Changes to the 2017 Nomination Process

There have been several changes made to the Goldwater Scholarship nomination process for 2017 that differ from past nomination cycles. The changes to the overall nomination process include:

1) Change of title from “Faculty Representative” to “Campus Representative”. Individuals who represent their institution to the Goldwater Foundation and who oversee the campus nomination process are now referred to as “Campus Representatives (CR)”.

2) There is only one deadline the Goldwater Foundation is setting for the 2017 competition. All nominations and all nomination materials are due by 5:00 p.m. Central Time on the last Friday in January. Any intermediate deadlines – for example, when Letters of Recommendation are due or by what date student applications must be completed – will be set by the campus CR.

3) All 2-year and 4-year institutions may now nominate up to four (4) undergraduates for a Goldwater scholarship.

4) Nominees no longer need to provide their “class rank.”

5) Students are now being asked to provide the name(s) of their faculty research mentor(s). In the past, students were asked to provide the name(s) of their research project PIs. While a project PI may be the student’s mentor, this may not always be the case. In past years, faculty mentors’ names were not publically listed by the Goldwater Foundation. Starting in 2017, the Goldwater Foundation plans to publically recognize mentors by listing their names on its web site.

6) While the pre-application asks for the student’s major, the application form asks for the student’s “Field of Study” and “Sub-Field”. The Field and Sub-Field designations are those used by the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Fellowship program.

7) There are also changes to the overall nomination process. These include:

a. The Campus Representative will have primary control of the overall process on their campus. The CR will 1) determine the deadline dates for ALL intermediate application deadlines, 2) approve or reject student pre-applications 3) control the Letter of Recommendation process, 4) monitor the students’ application as it is being completed, and 5) electronically upload the students’ transcripts and Letters of Recommendation.

b. Student Pre-Application: All students who would like to be considered for a Goldwater Scholarship will need to complete a pre-application. Once the pre-app is completed and submitted, a notification email is sent to the CR and a notification is posted in the CR’s online work area (called the CR’s Dashboard). The information contained in the pre-app will enable the CR to make a preliminary decision on the competitiveness of the student for a Goldwater award. Should the CR determine that the student should continue with an application, the CR then approves the student and the student is provided with access to the full application.

c. The Goldwater Foundation will now accept both “official” and “unofficial” student transcripts. “Unofficial” transcripts must be printed in the presence of the CR and signed and dated by the CR and student nominee. If student cannot print an unofficial transcript in the presence of a Campus Representative (e.g. A student who is traveling abroad), then an official transcript should be submitted.

d. All documents are now electronically uploaded. No documents are to be mailed to Scholarship America. The student nominee is responsible for uploading his/her research essay and, when applicable, a permanent resident card and letter of intent to become an American citizen. The CR is responsible for uploading the student’s transcript(s) and Letters of Recommendation. All materials must be uploaded before the deadline of 5:00 p.m. Central Time on the last Friday in January.

e. The format for the faculty Letters of Recommendation and the student’s Research Essay have been changed. Both documents must be in 12 point and use Times New Roman or Arial font. Margins must be 1 inch on all sides. To compensate for the increase in font size, the letters and research essay may be up to 3 pages in length. The document may be either single or double spaced. All materials must be typed.