We’re compiling links as we hear about more and more opportunities. Please email us at sps.wustl@gmail.com if you know of something we can add to the website. Also, if any links have expired, please do a Google search to find these opportunities!
How to get an award: about half of these awards are by application, about half are by nomination. But here’s something you might not know – the best way to get nominated for an award is to ASK FOR A NOMINATION.
Yes, that’s right, it is perfectly fine, perfectly normal, and actually expected of you to ask for nominations for yourself if you think you’ve actually done something award-worthy. Professors aren’t usually aware of the hundreds of awards given out by Wash. U. and different societies each year or ignore the emails when they come through their inbox. So, it’s 100% up to you to ask for a nomination, explain why you’re worthy of a nomination, and to provide your letter-writer with all the necessary materials for your nomination. In some cases, they may ask you to write out a very detailed letter in the third-person detailing the facts of what you have done, which they will use as the basis of their letter. This is normal.
If you’re interested in something super fancy like a Goldwater or a Rhodes scholarship, you need to schedule an appointment with the Fellowships Office and speak with them about it many months or even years in advance. If you only think up the idea on the first day of senior year, it’s already way too late. GO IN EARLY! Don’t be shy.
For prospective physics undergraduates:
- Scholarships administered by the university
- Wash. U. Compton Fellowship for the Physical Sciences and Mathematics (half to full cost)
- Danforth Scholarships (leadership and service, partial to full tuition)
- Ervin Scholarships (leadership and service, partial to full tuition)
- Rodriguez Scholarships (leadership and service, partial to full tuition)
- Need-based financial aid at Wash. U.
- Other merit- and need-based Wash. U.-funded scholarships for freshman applicants
- Elizabeth Gray Danforth Scholarships (for students transferring from the St. Louis Community College system)
- Enterprise Holdings Scholarships (freshman and transfer students; at least 10% of scholarships go to graduates of St. Louis high schools and community colleges)
- Government-run scholarships
- Missouri Bright Flight Scholarships (in-state students)
- Access Missouri Scholarships (in-state students)
- A+ Scholarships (in-state students with a 2.5 GPA and other requirements can go to community college for free)
- Army and Air Force ROTC (the military pays for 100% of your college costs if you agree to enlist for a certain period of time after college)
For current and graduating undergraduates:
At Wash. U.
- Wash. U. Physics Department Fellowships and Prizes
- Greg Delos Fellowship (by application)
- Summer Physics Fellowships (by application)
- Robert Varney Prize (top students in Physics 117, 118, 197, or 198)
- Nishi Luthra Senior Prize (chosen by department’s major advisors)
- Sigma Pi Sigma Honor Society – top 1/3(?) of graduating physics students; chosen by the department
- Other Wash. U. Fellowships and Scholarships
- Florence Moog Fellowship (Wash. U. sophomore science majors; half tuition scholarship for junior and senior years)
- Other Wash. U. school-year fellowships (mainly civic, humanities)
- Prizes in Arts & Sciences (given out by each department)
- Awards for excellence over your entire college career
- Honors for your overall bachelor’s degree (College Honors, cum laude, magna cum laude, summa cum laude — dependent on GPA and whether you write a thesis)
- Honors in the physics major – distinction, high distinction, highest distinction (bottom of page — dependent on physics GPA and whether you write a thesis)
- Phi Beta Kappa (liberal arts honor society)
- Top general university honors for graduating seniors:
- Ethan A.H. Shepley Award (scholarship, leadership, service)
- Hayes Award, Drew Award (varsity athletes + leadership, academics)
- Leadership Awards
- Campus life excellence in leadership awards (individual students of all years/majors; student groups)
- Harriet K. Switzer Leadership award (senior women, by nomination)
- Holobaugh honors (LGBT leadership)
- James E. McLeod awards (black students)
Outside of Wash. U.
- Eligible mid-college
- Goldwater Scholarship (sophomores and juniors, $7500)
- Udall scholarship (sophomores and juniors, $5000)
- Astronaut Scholarship (sophomores and juniors, $10,000)
- National Society of Physics Students (SPS) Scholarships
- Math, science, and engineering competitions
- APS – list of scholarships
- Other National Fellowships
- Scholarships for underrepresented students
- Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings
- Goldwater Scholarship (sophomores and juniors, $7500)
- Prizes for seniors
- APS – LeRoy Apker Award (physics research,early June after graduation)
- AWM – Schafer Prize (women in math, October of senior year)
- AMS – Morgan Prize (math research, late June after graduation)
Research Scholarships/Fellowships:
- SPS Summer Opportunities List
- More summer opportunities for students underrepresented in physics
- Office of Undergraduate Research – Conference Travel Award
- Boren Scholarship for summer STEM study abroad
- Office of Undergraduate Research- Summer Undergraduate Research Awards and other Funding Opportunities