Know Your Timeline
Scholarly opportunities exist for students at all levels!
Start early and prepare for success
For many awards, you may need to position yourself by gaining key co-curricular experiences, like research and internships, over many semesters, including the summers. Starting in your first year is ideal. OEF and your advisor can help you develop these experiences by connecting you with the best people and resources. Finally, fellowship applications are not something that you can hammer out in a weekend or even a week. You should start working with your award advisor well in advance of the deadline and then work continuously on drafts that evolve toward a polished product.
Gain readiness
Not only does civic engagement and community involvement provide real-world experience and learning but volunteering and leadership activities also strengthen your application and position as a candidate. UIC offers opportunities to get engaged through the Student Leadership and Civic Engagement site as well as through individual schools and colleges.
For first years
During your first year, it may seem that many fellowships are too far in the future to be a priority; yet as a first-year student, you have the most flexibility in shaping your future at UIC. If you approach your college education intending to take advantage of many opportunities, both academic and extracurricular, and thus in the process craft an ideal education for yourself, you will likely have made yourself competitive for several awards.
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- Visit your faculty’s office hours and build relationships with them
- Get to know your advisor and your department
- Look for interesting, well-taught courses
- Consider applying for the UK Summer Fulbright Institute
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- Engage in research and independent study opportunities
- Apply for fellowships or scholarships from your department, college, as well as nationally competitive awards such as the Goldwater and Udall
- Interested in studying abroad? Consider resources like the Gilman Scholarship
- Studying a foreign language? Check out the Critical Language Scholarship
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If you are interested in one of the following opportunities for the academic year following graduation, plan to work with OEF on your application the summer before your final year of college: the Fulbright Grant, Rhodes Scholarship, Marshall Scholarship, Mitchell Scholarship, Churchill Scholarship, Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship, Rangel International Affairs Fellowship, Schwarzman Scholarship, Knight-Hennessy Scholars, or the Gates Cambridge Scholarship.
- Take mostly upper-division courses
- Complete a thesis or other major project or independent study project that is of interest to you
- Apply for fellowships or scholarships from your department, college, as well as nationally competitive awards such as the Goldwater and Udall
- Interested in a career in public service? Your third year is the time to consider pursuing the Truman Scholarship
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- Many deadlines are due early in the semester, so plan ahead!
- Maintain your relationships with advisors and faculty throughout this year
- Thinking about graduate school? Consider the James Madison Scholarship, the Soros Fellowship for New Americans, or the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship