Nationally Competitive Scholarships
Resources & Tips
Congratulations! You have decided to apply for one or more of the nationally competitive
fellowships. The process of applying for scholarships such as the Marshall or the Rhodes is one
that requires some planning. We want you to be successful (after all, you are successful at Mines!)
so we have gathered some resources to help you in your planning and for getting you started in this
process. There are tips for applicants and for their recommenders which we hope will help you
complete the application, write compelling personal and project statements, and receive carefully
worded and compelling letters of recommendation.
For recommenders, we have tips on ways to write reference letters that pack a punch and support
your students in the best possible way.
Getting Started
First: Identify the fellowship programs and funding organizations to which your research interests
are best suited.
In order to assist you in identifying these programs, we have created a list of some of the
most well-known National Fellowships and Scholarships, as well as a list of databases for
searching for Grants and Graduate program opportunities. These lists also include links to
each program’s website where you will find the latest information on the application
process. Information is located at http://oip.mines.edu/studentabroad/schol.html
Second: Discuss your particular research interests and possible proposal with one or more faculty
members within your discipline because they can help you avoid pitfalls and give you insight on
important aspects of your research. Conversations with faculty will likely be the most helpful tool in
guiding you to refine your proposal and to employ the most precise language possible in the
articulation of your intended project.
Getting Faculty Assistance
Whether you are a first-year student or a graduating senior, the mentoring relationship you can
develop with your professors is one of the most important outcomes from selecting Mines as your
academic institution. Your professors can provide a wealth of information about your discipline:
factual knowledge, theoretical background, hot topics, research methods, professional etiquette and
introductions to their peers. Nothing can help you more on a personal, professional or academic
level. If you're not working closely with one or two professors you're missing out. Considering
volunteering in her/his lab or take multiple classes with a professor whose enthusiasm is stimulating
or who is doing work on the leading edge of a topic that interests you. You would be amazed at the
number of professors who rarely have a student visit! Maximize your college experience!
Faculty contacts prove helpful on a secondary level as well: applying for scholarships, fellowships,
jobs, and internships. Faculty will know what universities have masters and doctoral programs that
fit your interest. They tend to be aware of scholarship and job opportunities in their field, and are
often willing to pass that information on to students they mentor.
Office of International Programs
Thomas Hall 204
303 384-2120
Professors can furthermore help you with the actual application process. They will likely be willing to
help edit essays, write recommendations, practice for interviews, and explain standard professional
etiquette and conduct. And the better a professor knows you, the better he or she will be able to
write you a recommendation letter that is detailed, insightful, and revealing.
Choosing your Recommenders:
1. Look at the application requirements. How many recommenders are needed? What does
the application want to know about you?
2. Choose recommenders based on what the scholarship program wants to know about you.
If they are interested in your community volunteer experience, choose one recommender
who can address that issue.
3. Choose a variety of letter-writers: someone who can speak to your inquisitiveness and
academic ability, someone who can address your character, perhaps, someone who knows
you have overcome adversity. Tell the person you select what angle you want her/him to
cover.
4. Choose people who know you and help them know you better. Ask in person and provide
the recommender with a resume, a biographical sketch, a draft of your personal statement.
5. Allow the letter to be confidential. The recommender will write a more open and honest
letter.
6. Set a deadline: tell the professor when you need the letter. Provide an address where to
send it or the URL if the letter is submitted online.
7. Think of yourself as a professional: you are stepping into a new realm. Set goals and be
willing to articulate your ideas.
Writing your personal statement
Students often say that writing the personal statement is the most challenging part of an application.
But think of it this way: it is an opportunity to distinguish yourself from other candidates. It gives the
selection committee something that is not found in the official transcript. It provides a snapshot of
your thoughts, priorities, dreams, and ambition. It tells readers who you are and how you got there.
For those reasons, you have to make your personal statement exactly what the name implies personal. Your personal statement should be a compelling and intriguing invitation for a selection
committee to get to know you better.
Before you start writing, do some thinking. Who you are and who you want to be? Where have you
been and where you are going? Why and how do you want to get there? This is naturally going to
involve thinking about your academic and career experiences. While you shouldn't shy away from
them, you do want to place them in the broader context of you as a person. It's wonderful if you can
articulate your goals to study nanotechnology at Swansea with Dr. X; it's more interesting if you can
explain which particular aspects of your personality and life experience draw you to nanotechnology
at Swansea. Perhaps you were inspired by a presentation Dr. X made at CSM. Maybe your Mines
professor encouraged you to study nanotechnology because it is leading edge research. If you have
kept a journal, you might want to read through it to recall those moments that caused you to change
direction, hone in on a focus, or solve a problem.
The Office of International Programs has a small library of sample letters, personal statements and style books.
The Writing Center, located in Stratton Hall (http://lais.mines.edu/wpwebsite/mission2.htm) can also provide
valuable assistance. OIP also maintains scholarship-specific files of essay tips, as well as model applications
from recent students who were awarded scholarships. Please feel free to stop by Thomas Hall 204 and
browse!
