The Lumen Prize: APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
Introduction
As a student who is being nominated by a member of the Elon faculty or staff for the Lumen Prize,
you are invited to complete and submit your application no later than 12:00 noon on Wednesday,
March 16th, 2016. Completed applications should be sent to the Lumen Prize office at
lumenprize@elon.edu.
These instructions begin with background information concerning the Lumen Prize (pages 1-2).
Next come the specific directions you need to complete your application (pages 3-6). Follow
these directions fully and faithfully. NOTE: There have been some changes from prior years’
application forms; you must use this current version. Finally, these instructions conclude with
information about the supporting letters you will need to have submitted on your behalf (page 7).
Your mentor’s letter of nomination and the additional letter of recommendation should also be
submitted electronically to the above email address by the same stated deadline.
Applications should demonstrate the candidate’s outstanding record of achievement, exceptional
potential, and dedication to pursuing an intellectually rigorous and creative program of study. In
order to be considered, applications must:
 address the candidate’s interests, values, and motivation;
 specify how the candidate’s proposed program of study demonstrates a commitment to the
vision of the Lumen Prize to pursue ambitious and serious intellectual goals;
 bear evidence of careful editing and preparation;
 follow the Committee’s directions and suggestions.
Conditions of Eligibility
Candidates must be completing their second year at Elon or, if having transferred credits to Elon,
be completing their second year of higher education with at least one full semester at Elon.
Applicants are expected to demonstrate a commitment to pursuing at least two additional academic
years of study as Elon students. Those planning on attending graduate or professional school are
strongly encouraged. Finally, candidates must demonstrate a cumulative grade point average of
3.50 or higher and be in good standing at the time of the application. [Note: In submitting their
application, candidates give permission to the selection committee to obtain a current copy of their
Elon transcript and to obtain a summary of any judicial record concerning honor code violations.]
Due to the nature of the timeline associated with the program, Engineering students are not
eligible.
Selection Criteria
The committee will select Lumen Prize winners based on applications that most compellingly
address the following criteria:

Intellectual inquiry and integration. The application articulates a set of goals that are clear,
focused, and of high intellectual caliber; proposed activities/experiences relate and
cumulatively support the applicant’s goals; the balance between breadth/diversity of
experiences and depth of engagement supports an exceptional undergraduate experience.
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
Intellectual curiosity and reflection. The applicant conveys an intrinsic and impassioned
engagement with proposed area of inquiry and expression, and an active openness to
discovery and reflection.

Originality/distinction. The application will be evaluated on the degree to which the
proposed plan of study sets it apart and merits distinction. [Proposals may cut across
multiple disciplines, be innovative within a particular discipline or program, or bridge
traditional modes of academic inquiry with experiences outside the academy.]

Feasibility. Application presents a set of proposed experiences that are plausible in light of
availability, timeline, and projected material and financial supports.
Applicants chosen for the final round of consideration will then be interviewed.
Expectations if Awarded a Lumen Prize

The main expectation is that you continue to make steady progress on the experiences and
work you are setting forth in your proposal. It is understood that specific details of your work
will evolve in consultation with your mentor over the two-year journey. In order to maintain
regular communication with the Program Director, you will be submitting a plan at the
beginning of each semester outlining what you hope to do that term and a report at the end of
the term on how things went.

So that your intellectual/creative work and the supportive engagement of your mentor are
appropriately reflected on your transcript and other institutional records, you are to enroll
under your mentor’s name in 8 hours of LUM 498: Thesis Research over the course of your
junior and senior years. You and your mentor may decide how those hours get spaced out to
best fit your overall program of study; enrolling in such hours during Winter and Summer
terms is perfectly acceptable if that helps your scheduling. If you are in a program already
requiring such hours [e.g., Honors or Elon College Fellows], the same hours will fulfill both
programs’ expectations. [Honors Fellows will enroll under HNR 498: Honors Thesis.]

