National Competitive Scholarships

UCSD's National Competitive Scholarships program helps undergraduates and graduating college seniors win major national scholarships and fellowships. The UCSD National Competitive Scholarship Committee holds student meetings twice a year to review available scholarships and help students become more competitive. Students who meet the criteria for the National Competitive Scholarships will be contacted by e-mail informing them of the meeting dates.

Come and learn how to:

  • Better understand the criteria and requirements for specific scholarships
  • Develop helpful faculty relationships
  • Include personal experiences on your application
  • Prepare for interviews
  • Refine your essays, based on individual consultations with these faculty advisors:
    • Dr. Ross Frank, Ethnic Studies faculty, (858) 534-6646, advises on the Rhodes, Truman, Jack Kent Cooke, and Udall (Native American) scholarships.
    • Brett Stalbaum, Visual Arts lecturer, (858) 522-3883, advises students on the Beinecke Scholarship.
    • Dr. Laurie Smith, Department of Biology faculty, (858) 822-2531, advises students on the British Marshall and Winston Churchill scholarships.

Deadline notice: If you apply for a scholarship that requires a faculty advisor's assistance or an endorsement from UCSD, submit your first-draft application, essay, and other materials at least 1 month before the UCSD deadline. This will allow you time to make revisions.

Click scholarship names, listed in alphabetical order, to see details (or scroll down to see descriptions):

  • Alfa Fellowship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: December 2010
    Award: $1,800 per month for language training and $2,000 per month for a professional assignment in Russia
    Number of awards: 10–12
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • Outstanding professional achievement and academic qualifications
    • Graduate degree and/or professional experience
    • At least 2 years of Russian
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Beinecke Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes (required)
    Faculty advisor: Brett Stalbaum
    UCSD deadline: January 20, 2010
    Agency deadline: February 27, 2010
    Award: Up to $34,000
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • Junior in 2010-2011, or 5th year senior in 2010-2011
    • Financial need as verified by UCSD's Financial Aid Office
    • 3.6 GPA
    • Plans for advanced degree in the arts, humanities, or social sciences (graduate study in neuroscience does not qualify)
    Apply: With the UCSD advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • British Marshall Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Laurie Smith
    UCSD deadline: September 2010
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: Tuition and living/ travel expenses at a British university
    Number of awards: 40
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • University graduate, 3.7 GPA
    • Sense of global community
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Donald Strauss Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Contact: David Artis
    UCSD deadline: January 25, 2010
    Agency deadline: March 5, 2010
    Award: $10,000
    Number of awards: 1
    Requirements include:

    • Full-time senior, 3.5 GPA
    • Future career, or volunteer, in public service
    • Submit community service project to be completed before April 2010
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Fulbright Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Advisor: Linda Vong
    UCSD deadline: September 2010
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: Tuition, travel expenses, books, and more
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • B.A. or B.S. at time of award
    • Academic excellence
    • Desire to promote mutual understanding among nations
    • Language proficiency in host country
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Gates Cambridge Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: More than $30,000 per year, renewable for 4 years for Ph.D candidates
    Number of awards: 230
    Requirements include:

    • Resident of any country other than the United Kingdom
    • B.A. with honors and additional post-graduate study
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • George Mitchell Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: Tuition, housing, $12,000 stipend, travel to Ireland for graduate study program
    Number of awards: 12
    Requirements include:

    • Graduating senior
    • Superior academic excellence
    • Leadership and public service
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Goldwater Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    UCSD deadline: January 12, 2010 (application available in September)
    Agency deadline: January 30, 2010
    Award: $7,500 first prize
    Number of awards: 327 (up to 4 nominees from each university)
    Requirements include:

    • Sophomore or junior, 3.85 GPA
    • Engineering, natural sciences, or mathematics major
    • Research experience
    • Faculty recommendation letters
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Hertz Foundation Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: $28,000 monthly stipend for Ph.D work in physical sciences
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen or permanent resident
    • College senior or grad student pursuing Ph.D in applied physics, mathematics, chemistry, modern biology, or all areas of engineering
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Ross Frank
    UCSD deadline: February 10, 2010
    Agency deadline: March 10, 2010, 3 p.m. Eastern time
    Award: Up to $50,000/year for up to 6 years of grad school (U.S. or abroad)
    Number of awards: 76
    Requirements include:

