JMU HONORS PROGRAM251 Warren Service Drive
MSC 1501
Harrisonburg, VA 22807
Hillcrest House
540.568.6953
540.568.7728
540.568.8079 (fax)
E-mail: honors@jmu.edu
Office hours:
Mon.-Fri., 8:00am-5:00pm
Special Opportunities
SCHOLARSHIPS
The JMU Honors Program Scholarships page contains information about grants that provide financial assistance to attend professional conferences. In addition, Honors Program and national scholarships are listed.
Be sure to check with your major department, your disciplinary honors society, the Office of Financial Aid, Office of International Programs, and other campus resources for scholarships and grants to support your research or conference participation.
Prestigious Scholarships and Fellowships Dr. Melinda Adams, Prestigious Scholarships Coordinator for the JMU Honors Program, is available to advise students in preparing for these awards. Contact the Honors Program office to schedule an appointment with her (568-6953).
National Association of Fellowships Advisors has a list of major nationally competitive scholarships and their sponsors. This compilation of organizations reflects only the most prominent sponsors and is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of scholarships available to college students.
The Dollars for Scholars program, sponsored by the Southern Regional Honors Council, encourages innovative projects in honors and assists in the scholarly development of honors students by providing matching grants (up to $1,000) to member institutions for use by students.
SERVICE
Teach for America, mid-February application deadline, builds a corps of our country's most promising future leaders who commit two years to teach in low-income communities to help impact the achievement gap for disadvantaged students.
The Institute on Philanthropy and Voluntary Service offers a residential summer program at Georgetown University. Professional experience, academic learning (up to 9 credits), and service projects are offered. Deadlines: early February (priority) or early March.
The Peace Corps challenges young adults to serve their country in the cause of peace by volunteering to live and work in developing countries. This agency of the federal government is devoted to world peace and friendship.
Partners in the Parks offers a week of exploring and serving in a national park. Modeled on the Place as Text workshops of the National Collegiate Honors Council, students learn about local geology, botany, environmental psychology, endangered species ecology, and photography in an active, research oriented setting.
HONOR SOCIETIES
The National Society of Collegiate Scholars membership is offered by invitation only to 1st- and 2nd -year students who rank in the top 20th percentile of their class and have a GPA of 3.4 or higher. The purpose of the organization is to encourage members to pursue academic excellence, become campus and national leaders, and to give back to their communities. Scholarships and merit awards are available.
Alpha Lambda Delta National Honor Society for First Year Students membership is open by invitation only to first-year students who earn a GPA of 3.5 or higher and are in the top 20% of their class. The purpose is to recognize superior academic achievement, promote intelligent living and a continued high standard of learning, and to assist students in recognizing and developing meaningful goals for their roles in society. Scholarships and fellowships are available.
INTERNSHIPS
Dynamic Internship Program for Exceptional Black Males scholarships available for admitted students.
The Institute for Responsible Citizens has two summer internship programs. The Washington, DC, program focuses on public service, with most participants interested in careers in law, politics, and business. The New York City program focuses on career achievement and citizenship in the financial services industry. Deadline for early decision: early November; for regular decision: early February. Interested candidates should contact info@i4rc.org or (202) 659-2831 before applying.
The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars (www.twc.edu/internabroad) offers several intern abroad opportunities. The following exciting summer 2009 programs allow students to combine study abroad with a substantive internship:
The Washington, D.C. - London Program (now in its third year)
The Washington, D.C. - Oxford Program (new in 2009)
The Washington, D.C. - Sydney Program (new in 2009)
Designed as a seminar in the nation's capital followed by an internship placement with programming and rigorous academic study in one of the above cities, each program will help students gain a valuable comparative understanding of culture and professional life - an important asset in today's global workforce. The application deadline for all three programs is February 27, 2009. Admission is selective; honors students are especially encouraged to apply. Contact internabroad@twc.edu.
Virginia Capital Semester is an internship sponsored by the Virginia General Assembly during the spring semester. Early October deadline. $1.000 stipend. Contact Jen Thompson at jlthompson2@vcu.edu.
