
For students in their first year at a community college in Western Washington/Puget Sound.
The Martin Family Foundation Honors Scholarship
Application deadline: Friday, July 6, 2007
http://www.washington.edu/students/ugrad/scholar/students/incoming/martin.shtml
For Washington State community college students.
The Washington NASA Space Grant CC Transfer Scholarship
Application deadline: March 2007
http://www.waspacegrant.org/cctransf.html
For community college students planning to transfer to the UW in engineering, math, or science.
In addition, check out:
The Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship
Application deadline: February 1, 2007
http://jackkentcookefoundation.org
For students attending community college in the U.S. and planning to transfer to a four-year institution. This is a national scholarship and requires significant advance preparation. Be sure to talk with your campus representative immediately if you are interested in pursuing this opportunity.
4. Several UW departments offer scholarships to students transferring into their department, including:
The Business School
http://bschool.washington.edu/undergrad/pros_students_scholarships.shtml
College of Engineering
http://www.engr.washington.edu/advising/scholarship.html
College of Forest Resources
http://www.cfr.washington.edu/Acad/Scholarship.htm
5. During your first quarter at UW, you may be immediately eligible for several national scholarships, including:
The Institute for International Public Policy Undergraduate Fellowship
http://161.58.87.106/content/index.cfm
For underrepresented minority students interested in international affairs careers.
The NIH Undergraduate Scholarship
http://www.ugsp.nih.gov
For students from disadvantaged backgrounds committed to biomedical, behavioral, and social science research careers at the NIH.
The Truman Scholarship
http://www.truman.gov/
For juniors who are committed to careers in government, the nonprofit or advocacy sectors, education, or elsewhere in the public service.
The Udall Scholarship
http://www.udall.gov/udall.asp
For students pursuing environmental fields, including policy, engineering, science, education, urban planning and renewal, business, health, justice, and economics.
Also for Native American and Alaska Native leaders in public and community health care, tribal government, and public policy affecting Native American communities, including land and resource management, economic development, and education.
What we do:
The Undergraduate Scholarship Office (USO) serves as a clearinghouse of information on merit-based scholarships for current UW undergraduates. USO gathers information on funding opportunities, both local and national, for which UW students can apply. USO also serves as the nominating office for national scholarships. For these scholarships, USO organizes campus-screening committees to identify the UW campus nominees and helps the nominees prepare for the national competition. The USO website offers a searchable database, which is available to anyone with a UW NetID.
If you are not currently enrolled at the UW, you can still receive scholarship information through the USO on our web page for incoming students. On this page, we list a few scholarships for students intending to transfer to the UW:
http://www.washington.edu/students/ugrad/scholar/students/incoming/schols.shtml
There are many, more sources of information about funding opportunities, especially on the Internet and at your local public or campus library. What we’ve provided here are just some places to get you started.
Once you get to UW, be sure to look us up:
Undergraduate Scholarship Office
Center for Experiential Learning
120 Mary Gates Hall
scholarq@u.washington.edu
http://www.washington.edu/students/ugrad/scholar
