Laidlaw Scholars Application Criteria

To apply for the program, students must complete an online application, which includes documents outlining their proposed project. We recommend you have all the information and materials ready before filling out the online form. Components of the application include:

• Short Answer Question Form: Includes biographical and academic information
• Resume/CV
• Transcript (unofficial transcripts acceptable)
• Statement of Interest/Project Description: This includes a short description of the project, including the key research question that you are seeking to answer, any major events and activities related to conducting the research, the names and brief descriptions of any organizations or stakeholders with which you will work, and any potential impact of your findings. Please be as precise as possible. It is also helpful if the statement answers the following questions:
  • What do you hope to learn through your project?
  • Why do you believe you are qualified to see this project come to fruition?
  • What do you hope to learn from this experience?
  • Which of the two Leadership in Action components during the second summer you wish to undertake and why?
    • Participate in a leadership intensive program e.g. a leadership expedition
    • Continuing the research and incorporate a significant leadership component.
      • Bringing your research to a new and challenging environment.
      • Develop new specified leadership skills and including a supervisory role within the research project.
• Project Budget: This document should account for the total cost of the project, and identify priority items that will be covered by the Laidlaw Scholarship funding. You must also share other funding sources or in-kind donations you have received or a plan to seek.
• Faculty Mentor Statement of Support: Letter should include a clear explanation of the author’s relationship to the individual student or student group; the community-identified need being met by the proposed research project, and the author’s contact information. For more information, including a list of faculty willing to serve as Laidlaw Scholar mentors, please see the faculty involvement page. Letters should be submitted here.
• Letters of Recommendation (2): Letters should include the author’s relationship to the student, and should speak to the student’s academic record. Letters should also address both the student’s leadership potential, as well as their capacity to conduct an independent research project. Letter writers should submit documents here.
• Leadership Statement: This should be no longer than 750 words, and should answer the following prompt:
  • Describe a time that you faced a difficult situation in a group setting and took steps to resolve the issue. Explain what action you took and why, and if you feel that your actions were effective. Finally, describe what you learned about yourself in the process.

Applications will be assessed on:

• The viability of the proposed research project
• The student’s leadership potential
• The student’s academic record
• The letters of recommendation and faculty mentor’s supporting statements

Applications for the 2020 cycle are due on February 18, 2020 at 5 p.m. If you have any questions, please contact laidlaw.scholars@tufts.edu