SENIOR FELLOWSHIPS
By vote of the Board of Trustees, each year there is selected from the
junior class a group of students (usually no more than ten, but in exceptional
circumstances a maximum of twelve) to be Senior Fellows during the following
year. The Senior Fellows are chosen from among students of such intellectual
caliber, independence of character, and imaginative curiosity that they have
become interested in some personal project of study that will contribute to
their own intellectual growth. Every Senior Fellowship must involve a project
in which the intellectual scope and breadth of imagination goes beyond that
which can be accomplished by taking courses offered in the existing curriculum.
These students are permitted all the freedom they are capable of using
profitably within the framework of the undergraduate college. The Senior
Fellowships constitute recognition of the existence within the College of the
kind of responsible individualism that must ever be a part of education in a
free, democratic society, and provide exceptional opportunity for
self-education for those who are best able to use it.
Selection of the Fellows is made by the President on the recommendation of
the Faculty Committee on Senior Fellowships consisting of a representative of
the Dean of the College, the Assistant Dean of the Faculty for Undergraduate
Research, and two members from each of the Divisions of the Faculty. The
regulations governing the selection of these Fellows are as follows:
1. Basis and Method of Selection of Senior Fellows: The Committee
on Senior Fellowships shall determine the number of Fellowships to be awarded
and select each year from the list of applicants those candidates who are to
receive the Fellowships.
2. Regulations Concerning the Application for Appointment to a Senior
Fellowship: Members of the junior class may become candidates for Senior
Fellowships by individual application, or on nomination by any member or
members of the undergraduate body, of the Faculty, or of the
Administration.
Each candidate must file an application with the Assistant Dean of the
Faculty for Undergraduate Research not later than the end of the fourth week of
the term, two terms before the Senior Fellowship is to begin. Included in the
application shall be an official transcript, the name of the faculty member who
has consented to be the principal adviser, and a detailed description of the
project: what the candidate proposes to do, the reasons for doing it, and plans
for achieving the goals. The potential adviser shall submit to the Committee on
Senior Fellowships, in support of the candidate's application, a comprehensive
written statement in which the merit and feasibility of the project, the
qualifications of the applicant, and the commitment of the adviser are fully
discussed. In addition, two other faculty members must submit recommendation
letters for the candidate.
The Committee on Senior Fellowships will review all applications and will
select candidates to advance to the interview phase. Selected candidates and
their potential advisers will be required to have an interview with the Senior
Fellowship Committee. If the candidate will be off-campus in the term during
which the application is filed, he or she should arrange to come to Hanover for
an interview, or if that is impossible, arrange with the Chair of the Senior
Fellowship Committee to have an interview in a prior term in which he or she is
on-campus. Applicants must plan ahead and discuss their projects with their
prospective adviser and the Assistant Dean of the Faculty for Undergraduate
Research before the term during which their application will be submitted.
3. Requirements for Senior Fellows: The Fellowship year comprises
three terms of registered enrollment, at least one of which must be spent
primarily in residence. Fellows are enrolled for two Senior Fellow courses in
each term of the Fellowship. The courses are graded on a Credit/No Credit
basis. Supervised independent research away from campus will count as an
R-term. All Fellows must have their schedules approved by the Senior Fellowship
Committee.
Senior Fellows are required to complete a total of thirty-five course
credits before the end of their Fellowship year. They shall take such courses
as the Committee on Senior Fellowships may prescribe.
Students applying for Senior Fellowships must have a minimum College grade
point average of 3.0 at the time of application. The Committee on Instruction
is empowered to make small downward adjustments of this requirement when the
Committee on Senior Fellowships strongly supports the application of a
candidate who does not quite qualify.
Fellows shall not be required to complete a major, but may do so if they so
desire; they do not receive any reduction in the requirements for a major. No
part of the Senior Fellowship work may be submitted for departmental major
honors.
Fellows must complete all distributive and related requirements by the end
of the second term of the Fellowship.
In the planning and execution of this program a Fellow shall be responsible
to some member of the Faculty who shall act as adviser. No member of the
Faculty will be expected to act as principal adviser for more than one Senior
Fellow during an academic year. In the exceptional case where two or more
students collaborate on a senior fellowship, each student must have a separate
principal adviser. If the principal adviser is not a tenure-track member of the
Dartmouth faculty, one of the secondary advisers must meet that criterion. The
Committee on Senior Fellowships shall exercise general supervision over all
programs.
