Charles Center Scholarships
These scholarships for International or Domestic Research fund students to do seven weeks of research abroad or in the U.S. These awards are made possible by Frank Batten, W. Edward Bright '78, the estate of Helen Y. Cohen, Gale and Steve Kohlhagen '69, Suzanne Louis '71, the estate of Dewey Renick, Richard '52 and Nancy Sayford, W&M Class of 1943, W&M Class of 1968, and the W&M Parents' Association. Please note: based on what you are doing (domestic vs. international), these are also the forms to use for the Biomathematics Scholarship (requires 2 complete sets of application materials), Christian-Ewell Scholarship (requires only 1 set of application materials), the Christopher Wren Association Scholarship (requires only 1 set of application materials), the Harriet Mayor Fulbright Research Fellowship (requires only 1 set of application materials) and the James Reilly Undergraduate Summer Scholarship (requires only 1 set of application materials); you will automatically be considered for one of these awards based on the nature of your research project.
The link for the online application can be found on the main CC Summer Scholarships Page. Applicants must be sure to select "Charles Center Domestic Scholarship" or "Charles Center Domestic Scholarship" on their online Charles Center Summer Research Funding Application and are encouraged to also select all scholarships for which they are eligible.
General Information and Application Components
Recipients must agree to blog about their research on the Process of Undergraduate Research (POUR) site at least five times and present their work at the Showcase of Summer Research in the Fall semester.
The applicant must submit a project proposal outlining your proposed research project (max. 2 pages, single-spaced) addressing the following:
What is the question you’re hoping to answer with your research? / What coursework or other experience have you had that are relevant to this proposal? / Discuss your methodology in detail - how will you carry out your work? / What support do you have for the project (lab space, access to collections, etc.) / What is going to be the outcome of your research? (article, play, website, etc.) Why is this work exciting or unique? / How will this research help further your own academic / intellectual development?
The student must also submit a personal statement (max. 1 page, single-spaced) to reflect on your intellectual influences and to examine what you hope to achieve both here and after graduation:
What led you to develop an interest in your field of study and the proposed research topic? As you reflect on what to write, be sure to consider your favorite authors, scholars, teachers or classes. Also consider what things you want to study, why you want to study them, and what you hope to learn about your area of interest. Finally, consider the contribution you want to make with your own research to our knowledge and understanding of your field.
The applicant must also submit one letter of recommendation from a William & Mary faculty member. The letter should be from the faculty member who is best able to attest to the applicant’s suitability for the project and with whom he/she has previously discussed the proposal. Once the applicant registers the recommender online, a message will be sent to the recommender with directions for uploading and submitting the letter.
Finally, the applicant must also submit a W&M transcript, which can be the unofficial transcript found through Banner.
There are no interviews. A committee of William and Mary faculty members reviews the applications and determines the recipients. The decisions of this committee are final. Results will be posted in the Charles Center and on the Charles Center website.
If your reasearch involves human subjects in any way, you must submit your proposal to the Student Institutional Review Board (StudentIRB) prior to submitting your application for summer research support. You will be asked to indicate on the online application form when you submitted your proposal to the IRB.
Travel Warning
Students wishing to petition for approval to receive international internship scholarship funds for travel to a country under a Department of State (DOS) Travel Warning should contact the Director of Global Education or the Vice Provost for International Affairs for additional information. International internship scholarships are subject to the W&M Travel Warning Policy. All petitions for summer 2013 international internship scholarships in a country under a DOS Travel Warning must be received by the Director of Global Education at the Reves Center no later than 5 p.m. on April 22, 2013. Decisions about such petitions will be made by mid-May.