1. DIMACS/CCICADA/DIMATIA/Rutgers Math REU http://dimacs.rutgers.edu

2.  Website: http://www.nsfgrfp.org/http://www.nsfgrfp.org/  How to Apply: http://www.nsfgrfp.org/how_to_apply http://www.nsfgrfp.org/how_to_apply  Tips for Applying: http://www.nsfgrfp.org/applicant_resources/ tips_for_applying http://www.nsfgrfp.org/applicant_resources/ tips_for_applying

3.  Personal Statement Essay  Previous Research Experience Essay  Proposed Plan of Research  Three Reference Letters  Academic Transcripts

4.  Why are you fascinated by your research area?  What examples of leadership skills and unique characteristics do you bring to your chosen field?  What personal and individual strengths do you have that make you a qualified applicant?  How will receiving the fellowship contribute to your career goals?  How does the information in your personal statement address the Intellectual Merit and Broader Impact criteria?

5.  What are all of your applicable experiences?  For each experience, what were the key questions, methodology, findings, and conclusions?  Did you work in a team or independently?  How did you assist in the analysis of the results?  How did your activities address the Intellectual Merit and Broader Impact criteria?

6.  What issues in the scientific community are you most passionate about?  Do you possess the technical knowledge and skills necessary for conducting this work, or will you have sufficient mentoring and training to complete the study?  Is this plan feasible for the allotted time and institutional resources?  How will your research contribute to the “big picture” outside the academic context?  How can you draft a plan using the guidelines presented in the essay instructions?  How does your proposed research address the Intellectual Merit and Broader Impact criteria?

7.  Choose faculty/mentors who are familiar with your research/work outside of traditional classroom activities.  Provide recommenders with some background information about the program and criteria for letters of reference.  Provide recommenders with additional information about yourself: CV, professional activities, etc.

8.  Intellectual Merit Intellectual Merit ◦ How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields? ◦ How well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of prior work.) ◦ To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? ◦ How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity? ◦ Is there sufficient access to resources?  Broader Impacts – Activities and projects that: Broader Impacts ◦ How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while promoting teaching, training, and learning? ◦ How well does the proposed activity broaden the participation of underrepresented groups (e.g., gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic, etc.)? ◦ To what extent will it enhance the infrastructure for research and education, such as facilities, instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? ◦ Will the results be disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and technological understanding? ◦ What may be the benefits of the proposed activity to society? http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/publications/2011/ meritreviewcriteria.pdf

9.  Pathways to Science: http://www.pathwaystoscience.org/Grad.asp http://www.pathwaystoscience.org/Grad.asp  NSF Information for Grad Students: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/education.jsp?fund_type=2 http://www.nsf.gov/funding/education.jsp?fund_type=2  McNair Scholars Program: http://mcnairscholars.com/funding / http://mcnairscholars.com/funding /  Environmental Protection Agency  National Defense Science & Engineering Fellowship Program  Science, Mathematics & Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship  Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship  The National Research Council (NRC) Graduate Research Awards  Google PhD Fellowship  Microsoft Research Fellowship  The Whitaker Foundation (graduate fellowships in biomedical engineering)  Fannie & John Hertz Foundation Fellowships (applied physical sciences)  UNCF/MERCK Graduate Science Research Dissertation Fellowships (Af.-Americans in life/physical sciences)  Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)  American Geological Institute Minority Participation Program  Ford Foundation Minority Fellowships  Gates Millennium Scholars Program  AT&T Laboratories Fellowship Program  National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science, Inc.  National Hispanic Scholarship Fund