The Fellowship appointment is provisional for one term. Continuation for the
remaining two terms requires the Committee on Senior Fellowship's approval of a
Fellow's accomplishments and rate of progress during the first term. In making
its determination, the Committee on Senior Fellowships shall evaluate a written
report from the student, a detailed analysis and recommendation of the
principal adviser, and such additional information as may be required.
At the time the Senior Fellowship is awarded, the candidate's primary
adviser will recommend two or more examiners, in addition to the primary
adviser, to serve on the candidate's Examining Committee. The Committee on
Senior Fellowships must approve the list of examiners. The membership of the
Examining Committee may change during the course of the Fellow's tenure but any
change must be approved by the Committee on Senior Fellowships. Except in
special circumstances, at least one of the members is expected to be from
outside the College.
The Fellow must submit a draft of the project to the primary adviser by the
end of the third week of the final term of the fellowship.
The student's final Senior Fellowship project must be completed and
submitted to the Examining Committee and to the Committee on Senior Fellowships
two weeks before the beginning of the final examination period in the third
term of the fellowship. Each Fellow must make an oral presentation to the
Examining Committee within two weeks of submitting the final project. In
addition, each Fellow must present the final project to the Dartmouth community
in a public forum prior to the beginning of the final examination period in the
third term of the fellowship.
The Examining Committee for each Senior Fellow will make a recommendation to
the Committee on Senior Fellowships as to whether the Senior Fellow has
completed the Fellowship or has completed the Fellowship “with Honors” or
“with High Honors”. The Committee on Senior Fellowships will determine the
final standing for each Senior Fellow based on the recommendations of all
members of the Examining Committees and will notify the Registrar of these
final standings. This standing shall become part of the Fellow's permanent
record.
The Committee on Senior Fellowships may declare failing a Senior Fellow
whose work has not been of satisfactory quality. The Committee shall in such
cases specify the requirements to be fulfilled before the degree is
granted.
4. Tuition Reduction for Senior Fellows: All Senior Fellows are
entitled to attend their final term at Dartmouth College tuition-free. Since
this provision may have differing effects on individual students, a Senior
Fellow has two options:
a) Tuition remission for the final term (for students receiving financial
aid, this will mean a reduction in the self-help package for the entire year);
or
b) A graduate fellowship equal to one term's tuition. (The amount of the
fellowship is based on the tuition in the year in which the student completed
the fellowship.)
Senior Fellows who are receiving financial aid should contact the Financial
Aid Office to discuss these two options before making a decision. Senior
Fellows who are not receiving financial aid should contact Student Financial
Services.
PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS
The Presidential Scholars Program was initiated under the auspices of the
Faculty of Arts and Sciences in 1988 to encourage and facilitate the attainment
of intellectual and artistic excellence among Dartmouth undergraduates.
Presidential Scholar Research Assistantships offer students the opportunity to
serve as research assistants to individual members of the faculty. This venture
in student-faculty collaboration introduces third-year students to approaches
and methods of research that may prove useful in their own future scholarship.
By working closely on a project with individual faculty mentors, juniors
receive apprenticeship training in research that may facilitate the writing of
an Honors thesis or pursuit of a Senior Fellowship.
The assistantships are two terms in length. Normally the two terms will be
sequential, although the terms may be split by mutual agreement of the student
and directing faculty member. As assistants, students are expected to work
seven to twelve hours per week and will receive an honorarium. If the second
term's work is deemed worthy of academic credit as Independent Study by the
directing faculty member (subject to departmental criteria), one course credit
may be given if the student so requests. Assistantships for which Independent
Study credit is to be granted will involve a greater commitment of time than
non-credit Assistantships. Students who do not elect or qualify for this option
will receive the honorarium for the second term of their Assistantships.
(Students may not receive both honorarium and credit for the same work.)
Upon completion of two terms of research, the student's transcript will
carry the notation Presidential Scholar Research Assistant. To be designated a
Presidential Scholar at Commencement, students designated Presidential Scholar
Research Assistants must successfully complete the honors program in their
major department or receive honors for the project for which they were
appointed a Senior Fellow.
The eligibility requirements are as follows:
(1) A grade point average at the end of the fall term that would have placed
a student in the top 40% of the previous year's sophomore class.
