Scholarships cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.
2024-25 IC Application process and deadlines
September 3 – Online application opens
Information Sessions - TBD
Reach out with questions by email.
November 10 - Pre-application is due.
Students will use the Goldwater Application portal to enter in basic academic information, and this informs us that they are applying.
The IC Goldwater Scholarship Review Committee will consider the pre-applications and determine who is eligible, based on the Goldwater Scholarship standards, to move forward in the application process. Students will be notified by November 12th if they have been approved to submit a full application to the internal Ithaca College review committee to be considered for nomination.
December 8 – Full application due.
The full application includes the research essay, letters of support from faculty, as well as the answers to additional application questions. The Goldwater Scholarship Committee will notify applicants by December 11th whether they have been nominated by Ithaca College to submit official applications for the Goldwater Scholarship.
January 17, 2025 – Final Applications must be completed in the online portal, including all uploaded materials that are required.
Who Should Apply?
If you are a sophomore or junior in the natural sciences, math, or computer science at Ithaca College with a GPA over 3.0, and you have a strong desire to continue your education in graduate school programs in these fields, then you should consider applying for a Goldwater Scholarship. Your entire application will be reviewed internally by a committee of faculty in the STEM disciplines (science, technology, and mathematics). Ithaca College is limited in the number of applicants it can nominate to be sent forward to the Goldwater Foundation. You will be notified by the committee by December 11th if you have been nominated. If you are nominated, you will need to submit your final completed electronic application by December 8th.
How to Apply
To apply, you will complete the Goldwater online application. You will also follow the instructions for how to request two faculty members to submit letters of support for consideration as part of your application.
In your essay you should describe the type of science you want to pursue, explain why you are motivated to pursue this avenue of research, and explain why this research is of importance to humanity (what benefit it will serve). You will upload this essay through the online portal. If your pre-application is approved, your full application will be reviewed by the Goldwater Review committee. Your answers to all questions should be well written, relevant to your line of research, and thoughtfully reasoned. In preparing your essay and application answers, you should not hesitate to seek help from your main research advisor or a faculty member well versed in the area of science that you would like to pursue.
Essay Instructions
Your essay should discuss a significant issue or problem in your field of study that is of particular interest to you. Your essay must include a description of the issue or problem, discuss an idea for research that could have significant impact on the issue or problem, describe an aspect of the research in which you would be involved, and explain the relevance of the issue or problem to you as a mathematician, scientist, or engineer. The content and style of your essay will be important to the success of your scholarship application. Assume that your reader is knowledgeable in mathematics, science, and engineering, and will have the expertise to read, review, and understand the complexities of your field of specialty. If your essay involves research in which you are or were involved, please indicate if you are or were the sole researcher or if you collaborated with another individual.