LIVE. LEARN. INTERN. DC internships and internships abroad for fall, spring, or summer. Priority consideration for scholarships given to NCHC Honors Students. Sponsored by The Fund for American Studies in partnership with Georgetown University, the Institutes combine substantive internships, courses for academic credit, career development activities, site briefings and lectures led by prominent policy experts. Four eight-week programs are offered in the following subject areas:
- Politics, Public Policy and International Affairs
- Journalism and Communications
- Corporate Business and Government Affairs
- Nonprofit and Community Service
Public Leadership Education Network (PLEN): Women and Public Policy Internship Semester in Washington, D.C. Semester sessions available for fall, spring, or summer. Contact (202) 872-1585 or plen@plen.org. PLEN's program is devoted exclusively to women and public policy and designed specifically for women students. Participants work as interns with women leaders in policy organizations and agencies and participate in seminars designed to present a variety of issues.
Summer Institute on International Development, internships and seminars at George Mason University, 3 - 9 credits for applicants with a GPA of 2.5 and above. Early April deadline.
Want to learn more about the labor movement? Write for a Union Newspaper? Do campaign research?
Why not spend a semester in New York City interning at a union or workers' center while earning credit for a BA, BS or a Masters?
Union Semester is an intensive semester-away program in which students come from across the U.S. to intern for a NYC labor organization and take courses in Labor Studies from the City University of New York, CUNY.
The program is open to all undergraduates, recent graduates and graduate students in all majors. In addition to a $1700 scholarship, a weekly stipend and a monthly transportation stipend, all participants receive 16 undergraduate credits or 12 graduate credits for their work and a Labor Studies Certificate.
Union Semester is offered each fall and spring semester. Applications for Spring 2009 are due November 20, 2008.
Courses are available on the undergraduate and graduate levels. Internships include a wide range of activities at a diverse group of unions and community organizations. New York Union Semester is an excellent career opportunity for young people interested in working for social and economic justice. For more information and an application go to www.unionsemester.org Or contact the Program Coordinator, Dinelle Lucchesi, at info@unionsemester.org or 212-642-2075.
POLITICS & LEADERSHIP
Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership, late February deadline. The college leaders program provides intensive training in state and local government, politics and public policy to students across VA in an effort to better prepare students to create positive change within their communities for issues they are passionate about.
The Southern Education Foundation, mid-March deadline, seeks highly motivated and talented students to participate in a unique leadership development opportunity intended to improve education for all, especially low-income families who need the most help. This project commemorates the Brown vs. Board of Education decision. A generous stipend for undergraduates and for graduate students is provided.
STUDY ABROAD
JMU Office of International Programs For information about Honors Abroad study at Oxford, Cambridge or St. Andrews in England and Scotland, see the Honors Abroad Page or contact the Honors Abroad Director, Dr. John J. Butt, at buttjj@jmu.edu
The ScholarShip, is a semester-long academic program aboard a dedicated passenger ship that traverses the globe as an oceangoing campus and includes students from around the world. The ScholarShip also offers scholarships for honors students. Early March deadline.
Summer Study in Sweden with other Honors Students, earn six credits of honors electives or seminars. Mid-February deadline. Contact Lynda Payne at paynel@umkc.edu
Summer Study in Greece
St. Mary's College of Maryland is once again sponsoring a 4-week summer study tour to Greece. There is a description, a syllabus, an itinerary, photos from "past year highlights," cost information, and applications available on the website.
SUMMER PROGRAMS
KPMG Summer Scholars Program
The Institute for Responsible Citizenship is accepting applications for the two-summer KPMG Summer Scholars Program in New York City. Similar to our Washington Program, the KPMG Summer Scholars Program provides high-achieving African-American male college sophomores with unparalleled networking opportunities, life-long mentorship, and leadership development. Applicants must be college sophomores to apply to the KPMG SSP. Even though the Institute requires applicants to have strong GPA's, the admissions committee also looks upon other achievements such as honors and awards earned, athletics, past interships, campus involvement, and volunteer work favorably. The application for the KPMG SSP can be found by clicking here. Applications must be received by THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2009.
