Major External Fellowships

[Narrator: Lisa Gagnon] Hello and welcome to the University at Buffalo Fellowships and Scholarships 101 series. The topic of this video is major external fellowships.

First of all, some fellowships and scholarships require institutional nomination. This means that for some awards you cannot apply directly online. Instead, you work with UB and the Office of Fellowships and Scholarships. Usually there is an earlier campus deadline. There might be a pre-selection process or interview and UB writes an institutional letter of nomination for the applicant. Awards requiring institutional nomination include the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Awards, Fulbright grants, David L. Boren Scholarships, the Harry S. Truman Scholarship, the Morris K. Udall Scholarship, and the UK awards. You can find more information about the awards in this presentation, along with many other awards, by visiting the Find Funding page on our website.

First we’ll talk about STEM awards for students studying science, technology, engineering or math fields. The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship is for sophomores and juniors with a high GPA who have research experience and plan to pursue a PhD in STEM. The internal deadline for Goldwater is Nov. 1. The National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP) provides up to three years of funding for students seeking a research-based master’s or PhD in STEM. The NSF deadlines are by discipline in October. National Institutes of Health (NIH) F30 and F31 awards also provide funding for PhD research. You can apply for NIH in year two or three of a doctoral program. Training grants are awarded to students by universities with funding. Note: These awards are for U.S. citizens or permanent residents only.

Next, we’ll talk about some international awards. The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship provides funding for Pell Grant recipients to study or intern abroad. There are multiple deadlines for the Gilman. Apply by October for spring semester programs or by March for fall semester or academic year programs. Fulbright Student Grants provide funding for students to teach English, conduct independent research, or complete a one-year master’s program abroad. The UB campus deadline is the last week of August. Applicants take part in an on-campus interview before submitting an application in October. The Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) provides seven to 10-week summer programs to study a critical language not commonly taught in the U.S. The external deadline for CLS is in November. The David L. Boren Scholarships and Fellowships provide funding for undergraduate and graduate students to study abroad in underrepresented countries critical to U.S. interests. The campus deadline for Boren is Feb. 1. Note: These awards are for U.S. citizens or permanent residents only.

Now, we’ll talk about two awards that focus on the leadership qualities of the applicants. The Harry S. Truman Scholarship provides graduate school funding for juniors with exceptional leadership potential committed to careers in government, the nonprofit or advocacy sectors, education or elsewhere in the public service. The campus deadline for the Truman is Nov. 1. Applicants participate in several on-campus mock interviews before a regional interview with a Truman panel. This photo shows 2020 Truman Scholarship finalist Kay Kennedy. The Morris K. Udall Scholarship is for sophomores and juniors who intend to become leaders across the environmental fields, including policy, engineering, science, education, urban planning, business, health, justice and economics. This scholarship is also for future Native American and Alaskan Native leaders in public and community healthcare, tribal government, and public policy. The campus deadline for Udall is Dec. 1. Note: These awards are for U.S. citizens or permanent residents only. International students can find a list of awards with no citizenship requirement on our website.

Finally, there are several awards that fund a graduate degree at different universities in the United Kingdom (UK) or Ireland. The Rhodes Scholarship provides funding to Oxford, the Marshall Scholarship is to the UK and Ireland, the George J. Mitchell Scholarship is for study in Ireland, and the Gates Cambridge Scholarships fund programs at Cambridge University. You can apply for a UK award as an undergraduate senior or recent alum. These awards are extremely competitive. Applicants usually have a 3.9 GPA or above and show significant leadership capacity and community service in any field. Successful applicants have typically received other competitive awards such as the Goldwater, Truman or Udall. Finally, applicants must have a strong justification for going to the country.

Now that we have talked a little bit about funding for graduate school, here is how you can connect with the Office of Fellowships and Scholarships for more information and support during your scholarship journey. Connect with us via phone at 716-645-9100 or via email at fellowships@buffalo.edu. Our on-campus office is located in 24 Capen Hall. Let’s get social! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter @UBFellowships, LinkedIn or YouTube. Or, find us on the web. You can also make an appointment with one of our advisors on our website. On the bottom of this slide, you can see Office of Fellowships and Scholarships Director Elizabeth Colucci, who works with students on general graduate awards and STEM awards. Assistant Director Megan Stewart works with students on general undergraduate awards and international study awards.

Thank you for watching this video. Check out the other Fellowships and Scholarships 101 videos on searching for awards, major external awards, and becoming a more competitive applicant.