Churchill Scholarship
Apply through Reed Fellowships and Awards Committee
Internal Deadline: September 21st, 2022 at 12:00 PM
» Scholarship's official website
» List of previous winners
» Internal application instructions
» Eligible Courses at Cambridge
» Recommenders: Information about Writing Letters
Description
The Churchill scholarship awards sixteen scholarships annually for one year of graduate study in science, mathematics, and engineering leading to a either an MPhil (Master of Philosophy) or MASt (Master of Advanced Study) at Churchill College at Cambridge University. Tuition and fees are paid, with an additional living allowance depending on the course of study. Additional funding is available for research and travel.Eligibility
An applicant for the Churchill Scholarship must be a citizen of the United States, either native-born or naturalized, and must be enrolled in one of the Participating Institutions and due to graduate during the same academic year as the deadline or be a student who has graduated from one of those institutions within the past twelve months before the deadline. Upon taking up the Churchill Scholarship, a Churchill Scholar must hold a bachelor's degree or equivalent.
Eligibility for this scholarship also requires admission to the University of Cambridge, which has a minimum GPA requirement of 3.5 (or 3.7 if the Cambridge course requires a "first").
Selection Criteria
Outstanding academic achievement
Most applicants have a very high average, but there is no minimum GPA for the scholarship. However, admission to Cambridge does list a minimum GPA (see Eligibility above). The Committee looks at achievement in STEM courses, especially in the major, as indicated by course grades and recommendation letters.
Proven talent in research
Applicants in the sciences and engineering will demonstrate extensive laboratory experience, internships, or other related work, while applicants in mathematics will show substantial independent work or other projects. The Committee looks for originality and creativity.
Outstanding personal qualities
Understanding the time commitment required by research, the Churchill Foundation does not seek so-called “well-rounded” applicants; instead, it seeks applicants with what we call interesting “jagged edges.” The Committee takes into account interests and achievements outside of research, but it does not favor any particular kind of activity.
An additional statement from the former executive director of the program:
The factors that make an applicant stand out are a certain intellectual spark; a commitment to making a serious contribution to your field of inquiry, the promise of intellectual leadership, and less easily defined personal qualities that suggest you will benefit from a year in Cambridge and that Churchill College and the University of Cambridge will benefit from your presence there.
The Winston Churchill Foundation of the United States is committed to a policy against discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender, marital or parental status, race, color, religion, national origin, or disability or any other characteristic protected by law.