1Decide

Which of the many scholarships are best suited to your academic interests, career goals, geographical preferences, and financial circumstances? Forget the others.

If your chosen scholarships have application deadlines within two weeks of each other, pare your choices to no more than three. You may not be able to prepare, with the required care, more than three application packets simultaneously.

2 Eligibility

Check your eligibility. Be absolutely certain that you meet all requirements. Each scholarship website provides a section on this issue, but if there is a question about your eligibility -- with respect to, say, minority status -- ask the Office of National Fellowships. It is  disheartening to spend hours on an application only to discover that you are ineligible for consideration.

3 Deadlines

Highlight all application deadlines on all your calendars. Enter alerts in your calendar, one week and two weeks prior to the final deadline.
Notice whether the final deadline is for postmark or for receipt of the application package, and adjust your calendar accordingly.
 

4 GRE

Check to see whether your scholarship requires GRE scores, and if so whether on the "Subject" as well as the "General" test.  See www.gre.org.
 

Develop a checklist of requirements for each scholarship and a timeline for completing each: by what date you will have completed your essay first draft; by what date you will have photographs in hand; by what date you will have contacted faculty, and so on. Honor your timeline!
 

Identify and contact those who will write references for you. Be sure your referees are current on you and your plans. Give them a copy of your resume, and the websites for the scholarships for which you are applying. Let them know where you can be reached to answer their questions. If the scholarships provide reference forms, be sure your referees have copies or know how to access them on the web. Inform them in writing whether the letters are to be sent to you, to the scholarship foundation, or to SMU's Office of National Fellowships. Be sure they know whether the letter must have a signature across the envelope seal. Ask them to contact the Office of National Fellowships for guidelines on writing for this specific scholarship. Above all, give them the deadlines for submission and receipt of the reference forms by the scholarship foundations (the deadlines may not be identical to those for your own application packet). Give your referee a stamped, addressed envelope if the letter is to be mailed. Remember to fill in the parts of the form that ask for your signature or input; do not expect your referee to fill in this information about you.
 

Prepare a resume. This is necessary and can be harder than it appears. The purpose of a curriculum vitae or resume is to provide an easily readable snapshot of you to date. It must be neat, clear, inviting, and just long enough to cover the essentials in a streamlined, efficient manner: maximum 2 pages. If you’re disorderly, cryptic,  repetitious, or long-winded, you’re lost. Crisp, brisk, sharp, and lucid is the effect you want.

Set margins for one inch at top, left and right; 1.5 at bottom. Use a conservative, straightforward font (preferably Times New Roman), 10 or 12 point (preferably 12). Do not embellish with  artwork or typography, or over-use bold or italics. Section headings may be in bold. Never combine bold, italics, and underlining simultaneously.

Title the document Curriculum Vitae (italicized as a foreign language phrase) or “Resume for [Your Name].” No other title is acceptable.

Your school mailing address should appear in the upper left corner of page 1, permanent home address opposite in the upper right corner; include phone numbers with area codes in both entries. Add your e-mail address following your school address.

Arrange your c.v. by categories, in descending order of importance to your audience. The order may vary between scholarship committees and prospective employers, or even among scholarship committees, depending upon what experiences and expertise are valued by your readers. Here is a possible c.v. order for a scholarship application:
     Education
     Academic Honors
     Research and Publications (if any)
     Professional Experience (include internships)
     Extra-curricular Activities
     Community and Volunteer Service
     Language Skills
     Special Technical Skills
     Athletic Achievements
     Personal Interests

Indicate leadership roles, as appropriate, in these categories: evaluators are more interested in leadership than in memberships.

In early c.v. drafts, err on the side of inclusiveness. The c.v. is not the place for modesty, but screening committees recognize padding: straightforward description with neither self-promotion nor false humility is the ideal. The objective of a c.v. is to show you as a distinctive person, not necessarily more accomplished than everyone else but interestingly, compellingly different.

Avoid abbreviations unfamiliar to a general reader. Annotate parenthetically entries needing explanation (names of awards, organizations, etc.). Provide dates (graduation, employment, internships, etc.).
 

If a photograph is required, use a wallet-sized head and shoulder shot of professional quality and in interview attire.

Set your voicemail to politely and briefly ask callers to leave a message. Delete music and wisecracks! Scholarship officials may telephone: let them meet you in a professional mode. The same applies to your website and MySpace.
 

1Rules

Carefully read all information provided by the scholarship foundations on how to apply, “rules” governing applications,  procedures. Follow instructions to the letter, to avoid technical disqualification.

2 Typing

If you cannot apply on line and are permitted to apply in hard copy, you will need a typewriter. Script is not allowed.

3 Completing
        Forms

Answer every question, complete every blank, that is relevant to you on the application form. Limit yourself to the space provided unless you are specifically invited to expand. Do not feel obliged to fill up all provided space: blank space is preferable to padding. Avoid packing too much into limited space: readability trumps exhaustiveness. Don’t offer more or other than what’s requested. If instructions read, “If applicable,” and the question isn’t, do not write in “N/A”: just leave the space blank.

4 Fine Prints

Read all the fine print. Some of the instructions will appear in tiny print but they are no less important.

5 Titles

Use academic titles in listing academic referees: “Professor” not “Dr.” for senior faculty, “Dean”, “Provost,” etc. Do not write, “Professor John Smith, Ph.D.” (doctorate is assumed). If uncertain, check the SMU  directory.

If asked e-mail contact numbers for your referees, be sure to supply them, along with addresses and telephone numbers. Departmental FAX numbers for faculty are acceptable and are listed in the SMU telephone directory.

Order any lists (employment, publications, travel, activities, etc.) from most recent to least recent.

Sign and date the form after carefully reading any prose about “agreement” or “declaration” or “commitment” or “understanding” above the signature line. Be sure you understand what your signature agrees to and commits you to.

Visit the Office of National Fellowships (Perkins Administration Building) for a look at sample applications.