Student Fellowships & Research

Description.
Paul and Daisy Soros, Hungarian immigrants and American philanthropists, established their fellowship program for New Americans in December 1997 with a charitable trust of fifty million dollars. Their reasons for doing so were several. They wished to "give back" to the country that had afforded them and their children such great opportunities and felt a fellowship program was an appropriate vehicle. They also felt that assisting young New Americans at a critical point in their education was an unmet need. Finally, they wished to signal to all Americans that the contributions of New Americans to the quality of life in this country have been manifold.

Benefits.
The Fellowships are grants for up to two years of graduate study in the United States. Each year the Fellow receives a maintenance grant of $20,000 (paid in two installments) and a tuition grant of one-half the tuition cost of the US graduate program attended by the Fellow (up to a maximum of $16,000 per academic year). The Fellowship Program pays the tuition grant directly to the institution. The size of the tuition grant depends on the cost of tuition at the institution the Fellow attends. On average, the program receives 900 applications annually and makes 30 awards.

Eligibility.

• Candidates must qualify as New American. A New American is an individual who (1) is a resident alien;,i.e., holds a Green Card or, (2) has been naturalized as a U.S. citizen or, (3) is the child of two parents who are both naturalized citizens. A Green Card holder must have had more than one year of IRS filings.
• The Program is open to individuals who retain loyalty and a sense of commitment to their country of origin as well as to the United States, but is intended to support individuals who will continue to regard the United States as their principal residence and focus of national identity.
• The applicant must either have a bachelor’s degree or be in her/his final year of undergraduate study. Those who have a bachelor’s degree may already be pursuing graduate study and may receive Fellowship support to continue that study. Individuals who are in the third, or subsequent, year of study in the same graduate program are not, however, eligible for this competition. Students who have received a master’s degree in a program and are continuing for a doctoral degree in the same program are considered to have been in the same program from the time they began their work on their master’s degree.
• To be eligible you must not be older than thirty years of age as of November 1 of the application year.
• A successful candidate will give evidence of at least two of the following three attributes or criteria for selection: (1) creativity, originality, and initiative, demonstrated in any area of her/his life; (2) a capacity for accomplishment, demonstrated through activity that has required drive and sustained effort; and (3) a commitment to the values expressed in the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The third criterion includes activity in support of human rights and the rule of law, in opposition to unwarranted encroachment on personal liberty, and in advancing the responsibilities of citizenship in a free society.

Bowdoin’s Internal Selection Process. There is no limit to the number of Bowdoin students who can apply annually for the Soros. Interested students are strongly encouraged to provide the following material to the Office of Student Fellowships and Research by the “Initial Bowdoin Deadline” (see above) so that the director can help the applicant hone his or her application.

Materials for Final Consideration. While the Foundation will accept hard copies of the applications that are postmarked by November 1, 2008, the Foundation strongly prefers online applications. Therefore,

By October 27, 2009, Bowdoin applicants are expected to electronically submit the following items:

By October 27, 2009 three recommenders are expected to send their letters directly to the Soros Fellowship Program and to Cindy Stocks. Three letters of recommendation, of which one is from a faculty member familiar with the applicant’s current or most recent academic work and one is from someone who is familiar with her/his performance in a work-setting, whether paid or volunteer are required.

By the second week of December, 2009, scores from any graduate aptitude tes (e.g., GMAT, MCAT, GRE, LSAT) required by programs to which the applicant has applied should be submitted to the Soros Fellowship Program. Candidates may submit a photocopy of the score report. This requirement does not pertain to students in programs where portfolios or auditions determine admissions.

More about the Selection Process. Once the application and other materials are in hand, teams of at least three readers consider the candidacy and determine who will be invited for interviews. Like every strong fellowship program, the Soros Fellowships have many more able people applying than can ever be invited for interviews. Painful though the decision process is, 84 are eventually invited. The interviews are held in January in New York and Los Angeles, with a February announcement. If you are invited for an interview, please contact the Office of Student Fellowships and Research right away so that practice interview(s) can be arranged to help you prepare.

Please note that applicants are responsible for all photocopying needed for the internal selection process and as required by the foundation.