(2) The Assistantship should fall within the student's major or a closely
related program or field.
Students interested in the program are responsible for contacting potential
faculty mentors and arranging interviews. Students may interview for
Assistantships during the last two weeks of winter term and during the first
two weeks of spring term. Faculty select their Presidential Scholars on the
basis of these interviews. If the number of students applying for the program
exceeds the number of Presidential Scholar stipends available, acceptance to
the program will be made on the basis of academic standing and the relevance of
the assistantship to the student's course of study.
Students may obtain further information in the Office of Undergraduate
Advising and Research in the Dean of the Faculty Office, 110 Wentworth
Hall.
AWARDS FOR GRADUATE STUDY
In addition to national and international fellowships and awards by graduate
schools in the United States, Dartmouth College fellowships are awarded each
year to seniors (and in some cases recent graduates of the College) who have
done academic work of distinction and who are qualified to proceed to advanced
study in graduate school or to pursue an independent project or research in the
U.S. or abroad.
Appointments to the fellowships are made by the President of the College on
the recommendation of the Committee on Graduate Fellowships. Application forms
and information are obtainable from Scholarship Advising. Normally applications
for the Reynolds Scholarships must be completed in early February, and for
other awards in March.
The James B. Reynolds Scholarships for Foreign Study are based on a fund
given by James B. Reynolds of the Class of 1890, and are awarded annually for
projects or study abroad to Dartmouth seniors and graduates who are United
States citizens, or to those who have made application for first citizenship
papers in the United States. The awards are based on the intellectual ability
and character of the applicants and on the value to the community of their
program of study. The Scholarships may be used for study in any field in any
foreign country, normally in affiliation with a recognized educational
institution, and in any case in conformity with a definite program of study
approved by the Committee on Graduate Fellowships. In unusual cases programs of
scholarly investigation or creative activity to be pursued independently abroad
may be approved. The award is for one year only, for a sum of approximately
$14,000.
Dartmouth General Fellowships are awarded with consideration of the
financial need of the applicant as well as of her or his academic merit. Most
awards are for up to one year of study or research in the United States or
abroad. Grants may also be used for short-term post-graduate projects. The
funds are awarded in varying amounts, normally not exceeding $5,000. The amount
granted depends on the need of the candidate, taking into account other
available sources, including fellowships and assistantships at graduate
schools.
The Paul L.'83 and Neil T. McGorrian Fellowship is awarded each year to a
graduating senior whose proposal for foreign travel or study reflects the
spirit that motivated the lives of Paul '83 and Neil McGorrian: a desire to
learn about the world and to communicate that knowledge to other Americans, a
passion for the truth, and the courage to face challenges. Paul died tragically
while pursuing a career as a foreign correspondent in Pakistan, only months
after the untimely death of his younger brother, Neil. Applicants must be
United States citizens or permanent residents. Students who plan careers in
some aspect of foreign affairs and cultures, including such fields as
journalism, the arts, education, diplomacy, preservation of indigenous
cultures, environmental work, humanitarian relief, and economic development,
are encouraged to apply. The award of approximately $2,500 is for a period of
two months to one year and is not renewable, but may be combined with other
fellowships.
The William Hill Memorial Loan Fund has been established to provide
financial aid for graduating seniors and recent graduates who are well
qualified for graduate work and in need of financial assistance. Under its
conditions, a student may apply to the Committee on Graduate Fellowships for a
low-interest loan from this Fund.
Dartmouth graduates accepted into any graduate program at Harvard
University, but needing financial assistance beyond the amount available from
Harvard, may apply for the Alfred K. Priest Fellowship. Fellows are named
yearly, and each is awarded a stipend, not to exceed $10,000, which may be
renewed annually until the completion of the advanced degree, not exceeding
five years.
The Fred C. Scribner Jr. 1930 Fellowship, the Fred C. Scribner, Jr. 1930 and
James H. Hamlen Fund Fellowship and the Charles H. Woodbury Class of 1897
Memorial Law Prizes are awarded each year to graduating seniors enrolling in
law school. The Scribner Fellowships give preference to seniors from the state
of Maine.
A description of fellowships and the list of awards for each completed
academic year are published in Fellowships, Prizes, Honors, and Degrees,
available from the Publications Office.
|