Give yourself plenty of time to write. No matter how well it may work for you in some of your
classes, a personal statement is not something to dash off a few days before deadline. As Ernest
Hemingway famously noted, "The first draft of anything is **%#." Assuming this is true, you probably
do not want to hand a selection committee your first draft. You shouldn't even hand them a second
or third draft for that matter. The longer you let yourself write and revise, the more compelling and
Office of International Programs
Thomas Hall 204
303 384-2120
revealing your personal statement will become. Write early and often. If you must send your first
draft to someone, send it electronically to Kay in OIP (kgengenb@mines.edu).
That said, don't be hard on yourself as you first set down to write. Even Hemmingway didn't get it
perfect the first time around. Since it's only your first draft, you don't need to worry about making
mistakes, sounding stupid, or even spelling correctly. Let your thoughts roam and shut that
imposing childhood grammar teacher's voice out of your head for the moment. Just write.
Once you've got your ideas down on paper, run it by some trusted readers. Professors (particularly
those who are writing your recommendation letters), advisors, the LAIS Writing Center and Kay
Godel-Gengenbach are all excellent resources. Try to solicit feedback about the ideas, structure,
and coherency of your essay rather than simple proofreading. The goal is not to have someone else
write your essay but rather to have others ask you questions that cause you to think more deeply
and broadly about the source of your ambition, passion, commitment. If you're going to do this,
however, be ready act upon such questioning and thinking. At this stage in the game revising often
means more than inserting commas and adding a paragraph here and there; it sometimes means
rethinking and revising an entire essay. You may have to give your personal statement a complete
overhaul because you suddenly discover a better structure, focal point, or slant. This is normal. Do
not despair. Park your ego. Your readers have your best interest in mind.
As your thoughts become more and more polished, your writing should too. Check out a writing
manual for guidance. Strunk and White's eminently readable The Elements of Style
(http://www.bartleby.com/141/) is an excellent (and concise) starting point. Kurt Vonnegut's short
essay "How to Write with Style" (http://literature.sdsu.edu/onWRITING/vonnegutSTYLE.html)
frankly and humorously speaks to what he sees as the essential components of good writing. Call a
friend. Stop by the writing center. Ask a teacher. However you accomplish it, your final draft must
be free of grammatical and spelling errors. It should make the members of the selection committee
excited about meeting you. It should create in the reader’s mind a visual image of a dynamic,
thoughtful, and passionate human being. You can do it! Give yourself plenty of time, plenty of
reflection, plenty of revisions, and plenty of help from trusted advisors, and your personal essay will
do its job: present an intriguing glimpse into your mind and person.
(adapted from http://www.villanova.edu/artsci/college/academics/curf/resources/applicants/essay.htm)
Letters of Recommendation for Nationally Competitive Scholarships
(Source: http://www.villanova.edu/artsci/college/academics/curf/resources/recommenders/writingletters.htm
by Corinne Welsh ('01-B.A. Honors/English, '03-M.A. English)
General characteristics scholarship committees value:
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Intellectual curiosity
Academic rigor, leadership, and risk-taking
Collegial attitudes & practices
Excellent oral and written communication skills
Personal integrity, maturity, warmth, sensitivity, energy
Great potential for making major contributions to field and society at large.
Office of International Programs
Thomas Hall 204
303 384-2120
How can you write a letter that best reveals these characteristics in your student?
Ask to see the student's resume, application essay drafts, and information about the scholarship.
student to supply you with this information as well).
(We're asking the
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Ask yourself what you like about this student. Why does he stand out, why do you admire her, what makes him
delightful? Think about how you realized these characteristics existed, and consider describing that process to the
committee.
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Be detailed. Give concrete examples of your claims about the student's brilliance so the selection committee can
understand him/her in quite specific terms. Potential sources for such details include:
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Excerpts from student's papers
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Explanations of student's research and how he/she went about it (professionally, meticulously, energetically, etc.)
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Formal and informal conversations you've had with the student during office hours, before or after class, over
coffee, etc.
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Notable contributions to classroom discussion or classroom dynamics
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Notable thinking, reading, writing, or communication skills/strategies the student has displayed.
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Student's interaction with you, other faculty members, staff, or peers.
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Your first and subsequent impressions of the student, observations on his/her growth.
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Observations on how the student has changed or enriched you.
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Consider a brief visit to the scholarship's website so you can discuss why you think the student is a good fit for the
award.
Less Helpful Letters ...
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Speak exclusively to grades---the selection committee can glean this information from transcripts, so grades need
not be a focal point.
Could apply to any solid honors student (too generic). Since every applicant for prestigious scholarships is a solid
honors student, you should paint your student in specific, personal terms. Concrete examples and copious details are key.
Too short or too long---most letters are 1 and a half to 2 pages. 3+ pages are appropriate if you have a great deal
of useful information to offer, but are not necessarily the norm.
Additional criteria for specific scholarships ...
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Rhodes/Marshall/Gates Cambridge/Mitchell: personal integrity, altruism, adequate academic preparation for
proposed course of study
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Fulbright: ability to adapt and flourish in another culture, ability to be ambassador for America, feasible project
proposal
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NSF/Goldwater: strong scientific research aptitude
Truman/Udall: informed interest in public policy
Churchill/Ford/Mellon/Javits: strong teaching & research potential
Office of International Programs
Thomas Hall 204
303 384-2120