President's Award and Scholarships

Description

  • The President's Award for Study Abroad is a single annual award of $2,500 for study abroad, awarded annually (fall semester) for use by the recipient during the following two semesters.
  • The President’s Scholarships consist of eight scholarships of $2,000 each for study abroad: four awarded during fall semester and four awarded during spring semester. The scholarship must be used within one year of award.
  • The award or scholarship is to be used for an approved program of foreign language study abroad at a foreign university or in a study abroad program sponsored by an American university. The purpose of the study is to improve Spanish skills.
  • The recipient of the scholarship must study abroad for at least one full semester. Preference will be given to those who enroll in WMU semester-long, sponsored programs. In the case of students applying for non-WMU sponsored programs, other factors being equal, preference will be given to those who intend to study in a full-year program. The scholarship may not be used for programs during summer I or II sessions.

Eligibility

  • Students must currently be enrolled at WMU and have a declared major in Spanish. They must have completed at WMU at least one 3000-level course in Spanish prior to the semester of application. In addition, they must complete at least one more 3000-level course at WMU in Spanish by the end of the semester of application.
  • To be considered for the President’s Award, the applicant must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.00 and 3.75 in a Spanish major. Applicants for the President’s Scholarships must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.00 and 3.50 in a Spanish major. Applicants who meet the GPA criteria for the President’s Award will also be considered for the President’s Scholarships.
  • The applicant must enroll in a study abroad program whose credits are transferable to WMU and which is approved by the Spanish study abroad advisor.
  • Students may receive only one President’s Award or President’s Scholarship for study abroad during their career at Western Michigan University.

Selection criteria

  • Demonstrated academic achievement in a Spanish major.
  • Demonstrated overall academic achievement.
  • A typed essay of approximately 300 words detailing the applicant's reasons for wishing to study abroad.
  • Two letters of recommendation from faculty within the Department of Spanish.
  • An interview with the Spanish award committee may be required. Any student selected for interview will be contacted by the department.

Application and deadline

Fill out the scholarship application via ScholarshipUniverse by the deadline.