SEC Summer Program
The Securities and Exchange Commission's Summer Honors College Program introduces undergraduate students pursuing degrees in such areas as accounting, economics, finance, human resource management and information technology/information security, among others, to the regulation of the securities markets and the work of the Commission. Students have the opportunity to work for ten weeks during the summer at the Commission's Washington, DC headquarters or in one of its 11 regional offices nationwide.
Applications are accepted online. Please note that applications may not be sent to the Commission via US Mail, as in previous years, and that selections are made on a rolling basis. Early submission of materials is encouraged.
Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Nanoscale Materials Science and Engineering, held at the New Jersey Center for Engineered Particulates at The New Jersey Institute of Technology. The program exposes undergraduates to topics associated with nanoscale materials science and engineering as well as to professional development, particularly focused on the research enterprise. A generous stipend is paid for the 10-week summer program. Early March deadline. Students should have a major in engineering, chemistry, or physics, or a strong background in one of those areas. Contact Professor Kwabena A. Narh, REU Director, kwabena.a.narh@njit.edu, (973)596-3353, Fax: 973-642-4282. Awards will be made on a competitive basis to students who have completed at least 2 years of their undergraduate engineering or science program by the start of the program.
Summer Institute on International Development, internships and seminars at George Mason University, 3 - 9 credits for applicants with a GPA of 2.5 and above. Early April deadline.
Johns Hopkins University's Center for Talented Youth seeks staff for their summer programs. Residential site locations in CA, DC, HI, MA, MD, NY, PA and RI. Salaries range from $1970 - $2970 each 3-week session. Submit applications by December or January. Contact 410-735-6185, or ctysummer@jhu.edu.
Summer Study in Sweden with other Honors Students, earn six credits of honors electives or seminars. Mid-February deadline. Contact Lynda Payne at paynel@umkc.edu
CONFERENCES & EXCHANGES
Southern Regional Honors Council, conference in late March.
National Conferences on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) and Colonial Academic Alliance (CAA) encourage students to present papers on their research in the spring each year. JMU's Office of Sponsored Programs selects top proposals for funding to attend these conferences. Submit one proposal, which is the application for both conferences. The proposals are due in late October.
The Virginia Collegiate Honors Council provides an annual opportunity for students to present research papers and engage in learning experiences with students from other honors programs around the state.
Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference of Undergraduate Scholarship (MARCUS), an annual conference in October, MARCUS focuses on the scholarship and research activities of undergraduate students. College students from VA and surrounding states are invited to participate. A call for papers is issued in March.
GRADUATE WORK AND FELLOWSHIPS
The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans, application deadline is early November, provides opportunities for continuing generations of able and accomplished New Americans to achieve leadership in their chosen fields. The program is established in recognition of the contributions new Americans have made to American life and in gratitude for the opportunities the United States has afforded the donors and their family.
Math for America - Newton Fellowship Program, early February deadline, designed to significantly improve mathematics education in the nation's public schools by increasing the number of well trained and properly motivated people entering careers as high school math teachers. Newton Fellows receive master's level teacher training, on-going financial incentives, and supportive services. They teach in NY city high schools.
Phi Kappa Phi Grants, application deadline is early February for the fellowship program, designed to support graduate students in their first year of graduate study, and a mid-February deadline for the Study Abroad program.
The National Institutes of Health & the Univ. of Pennsylvania have combined their resources to create a graduate training partnership unlike any other - The NIH-UPENN Advanced Immunology Scholars Program. 2-4 graduate students per year are sponsored in an interdisciplinary curriculum designed to train students in basic science and advanced research technologies to solve key research questions of immunology and infectious diseases. Application deadline to both institutions is mid-December. Contact Pam Schwartzberg: 301-435-1906, pams@mail.nih.gov
The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation seeks to recruit talented college graduates and midcareer professionals to teaching in science, technology, engineering, and math (the STEM fields). Accepted Fellows are offered a rigorous teaching preparation in a master's degree program, Indiana teaching certification, extensive clinical experience, ongoing mentoring, and a $30,000 stipend in exchange for a 3-year commitment to teach math or science in a high-need Indiana secondary school. Application deadline: mid-December. Contact WWTeachingFellowships@woodrow.org.
RESEARCH AND WRITING
JMU's Writing Program's Write On! Competition deadline is mid-February.
