Tag: Churchill

Summer notes for fall 2016 British and Mitchell scholarship applicants–read carefully!

Lisa Gates / / Fellowships, Graduate School Funding, UK

For those applying for a British Scholarship (Churchill, Gates-Cambridge, Marshall, Mitchell, Rhodes) in the fall, read on for notes to help you structure your work on applications.
I am here during summer, but will be traveling too—so my ability to respond to you may be faster or slower depending on when you contact me. Available appointment hours are online at go/fellowships. Contact me at fellowships@middlebury.edu or x3183 with questions.

Please note: The schedule below is organized around the competitions requiring nomination by Middlebury. Nomination interviews took place in late spring for the Fall 2016 application cycle. Instructions are the same for those are being nominated and for those whose materials require a review before a decision about nomination is reached. For all candidates, you nomination is dependent on your continued work on these applications and your responsiveness to deadlines and requests from the fellowships office.

For direct apply fellowships–the Gates Cambridge and others–you do not need to be nominated to apply, but I am glad to talk with you about the process and discuss essays with you.  See list of other UK ideas here. [add link]

Application Process and Recommended Timetable (note the deadlines!):

Spring/summer: 1. Identify your potential recommenders for the various competitions and discuss your interest and proposed plans with them. Recommenders will need to submit letters (if you are nominated!) in the online application system by Friday, Sept. 23. Make sure they are aware of this deadline. For those who are awaiting decisions about nomination, we will endeavor to have final decisions to you prior to Labor Day (Sept. 5) so that you can notify your recommenders. I recommend that you share with them a copy of your application, your resume and transcript, the selection criteria for the scholarships you are applying for. Please also talk with them about you would like them to focus on. You should also confirm with me who you will be asking for letters of recommendation for each application.
By July 1:  Confirm the program(s)/universities you propose to apply to and which faculty or program contacts are important for you to connect with. You will want to have conversations (typically done through email, sometimes phone) to discuss your research interests, how they align with faculty in the program, and be certain this is a program that will help you reach your educational objectives (and that you’re a good candidate for it). If you’re planning on pursuing research with a faculty member, you will need to talk with them about your interest and affirm their interest in having you join their lab/project. You will need to note this in your essays.
By July 15: Complete a functional draft research proposal and/or application essays. Share with me and relevant faculty/advisors for feedback. Don’t underestimate how much writing/revision is needed for these. They are short, but challenging. Note the Rhodes and Mitchell policy about feedback on the essay; you cannot solicit feedback on your drafts. I am happy to advise you about the policy.
August 15 deadline: Turn in a solid, working application draft in PDF form for the fellowships you are seeking nomination for, as outlined in emails I sent to you following the nomination interview. Committee members will review this draft, provide feedback and make final determinations about nomination status where that is still needed.
Early September: You will be notified of final nomination decisions. Let your recommenders know and remind them that we need letters submitted by Friday, September 23.
September: Work on revising and polishing application and essays. For Marshall, I would like your work on applications fully completed by September 28. For Mitchell and Rhodes, you will manage the application process yourself. You will need to make sure everything is in and finished in advance of the deadline so that you can submit. I do not manage this for Rhodes or Mitchell.  Please note that there is heavy submission volume close to the deadline, so I strongly recommend submitting your applicaiton a day in advance of the deadline.
The schedule above is intended to help you organize the different parts of the application. If you are confused about any details, please ask!

April 15 Deadline for Fellowships and Senior Work Funding

Lisa Gates / / Fellowships, Graduate School Funding, Study Abroad

April 15 is an important deadline for the following:

  • Senior Work Funding: SRPS/Hoskins applications for rising seniors/super-seniors planning to conduct research over the summer. Others can likely wait until the Oct. 1 deadline. See go/srps .
  • Nomination applications for British and Irish Scholarships (Marshall, Mitchell, Rhodes, Churchill). You must apply by April 15 to be considered for nomination! Applications open to rising seniors and young alumni. See go/fellowships .
  • Preliminary applications for Fulbright and Watson scholarships. Open to rising seniors and alumni (Fulbright only). See go/fellowships .

For these internal fellowship applications, you do not have to have everything thought out; you may not have entirely settled on a particular topic or country. That is fine–the preliminary application just forces you to get started. It is helpful if you’re applying for nomination for a British or Irish scholarship to be as precise as you can regarding your choice of programs and why this program makes sense for your trajectory.

