Applying for Awards

Deadlines vary by awarding agency; each deadline is unique.  Many agencies have fall semester award deadlines to give reviewers ample time to adjudicate thousands of applications and announce their decisions in the late winter or early spring, with the awards to commence in the following summer or academic year. 

Familiarize yourself with specific award deadlines and consider what materials you need to gather far in advance of the deadline.  Some awards require you to consult with UIndy’s Director of Fellowships at least one month prior (preferably earlier) to the national deadline and receive UIndy endorsement for the competition; most don’t require UIndy endorsement.

Submitting an application for an award after the national deadline or asking for UIndy endorsement at the last minute will disqualify you from the competition.  Be sure to carefully check the award’s date and time zone deadlines as national award deadlines are not flexible and exceptions will not be made for forgetfulness, illness, computer malfunctions, missing materials or recommendation letters, etc.

Nationally competitive awards require your application to be as strong as possible to be in the running, and strong applications simply can’t be put together at the last minute—particularly when others on campus are required to help complete or endorse aspects of your application. Plan to invest 25-40 hours on your application over a series of months, especially for prestigious awards and those with significant financial renumeration.

This time investment includes a) familiarizing yourself with the awarding agency and its application requirements; b) meeting with UIndy faculty and staff; c) requesting recommendation letters and transcripts; d) receiving coaching from the Director of Fellowships; and e) if required, participating in an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) to demonstrate foreign language expertise.

Additionally, you’ll need to spend time revising your application materials based on the feedback you receive.  If you plan to apply for multiple awards, this will take extra time, but you can easily reuse some of your application content and tailor it to the requirements of an additional award(s).

If you aspire for a specific award but may not yet meet all of its criteria, consider how you could acquire experience to prepare yourself to become a more competitive candidate.

For example, if you aspire to teach English in Korea, it will enhance your application if you can demonstrate knowledge of Korean history, language, and culture, take one or more courses in the School of Education or in teaching English language learners; get a Concentration in Teaching English Language Learners (offered through UIndy’s English department), or get experience as a volunteer teacher or teaching aide.  You could easily get ESL (English as a Second Language) teaching experience in a local school or newcomer agency by enrolling in a service-learning class offered through UIndy’s Center for Service-Learning and Community Engagement or volunteering at a local library or other organization that offers ESL classes.

Nationally competitive awards are extremely selective; many awarding agencies are required to publish the percentage of applicants vs. awardees on their websites, which you can easily view.  While there’s no guarantee that you’ll receive an award if you apply and are endorsed by UIndy, your chances of success are, of course, significantly greater with expert coaching such as you will receive from UIndy’s Director of Fellowships and a lengthy time investment in your application.  You can’t win an award unless you give it your best shot, so it’s always worthwhile to apply!

If you apply but don’t receive an award, it should not discourage you from applying for the same (or another) award in the future!  Some agencies may still be dealing with a Covid-19 backlog of applicants and their competitions may be a bit more selective at the present time.

Whom you ask for a recommendation letter will depend on the nature of the award.  You should always carefully consider the award type and as much as you can, match the recommender with the award type.

Whenever possible, ask for a recommendation from someone who is an expert in their field and who can attest to your strengths or aspirations in that field—and who’s someone you’ve recently worked with, who knows you well or at least moderately well, and who will be supportive of your application.  This shows that, while you may still be a novice, you’ve already been working with and learning from experts in the field that you aspire to enter. 

For example, if you’re seeking an award for public service or political science, it would be best to ask a political science or history professor for a recommendation letter, or even a local politician you’ve interned with.  If you’re applying for a physical therapy award, it’s best to ask someone in the field of physical therapy for a letter, rather than your English 101 instructor from freshman year.

If you’re applying for an athletic or faith-based vocational award, it would be best to ask a coach or a spiritual advisor, respectively, for a recommendation letter.  But unless the award values athletic expertise or is faith-based, it might not be helpful for a coach or spiritual advisor to write a recommendation for an academic award or a program to teach English abroad.  While these mentors could certainly attest to your personal qualities and strengths, they may not be the best match for the award type.

It might seem like an “easy ask” to request a recommendation letter from a high school teacher, a supportive staff member you know, or a part-time instructor you had a few semesters ago, but it’s always best to consider whether that person is the most qualified person to support you for a nationally competitive award.  Especially if you haven’t kept in touch with an instructor over the years, it could look like you’re “using” them for a recommendation letter, and they may not be fully up to date on your current circumstances and aspirations. 

The most competitive applications include recommendation letters from experts in the student’s aspirational field, indicating evidence of seeking out the counsel of experts and acquiring at least nascent experience in the field.

In short, it’s best to consider the award type and to the greatest extent possible, ask for a recommendation from someone(s) who knows you well—ideally, someone with whom you’ve taken a few classes or worked extensively, who will be supportive, and whose profession and area(s) of expertise best match the award, opportunity, or profession to which you aspire.

