Eligibility
This scholarship is intended for students who will be juniors or seniors in 2025-26. The scholarship is highly competitive and is restricted to those intending to go to graduate school in mathematics, the natural sciences, or engineering and pursue a research career. Applicants must be US citizens, or permanent residents prepared to certify that they intend to apply for citizenship.
The Goldwater Scholarship recently announced a new mentoring initiative for students who are interested in applying – especially those from backgrounds that are underrepresented in STEM – and would like to connect with a past Goldwater Scholar. See the Goldwater Ambassadors page for more information!
Deadlines
November 1, 2024 (5pm Central Time): Deadline to complete the pre-application at the Goldwater Website (click on ‘apply now’).
December 2, 2024 (5pm Central Time): Carleton on-campus deadline for submission of all application materials (see instructions below). Nominees will be selected on the basis of these materials.
January 24, 2025 (5pm Central Time): Carleton deadline for submission of all final nominees’ applications (hit ‘lock and submit’ in the Goldwater Application System).
January 31, 2025: Official deadline for submission of nominee materials to the Goldwater Foundation by the Office of Student Fellowships.
Purpose
The mission of the Goldwater Foundation and its scholarship program is to help develop the nation’s next generation of researchers in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering.
Awards
A Goldwater Scholarship provides up to $7,500 for undergraduate tuition, fees, books and room and board. About 1000 awards are made each year.
The Goldwater Scholarship’s value is not in the financial assistance received – the scholarship is the most prestigious award given to undergraduates in the STEM fields, and strengthens applications for other fellowships in the future!
Application Process
A visit to the Goldwater website will help you decide if applying for the scholarship makes sense to you. You may fill out the pre-application there at any time before the pre-application deadline listed above.
Following a preliminary review of pre-applications, Carleton’s Office of Student Fellowships will open the full application to potential nominees and contact them with guidance regarding letters of recommendation and the other materials required by the on-campus deadline date.
Potential nominees can fill out the on-line Goldwater application over several sessions, but must hit ‘lock and submit’ by the on-campus deadline listed above.
The application includes several questions about your research experiences, career aspirations, personal background, and academic pursuits. The heart of the application is a research essay, for which you may describe research you have already completed or a prospective project. You may include figures and citations; please cite in the style appropriate to your academic field.
The application also asks you to calculate credit hours; please use the quarter-based credit hours conversion at Carleton’s page on credit hours to do so.
Letters of recommendation must be submitted to fellowships@carleton.edu (subject line “Goldwater”) by the same on-campus deadline listed above . Recommenders will be provided with instructions to this effect and with guidance about recommendation content.
Please send a copy of your unofficial transcript to fellowships@carleton.edu by the same deadline.
A campus committee will review all materials submitted and identify Carleton’s nominees (we are allowed no more than four) and notify all applicants of the decision no later than 5:00 p.m. on January 8, 2025.
The nominees will have until January 24, 2025, to revise and polish their materials for submission, with guidance from the Director of Student Fellowships and their faculty mentors. The Office of Student Fellowships will submit the final versions of the applications and all supporting documents to the Goldwater Foundation in time for the official deadlines. Winners are announced by the Goldwater Foundation in late March.
Selection Process
Applicants are evaluated on three characteristics:
- Demonstrated potential for and commitment to a research career in mathematics, the natural sciences, or engineering.
- Strong academic performance, especially in courses related to the field of interest.
- Potential for a significant future contribution to research in their chosen field.
Campus Representative
Marynel Ryan Van Zee, Director of Student Fellowships, Laird 131, x4300, myranvanzee
Official Website
Recent Carleton Recipients
2023 Recipient: Annemily Hoganson ’24 (see Carleton News article)
2021 Recipient: Jahmaine Renzo (Jaren) Yambing ’22 (see Carleton News article)
2019 Recipients: Will Schwarzer ’20 and Sarah Finstuen-Magro ’20 (see Carleton Now article)
2018 Recipient: Sacha Greenfield ’19 (see Carleton Now article)
2018 Honorable Mention: Kiran Tomlinson ’19 (see Carleton Now article)
2017 Recipient: Madeline Chosy ’18 (see Carleton Now article)
2015 Honorable Mentions: Joseph Slote ’16 and Erin Roth ’16
2014 Recipients: Vayu Maini Rekdal ’15 and Carolyn Ann Raithel ’15
2013 Recipients: Nick Jones ’14 and Zach Wood-Doughty ’14
2012 Recipients: Thomas Callister ’13 and Michael Cvitkovic ’13
2011 Recipients: James Morrissey ’12 and Cody Finke ’12
2011 Honorable Mention: Michael Coughlin ’12
2010 Honorable Mention: Kayla Nygaard ’12 and Sarah Schlotter ’12
2009 Recipient: Anna Jolene Mork ’10