    • Graduating college senior or graduated within the last 5 years, 3.5 GPA
    • Financial need
    • Interest in community service, leadership, and related issues
    • Participation in arts and humanities
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Jacob J. Javits Fellowship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline:  October 2010
    Award: Up to $30,000 stipend for graduate study in selected fields in the arts, humanities, and social sciences
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen or permanent resident
    • Graduating university senior
    • Demonstrated financial need
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • James Madison Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: March 1, 2010, 11:59 p.m. Central time
    Award: Up to $24,000
    Number of awards: 47
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen or national
    • Plan to become a teacher of American history, American government, or social studies at the secondary school level
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Agency deadline: Varies depending on field of study
    Award: Up to $30,000 stipend, up to $10,500 tuition, and $1,000 travel for graduate study and research
    Number of awards: 1,000
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or national
    • Graduating college senior or grad student
    • Intellectual and scientific ability
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: November 1, 2010
    Award: Up to $20,000 maintenance fee and $13,000 in graduate tuition
    Number of awards: 30
    Requirements include:

    • Naturalized citizen, green-card holder, or child of 2 parents who are naturalized citizens
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Rhodes Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Ross Frank
    UCSD deadline: September 2010
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: Tuition and living/ travel expenses at Oxford University
    Number of awards: 32
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • Literary and scholastic achievement
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Robert Bosch Foundation Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: October 2010
    Award: EUR 1,800 monthly stipend (September-May) and executive-level internship in Germany
    Number of awards: 20
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • German fluency
    • Graduate degree or graduate-level training
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: Varies per Rotary Club (as early as March 1 and as late as August 15, 2010)
    Award: $10,000 – $23,000
    Number of awards: more than 1,000 nationally
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • At least 2 years college coursework
    • Proficiency in language of your proposed host country
    Apply: Through a San Diego or your hometown Rotary Club
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Thomas R. Pickering Undergraduate Foreign Affairs Fellowship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? No
    Agency deadline: February 6, 2010
    Award: Tuition, room and board, round-trip travel to study public policy and foreign affairs
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • Graduating senior or entering grad school, 3.0 GPA
    • Academic achievement and leadership skills
    • Financial need
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Truman Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Ross Frank
    UCSD deadline: January 5, 2010
    Agency deadline: February 3, 2010
    Award: $30,000 ($15,000 each for first and last years of grad school)
    Number of awards: 65 (up to 4 nominees from each university)
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • University junior, 3.5 GPA
    • Interest in public service, leadership, and public policy
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Udall Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Ross Frank
    UCSD deadline: February 2, 2010
    Agency deadline: March 3, 2010
    Award: $5,000
    Number of awards: 80
    Requirements include:

    • Sophomore or junior
    • Environmental field of interest or Native American or Alaska Native studying health care or tribal public policy
    • Essay based on one of Morris Udall's papers or speeches
    • Attend Udall Scholars Weekend in Tucson, Arizona (paid for by the Udall Foundation)
    Apply: With the UCSD faculty advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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  • Winston Churchill Scholarship

    UCSD nomination or endorsement? Yes
    Faculty advisor: Dr. Laurie Smith
    UCSD deadline: October 11, 2009
    Agency deadline: November 10, 2009
    Award: Approximately $45,000 – $50,000 for graduate studies in engineering, mathematics, and the sciences at the University of Cambridge. The stipend includes University and College fees, travel and visa expenses, a living allowance of £10,000 or £12,000 (depending on the program), and the possibility of a $2,000 special research grant.
    Number of awards: 13
    Requirements include:

    • U.S. citizen
    • B.A. and GRE general test (not subject test)
    • Leadership
    • Outstanding academic record (preference to 3.9+ GPA), independent research experience, strong recommendation letter, leadership, plans to pursue a Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. after completion of the Churchill program
    Apply: With the UCSD advisor's help
    Details: See the Web site.

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Questions? Plese contact one of the faculty advisors or Dr. David Artis, Dean of Undergraduate Research Initiatives @ 858-822-4161