Make requests for a recommendation letter in person, if possible, and many weeks, if not months, in advance of an award’s application deadline.  Since you’re making an “ask” of a busy professional’s time, you should always be respectful of the time commitment required to write a letter, making your request as far in advance as possible so that they have ample time to familiarize themselves with the award type and your background to write the most supportive letter for you. Writing a strong letter and submitting it in the required format can easily take a recommender anywhere from 2-6 hours, so it’s unwise to ask for a recommendation letter at the last minute.

To help your recommender write the strongest letter possible, offer them your resume or CV, let them know why you want to apply for the award, explain how it fits into your future plans, and tell them why you’re a strong candidate.  Always clarify the deadline for their recommendation letter and specify how and to whom it should be submitted.

In many cases, you need to already begin your application online to enable your recommender to submit their letter.  Many awards require you to open an online application portal by entering your basic information, plus your recommender’s name and email address, to enable them to submit their letter.  It’s advisable to begin your online application as early as possible so your recommender receives automated email updates about how and when to submit their letter.

When you begin your online application, you generally don’t have to submit all application materials at the same time; in many cases, you can come back to your application at any time to update your materials until the deadline.

After an initial consultation meeting to discuss your award interests with the Director of Fellowships, it’s vital that you come prepared to all subsequent coaching meetings to make the most of limited time and looming application deadlines. This includes preparing questions you may have about the application process and bringing prepared drafts of any required personal statement or application essays.

All written essays and personal statements benefit from extensive feedback from multiple sources.  You can easily receive preliminary feedback on application essay drafts from UIndy’s Writing Lab and consult with staff at the Professional Edge Center for help on your resume or CV.  It’s strongly recommended that you consult with the Writing Lab and Professional Edge Center prior to coaching meetings with the DF so that you can share the strongest draft possible to get the most out of meetings.

While all students lead busy lives, it’s not helpful if you’re unprepared for coaching meetings or were “too busy to work on my application”. If you aspire to receive a prestigious, nationally competitive award that’s worth thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars, and one that will stand out on your resume for the rest of your life, you must invest time to prepare and respect the time and expertise of the coach or advisor who’s offering you the best advice they possibly can.

All feedback is intended to help your application be as competitive as possible.  Coaching meetings will include strategizing about qualities to emphasize in your personal statement or essay plus editing suggestions.  After completion of the coaching meetings, you’ll then need to submit your finalized personal statement, essay, and/or other required documents to the award’s application portal in time to meet the national deadline.

If you’re meeting in person or online with the Director of Fellowships (or another expert coach), you should always devote your full attention to the meeting. It’s impolite to multitask (e.g., text message, check email, have conversations with others, simultaneously attend classes or meetings, etc.) during coaching meetings, especially if meeting online.  UIndy may decline to endorse your application or not continue to assist you if you neglect to respect common courtesy as is expected in all professional environments, if you repeatedly come unprepared for or miss coaching meetings, and/or if you apply at the last minute.

On the open market, academic, application, life, and award coaching and grant writing can easily cost between $100-500 per hour. Expert application coaching for nationally competitive awards is offered to you free of charge by the Director of Fellowships, who has helped students and academic institutions receive over $2 million in awards to date. Additionally, coaching will help make your application competitive to help you stand out in the pool of applicants, i.e., other highly qualified students who’ve received extensive application coaching from their institutions.

Immediately let the Director of Fellowships know the news, as in some cases, you may be informed first (typically, via email).  It’s vital for UIndy to be kept abreast of the status of your application and continue to support you through all aspects of the process, including deciding whether to accept or decline an award offer, or what to do next if you don’t receive an award.

Be sure to follow any directions for accepting or declining an award that’s offered to you.  If you’re not able to accept an award, or you’ve had the good fortune of receiving multiple award offers, an agency or organization may sometimes be able to defer the award to a subsequent year—it’s always worth asking!  Otherwise, they would appreciate notification ASAP so they can give a declined award to another outstanding candidate.

Note:  Many student awardees forget to follow through on sharing their award status or thanking those who helped them along the way.  Whether you receive an award or not, be sure to write an email or card to each of your recommenders, thanking them for the time they spent on your recommendation letter and the support they offered you throughout the process.  Don’t forget to thank everyone who supported you!

National awards are “big deals” and deserve to be celebrated!  Most awarding agencies and organizations are required (often, by law) to publicly disclose the names of awardees’ academic institutions and sometimes, awardees’ names and hometowns as well.

If you receive an award, we’ll help you share the good news, attesting to your academic merit and inspiring other UIndy students to apply for nationally competitive awards, too.  In some cases, you may be the first UIndy student to receive the specific award, an outstanding accomplishment in and of itself.  The Director of Fellowships will contact the Chair of your major department(s), UIndy’s leadership team, UIndy’s Marketing Department, and The Reflector newspaper, all which may ask for an interview and quotes from you to help publicize the good news and celebrate your success. With your permission we will share your name and award on our website.

The Director of Fellowships is available to support currently enrolled UIndy undergraduate or graduate students or recent alumni for assistance and coaching for nationally competitive awards.