You will be asked to sign a letter of agreement setting forth a few other basic expectations such
as remaining in good standing at the University and maintaining an overall grade point average
at or above a 3.50.
History of the Award
Under the initiative of President Lambert, the Board of Trustees in Fall 2007 approved the creation
of the Lumen Prize. Consisting of a one-time award with a value of $15,000, the Lumen Prize
assists Elon University students in the attainment of ambitious and serious intellectual goals during
their junior and senior years. Awards may be used for tuition assistance for the final two years of
study [up to $10,000], as well as in support of research, international study, equipment and
supplies, summer stipends, and other approved expenses. Winners of the Lumen Prize receive
special mentoring and support in pursuit of graduate fellowships and international awards such as
the Rhodes, Truman, Goldwater, and Rotary scholarships. The work of Lumen Prize winners will
be publicly celebrated as representing the very best achievements of Elon University
undergraduates.
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DIRECTIONS FOR COMPLETING THE APPLICATION
Your application must be in the form of a single, integrated Word document. It should reflect
the following formatting details: 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, 1-inch margins,
and paginated (but please do NOT include your name in any header or footer). The various
components should be set forth using the following headings and sub-headings, and in the
sequence indicated. You are expected to adhere faithfully to the word limits established for the
various sections. The formatting directions set forth here help the Committee in its efforts to
evaluate proposals fairly and based solely on the merits of their contents. Deviations from these
format guidelines will have a negative impact on your application.
Part I: Preliminary Information
Title: In no more than 20 words, provide a title that clearly communicates the main focus of the
work you are proposing to complete.
Names: Your full name followed in parentheses with your mentor’s name (Mentor:
).
Abstract: In no more than 150 words, provide an abstract of what you propose to explore. A good
abstract should offer a concise summary of the project you are proposing to undertake and be
accessible to a broad audience. Should you be awarded a Lumen Prize, your abstract may be used
in a press release or a program booklet.
Personal Statement: The Lumen Prize is intended to support serious scholars (not merely their
projects) at a formative stage in their intellectual development. In no more than 600 words, help
us understand you as an emerging scholar. Please do not refer to your proposed project here.
Instead, describe your intellectual journey so far, with particular emphasis on the types of
questions and experiences that have sparked your interest in scholarly/creative activity (your
answer could include references to influential persons, texts, courses, works of art, experiences,
etc.). Finally, how do you see the Lumen Prize helping you to extend and enhance your
intellectual journey?
Part II: Project Description
The following three sections constitute the core of what you are proposing to undertake during
your remaining program of study as an Elon student. A strong statement will make clear how the
proposal is challenging, intellectually significant, and distinctive. You need to make clear how the
unifying goal you intend to explore and the means by which you intend to pursue it fit within your
discipline – that is, how the work you propose is built upon and contributes to the work of other
scholars or artists in your field. Several things will facilitate this. Incorporating reference
citations and noting specific sources that have informed you [e.g., archives, film banks, audio
recordings] give evidence that you have begun acquiring a discipline-based foundation for your
work. Suggesting specific programs, sites, or conferences to attend gives evidence for how you
might become further connected to a community of fellow scholars/creators, and are therefore
appropriate to include. When you set forth the envisioned products of your work, thinking about
the appropriate audience(s) and venues with whom you will share your work is important. In all
such cases, their relevance should be made clear to the committee. As the review committee
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comprises faculty from various disciplines, the statement should be written so that educated nonspecialists might understand it. These three sections that constitute the project description will
likely range between 1200 – 1500 words and may not exceed 1500 words in total. Organize the
project description using the following section headings:
Focus: Provide a clear statement of the guiding intellectual/creative question, issue, or problem
that motivates and directs your proposal. Although applications will vary in terms of the sets of
experiences and projects being proposed, your focus statement should clarify the scholarly
questions or issues that lend coherence to and provide a rationale for the importance of those
endeavors you propose. Furthermore, whether your proposal involves traditional research in a
discipline or disciplines, an applied or creative program, or some combination of all three, a well
articulated focus statement will also place the proposed project into a wider intellectual or artistic
context. Clarify how your project relates to and is a valuable extension of the lines of inquiry,
discourse, or technique that have come before it and that guide it.
Proposed experiences: Set forth your vision for your junior and senior years, including summers.
Experiences may include, but are not necessarily limited to course work, research investigations,
creative productions or performances, academically-informed service projects or internships,
international study/internships, summer workshops or institutes, conferences, and national
fellowship competitions. Although you should have articulated a clear, definite, and compelling
focus in the preceding section, there is a degree of flexibility in this section. The Committee will
look for reasonable specificity concerning your proposed experiences, but recognizes that there is
also room for proposals to evolve as you engage in your proposed intellectual and creative
explorations. [It is expected, however, that any such evolution includes ongoing discussion
between the recipient and his or her mentor and the Lumen Prize Director.]
Proposed products: Describe the specific products that will emerge from the proposed
experiences. These may include but are not limited to work such as: scholarly work for
publication or presentation; research reports; artistic products or performances [with supporting
written statements]; project reports [outlining the basis for and evaluating the outcomes of a
service project]; technical creations [such as computer programs] with accompanying description;
interviews with accompanying analysis; personal journals. Applications may focus on one major
product or multiple related products.
Part III: Feasibility
The final sections address the mechanics of completing the proposed work (this is not the place to
