Undergraduate Awards and Scholarships
Information and application forms are available from the Western Michigan University Department of History main office, 4301 Friedmann Hall. The WMU Office of Financial Aid has extensive information on scholarships, grants and awards available to undergraduate students. If you have any questions, please email hist-outreach@wmich.edu.
A. Edythe Mange Distinguished Scholarship
This endowment will be used to provide awards to advanced students of History. The preference is for female recipients who are dedicated to their field, and who will likely serve the profession throughout their careers. Please contact department chair for more information on the application process.
Bert Nash Scholarship
The Bert Nash Scholarship will provide a student deemed to be a promising teacher $1,000 per year in support to a promising young Social Studies major who might someday engage and excite young people about the value of history. Awards are given via nomination by faculty.
Cheryl Lyon-Jenness Writing Award
The Cheryl Lyon-Jenness Advanced Undergraduate writing award honors student papers exceeding 4,000 words that fall under the broad rubric of research papers. This includes senior theses, historiographical works, material culture or museum related pieces, methodological/theoretical analyses, and critical review essays. Submissions are unrestricted as to historical subject and will be judged according to the following criteria:
- Mastery of writing skills necessary for effective communication
- Appropriate thought in the interpretation and analysis of historical information
- Clear, concise expression and nuanced use of language.
Only papers prepared for the previous spring, fall, summer, and/or current academic semesters will be considered. The recipient of the Cheryl Lyon-Jenness writing award receives a stipend of $350.
Cheryl Lyon-Jenness Writing Award Application
Dr. Catherine J. Julien Endowment for History
The fund will be used at the discretion of the Chair of the Department of History to support undergraduate or graduate students to advance their research in history with a preference for supporting graduate students and those students whose interests are in studying Latin America history and culture broadly defined, including its archaeology and its indigenous peoples. Please contact department chair for more information on the application process.
Dr. Dale P. Pattison Endowment
Dr. Dale P. Pattison Endowment shall support undergraduate students in the Department of History. The fund will be administered by the Chair of the Department of History. Grants are awarded to further research, encourage internship or volunteer experiences, defray the cost of travel to scholarly conferences, or in support of other scholarly or professional activities. The deadline for submission is March 15. The amount for this scholarship is variable up to $500. Please send applications to the department chair.
Dr. Dale P. Pattison Endowment Application
Dr. H. Nicholas Hamner Undergraduate Support Fund
Dr. H. Nicholas Hamner has provided a gift to Western Michigan University to establish an endowed fund in support of the University. The endowed fund, established with this gift, shall be known as the Dr. H. Nicholas Hamner Undergraduate Support Endowment. The fund shall support undergraduate students in the Department of History with educational expenses such as tuition, fee, and book expenses. The deadline for submission is March 15. Please send applications to the department chair.
Dr. H. Nicholas Hamner Undergraduate Support Fund Application
Dr. Smith Burnham Prize in History
This award is given annually to the junior History major with the highest G.P.A. in History courses completed up to that time in their college career. The amount of the original gift to the department was a thousand dollars, and the award money comes from the interest received from the investment of that amount. Award amount is up to $1,000
Elmore L. and Ruth C. Haynor Endowed Scholarship
This fund will be used to provide scholarships to undergraduate, full-time students enrolled in the history curriculum. Such scholarships shall be based on financial need and may be renewable for four consecutive academic years. Please contact department chair for more information on the application process.
History Alumni Travel Award
This award funds undergraduate history majors and minors who engage in scholarly activities outside the classroom and/or who pursue opportunities that advance their professional goals as historians. Grants are awarded to further research, encourage internship or volunteer experiences, defray the cost of travel to a scholarly conference, or in support of other scholarly or professional activities in history. The amount for this award is variable. The deadline for submission is March 15. Please send applications to the department chair.
History Alumni Travel Award Application
History Fellowship Award
Thanks to generous donations, Western Michigan University’s Department of History will award renewable $1,000 fellowships to newly admitted, full-time freshman students with declared majors in history (Liberal Education Curriculum), Public History, Secondary Education, History, or Social Studies (with history minor option). A minimum 3.5 high school GPA is required at the time of application. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years provided that the student's cumulative GPA does not drop below 3.5 and they maintain full-time status as majors in the Department of History. The deadline for submission is March 15. Please send applications to the department chair.