Questions? Contact us! fellowships@middlebury.edu or uro@middlebury.edu .

 

Interested in Graduate Study in the UK?

Colleen Norden / / Fellowships, Graduate School Funding, UK

Overview of British/UK and Mitchell Scholarships
Tuesday, March 1, 7 pm in Library 201

Lunch with Prof. Ellie Gebarowski-Shafer Discussing Graduate Study at Oxford
Tuesday, March 8, 12:30 pm in Library 145
sign up now at go/appt

Lunch with Mitchell Scholarship Director Serena Wilson
Monday, March 14, 12:15pm in the CTLR
sign up now at go/appt

These scholarships vary in terms of eligibility, but they all seek intellectually accomplished students with a clear vision of what they want to achieve (minimum GPA of 3.7). Significant leadership, research, and/or accomplishment in the areas you engage in are also vital. All scholarships support 1-2 years of graduate study at various universities in the UK and Ireland in various disciplines. Some of these are also open to young alumni.

You must apply for nomination for the Churchill, Marshall, Mitchell and Rhodes by April 15 to be considered for nomination. (If you’re abroad, we will use Skype.) You do not need nomination to apply to the Gates-Cambridge. The St. Andrews nomination deadline will be in the fall. Note: Gates-Cambridge and Rhodes are open to multiple citizenship types; the others are restricted to US citizens.

More information and nomination applications are online at go/british. Questions? Contact Dean Lisa Gates at fellowships@middlebury.edu.

Summer Notes for British Scholarship Applicants

Lisa Gates / / Fellowships, Graduate School Funding, Study Abroad

For those thinking about applying for a British Scholarship (Churchill, Gates-Cambridge, Marshall, Mitchell, Rhodes) in the fall, here are some notes and suggestions to get you started:
If you haven’t yet sent me a preliminary application, we should talk! I am around for much of the summer, but will be traveling too—so my ability to respond to you may be faster or slower depending on when you contact me. In general, I will be  unavailable during the following times: June 14-July 2; July 13-18; August 2-5; and August 18-26. So plan accordingly, be patient and maybe a little bit of both. Contact me at fellowships@middlebury.edu or x3183.

Please note: The schedule below is organized around the competitions requiring nomination by Middlebury. The Gates Cambridge is a direct apply fellowship. You do not need to be nominated to apply, but I am glad to talk with you about the process and discuss essays with you. There are other fellowships supporting study in the UK not discussed here, either because you apply directly (without nomination) or there’s a much later nomination deadline (St. Andrews). See list of UK ideas in earlier post, and also look at the Fulbright as another option (again, earlier post).

Application Process and Timetable:
By July 1: Identify the program(s) you are interested in applying to; determine which scholarship competitions are appropriate; and which faculty or program contacts are important for you to connect with. You will want to have conversations (typically done through email, sometimes phone) to discuss your research interests, how they align with faculty in the program, and be certain this is a program that will help you reach your educational objectives (and that you’re a good candidate for it!). If you’re planning on pursuing research with a faculty member, you will need to talk with them about your interest and affirm their interest in having you join their lab/project.
By July 30: Draft research proposal and/or application essays due to me. Share with relevant faculty/advisors for feedback. Share with me your ideas for letters of recommendation.
September 2 noon: Submit applications for nomination for Churchill, Marshall, Rhodes, or Mitchell. If applying for nomination for both Marshall and Rhodes, you need only submit nomination materials for the Marshall. Required materials for nomination: 1. Draft of application form; 2. Application Essays;  3. Current resume; 4. Degree progress report. Note: These competitions have moved onto online platforms. You may register and work on an application, but DO NOT add recommenders yet (we don’t want them getting requests for letters if you’re not nominated) if the form generates an automatic email when you add their names. Also do not submit the application yet, again, until you know whether you are going to be nominated. And if you have questions let me know.

Sept 9-12: Nomination interviews will take place. You will need to sign up for a date/time. Note, this may interfere with class time–you will need to talk with your professors about that if there is a conflict.

Sept 13-September 30 or /November 11: Work on revising and polishing application and essays. Marshall, Mitchell, Rhodes final deadline is October 1; Churchill is November 11. Gates Cambridge is October 15 (Round 1); December 3 (Round 2)
The schedule above is intended to help you organize the different parts of the application and get everything done so that you are ready to go by the early September nomination deadline. Note: the campus submission deadline, that campus interview, and foundation deadlines are hard deadlines.