expand on your methodology, which should be described in the focus section above). While the
Lumen Prize encourages ambitious intellectual endeavor, the proposal needs to be realistic. The
application should address projected needs in terms of access to specific scholarly or artistic
materials, necessary equipment and supplies, and required skills. A projected budget and summary
timeline are also required.
Feasibility statement: The budget and timeline you present below will provide the committee
information needed to evaluate whether the proposal is realistic as well as ambitious. In this
“feasibility statement” section, however, you may briefly address potential challenges that require
further explanation. As illustrative examples, if your project involves interviews with non-English
speakers, explain how will that be handled; if your project involves working with archived material
with limited access, explain how will you obtain access; if your project requires some technical
skills you do not currently possess [e.g., developing a videographic record], explain how you will
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acquire those skills. In sum, it is your task to convince the committee that the project is feasible
and that you have a plan to address any aspects of your proposal that may require such special
attention.
Budget: Realizing that this is somewhat tentative at present, provide a bulleted list of how you
might allocate your funds. Possible areas of expenditure include tuition, study abroad program
fees, materials and supplies, conferences, airfare, hotels and housing, institute fees, and so forth.
This is open to change as your work progresses, but a tentative budget should reflect that you are
thinking through the realities of implementing your proposal.
Timeline: In table format, provide your tentative overview of the salient experiences and products
involved in completing your proposed work. Some semesters [and summers] will likely involve
more activities than others; some products may be “steps along the way” to a larger final product.
However, a timeline for the various stages involved in such an undertaking is beneficial to your
planning and to the committee’s review. Thinking about how you might space out your 8 hours of
thesis research will also be helpful to you.
Proposed Experiences
Summer 2015
Fall 2015
Winter 2016
Spring 2016
Summer 2016
Fall 2016
Winter 2017
Spring 2017
Proposed Product(s)
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List of sources: Provide full bibliographic information for all supporting work that you cited in
your narrative, using the style conventions relevant to your discipline. Remember that in addition
to traditional print sources, you may also have cited audio recordings, artworks, and similar nonprint sources.
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Personal Information and Signatures:
Please provide the information indicated below. In addition, please provide an image of your
unofficial transcript, listing all the classes you have taken at Elon and the grades you have received
in those classes (a screenshot from OnTrack will suffice).
Name:
Datatel ID #:
Major(s):
Minor(s):
Local Address (include city, state, zip):
Primary telephone:
Elon email:
Started at Elon [mm/yyyy]:
Expected Graduation [mm/yyyy]:
[Include the following statement in your application.] The student’s typed name below serves as
his/her electronic signature and indicates that the information contained in the application is
accurate, and reflects his or her best faith plans for intellectual/creative activities during the
remaining two years at Elon. Applicant hereby gives the Selection Committee permission to
obtain a copy of her or his current transcript and summary of any judicial system records
concerning Honor Code violations. Recipients of the Lumen Prize will be asked to sign a Letter of
Agreement indicating their commitment to uphold the standards associated with being a Lumen
Scholar.
(Applicant’s “signature”)
Date
The faculty/staff mentor’s typed name below serves as his/her electronic signature and indicates
support of the proposal described herein and willingness to serve as an ongoing mentor to the
applicant.
(Mentor’s “signature”)
Date
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Supporting Materials
In addition to fully and faithfully following the preceding guidelines to create a compelling
application, you need to arrange to have two letters of support submitted on your behalf. The first
of these is the official letter of nomination submitted by your mentor. As this person will be your
intellectual mentor throughout the process and the individual who can speak most directly to your
potential and to the proposed work, a strong and detailed letter significantly enhances your
application.
In addition to the letter of nomination, you need to arrange to have a letter of recommendation
submitted. Applicants are advised to select an individual who can best speak to their
accomplishments and scholarly/creative potential. A strong second letter does more than reiterate
the identical points made in the letter of nomination. This letter may come from someone in the
same department as your mentor; however, a recommendation coming from someone in a different
department or program within the university than the mentor, or from outside of Elon, could also
effectively provide a supplementary perspective. The letter should address both the
accomplishments the applicant has already demonstrated and those qualities of mind (intellectual
passion, originality, persistence, breadth of interest, openness to intellectual and personal inquiry
and reflection) that demonstrate outstanding potential. While speaking to personal character is
valuable, both letters should primarily address the applicant's promise for fulfilling the
scholarly/creative work being proposed. Finally, one and only one letter of recommendation is to
be submitted. If more than one is submitted, only the first letter of recommendation received in
the Lumen Prize office will be included with your application.
The forms for both the letter of nomination and the letter of recommendation are available at the
program website, http://www.elon.edu/lumenprize. Both letters should be submitted electronically
to lumenprize@elon.edu. There is a place on both those forms for your letter writers to include
your Elon email address, so be sure to provide them with that. That information allows us to
notify you when their letters have been received, thereby allowing you to keep up with the status of
your application “packet.”
Finally, in certain circumstances you might feel the need to submit some further supporting
material. Be judicious in this. An appropriate example might be visual documentation of a site or
artifact if this clarifies some essential point(s) in your proposal. By contrast, a copy of your
résumé is not appropriate, as it adds no information that a well-constructed proposal would not
already include.
The Committee fully encourages mentors to guide their nominees in preparing outstanding
applications that present candidates accurately, comprehensively, and favorably. Further
information about serving as a mentor, as well as the Letter of Nomination and Letter of
Recommendation forms may be found at the program website:
http://www.elon.edu/lumenprize