History Fellowship Award Application
History Internship Scholarship
The History Department Internship Scholarship supports outstanding and deserving history, public history, and secondary education students pursuing an internship in their field of study. The scholarship is designed to help defray costs and expenses in instances where students are required to temporarily relocate in order to complete an internship. Applicants must submit a resume, transcript, a brief statement describing the project, a proposed budget, and a statement of support from a faculty mentor. The deadline for submission is March 15. The amount for this scholarship is variable. Please send applications to the department chair.
History Internship Scholarship Application
History Undergraduate Fellows Emeriti Grant Program
The History Undergraduate Fellows Grant Program funds undergraduate history majors and minors who engage in scholarly activities outside the classroom and/or who pursue opportunities that advance their professional goals as historians. Grants ranging from $50-$500 are awarded to further research, encourage internship or volunteer experiences, defray the cost of travel to a scholarly conference, or in support of other scholarly or professional activities in history. Applicants must submit an application form, a resume, transcript, a brief statement describing the project, a proposed budget, and a statement of support from a faculty mentor. Applications are due on November 15 for projects taking place in the spring semester, and on March 15 for projects taking place in summer I and II sessions and fall semester. Please send applications to the department chair.
History Undergraduate Fellows Emeriti Grant Program Application
Honors in History
History majors may contact the department to receive an "Honors in History" designation on their official transcript. In order to be eligible, history majors must have completed at least 30 credit hours including 6 hours in 4000-level history courses. Applicants must also have completed at least 90 credit hours overall, and at least half of all credit hours and all 4000-level history courses must be completed at WMU. A minimum GPA of 3.5 and a GPA of 3.75 in History courses is required to maintain the designation. The Department will notify the University Registrar to enter it onto your transcript. Please submit the form below, a substantial writing sample, a brief letter stating the reasoning for your request, along with a statement of support from a faculty member to the chair of the department at linda.borish@wmich.edu
If your GPA falls below the required 3.5 minimum for Honors in History, the University Registrar can revoke it.
Margaret MacMillan Writing Award
The Margaret Macmillan writing award honors undergraduate papers of not more than 4000 words (excluding notes and bibliography). Submissions are unrestricted as to historical subject and will be judged according to the following criteria:
- Mastery of writing skills necessary for effective communication
- Appropriate thought in the interpretation and analysis of historical information
- Clear, concise expression and nuanced use of language.
Only papers prepared for courses taken or completed during the fall and spring semesters of the previous calendar year will be considered. A call for submission announcement is forwarded to students each year; the deadline for submissions is March 15. The recipient of the Margaret Macmillan writing award receives a stipend of $350.
Margaret Macmillan Writing Award Application
Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning
All members of the WMU (undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, emeriti, alumni and staff) are eligible to apply to the Peter J. Schmitt Endowment for Experiential Learning. To be eligible for this grant, undergraduate students must have completed at least 30 hours of course work at WMU, and have maintained a GPA of 2.50 or higher. The deadline for submission is April 1. Please send applications to the department chair.
Peter J. Schmitt Endowment Application Process
Smith Burnham Outstanding Intern Award
The purpose of the outstanding intern award is to encourage an environment in which a future teacher is given close, expert supervision. The intern participates in a variety of authentic teaching experiences with at least one, and often several, outstanding teachers at Portage Central High School. WMU's College of Education's Office of Field Placements works with the History Department in this placement. The intern teacher also receives letters of recommendation from his/her supervising teachers at PCHS, members of WMU's History Department, and the PCHS principal following the completion of the internship. The award comes with a stipend of $300.
Werner Marten and Nicki Taylor Endowment
The recipient shall be a full time student in a History major or program. Both graduate and undergraduate students are eligible. Academic merit shall be a primary consideration with minimum qualifications to be determined at the discretion or the scholarship selection committee.