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Thirty-two Rhodes Scholarships are awarded to U.S. citizens annually for two years of study in a degree program at the University of Oxford. Rhodes Scholars are elected in December and enter Oxford in October of the following year.
The criteria which Mr. Rhodes set forth in his will still guide Committees of Selection in their assessment of applicants. The Will contains four standards by which prospective Rhodes Scholars should be judged:
- Literary and scholastic attainments
- Energy to use one’s talents to the full, as exemplified by fondness for success in sports
- Truth, courage, devotion to duty, sympathy for the protection of the weak kindliness, unselfishness and fellowship
- Moral force of character and instincts to lead, and to take an interest in one’s fellow beings
Much of the distinctiveness of the Rhodes Scholarships stems from this comprehensive set of criteria. Intellectual excellence is obviously required, but not in isolation from other qualities. Mr. Rhodes sought Scholars who were more than “mere bookworms", he wanted their intellectual talents to be combined with concern for others. Thus the Selection Committees assign the highest importance to this blend of character with intellect.
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Applicants apply as a representative of one of the fifty states: either in the state in which they will have received at least two years of college training and a bachelor's degree before October 1, 2009, or in the state where they were legally resident on April 15, 2009. (Applicants are warned that selection committees are instructed to verify legal residence. Simultaneous application to more than one District Committee will disqualify an applicant. At the time of application:
- An applicant must be a citizen of the United States; pending application for citizenship does not qualify a person to apply.
- An applicant, by October 1, 2008 must be at least 18 but not yet 24 years of age.
- An applicant must have achieved academic standing sufficiently advanced to assure completion of a bachelor's degree before October 1, 2009.
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Rhodes applicants must receive the endorsement of the Dartmouth College Committee on Graduate Fellowships. The Committee will review all application materials and interview each applicant to decide on endorsements. You will be informed of your status via email.
For scholarships requiring endorsement, all materials must be sent to Scholarship Advising, 6201 Wentworth Hall, Rm. 301, Hanover, NH 03755 or HB 6201.
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Register your intention to apply for the Rhodes with Scholarship Advising by May 1, 2008.
Applicants will submit the following to the Scholarship Advising office by the preliminary application deadline of June 30, 2008:
- Rhodes Application (you may download and use the 2006 application form from the Rhodes website for the preliminary application)
- Personal Essay describing the specific area of proposed study
- List of Activities
- Five to Eight Letters of Recommendation
- Academic Transcript
These applications will be read by the Committee who will make comments and offer suggestions. The preliminary application (with comments) will be returned to you over the summer. Please see RWiT or any writing advisor for help with your essays. You may also submit a draft of your essay and resume in advance to Scholarship Advising.
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Please provide your recommenders with the Guidelines for Writers of Letters of Recommendation when requesting a recommendation. You will also need to provide them with the Rhodes Request for Letter of Appraisal form when it is available.
You should also provide them with any information about you that can help them formulate a strong recommendation, such as, information on the scholarship and what your study and research plans are, a copy of your CV, a paper you wrote for their class, transcript, research topics, future academic or career goals, etc.
Five to eight letters of recommendation are required for the official application with at least four of these letters from faculty. Faculty letters are expected to be very detailed and to address the applicant’s intellectual interests quite specifically, perhaps describing memorable in-class debates and/or outstanding scholarly papers from seminars and independent study projects. Applicants should not, therefore, select prospective referees solely on the basis of class standing.
Letters of recommendation should be sent to Scholarship Advising, 6201 Wentworth Hall, Room 301, Hanover, NH 03755 or HB6201.
For more information on recommendation letters, click here.
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Candidates who receive the endorsement of the Committee are responsible for mailing their application materials (one original + nine copies unless otherwise noted) by the postmark deadline to the appropriate Selection Committee.
Applications should include:
- Application Blank
- Personal Statement (put full name and page number on the top of each page)
- List of Activities (put full name and page number on the top of each page)
- Official Transcript
- One photocopy of your birth certificate, passport, or other proof of age and citizenship
- Ten copies of an unmounted head and shoulders photograph
Letters of Recommendation
All letters of recommendation will be mailed by the Scholarship Advising Office. Please provide the office with one Request for Letter of Appraisal Form (Page A-4) for each recommender. Please confirm with Scholarship Advising that all letters of recommendation (signed, hard copies) have been received by September 2008.
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March/April 2008
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Rhodes Information Session
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May 1, 2008
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Register with Scholarship Advising
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June 30, 2008
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Preliminary Application Deadline
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July/August 2008
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Feedback on Preliminary Applications Available in Scholarship Advising
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September 3, 2008
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Final Application Campus Deadline
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Mid-September 2008
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Interviews with the Committee on Graduate Fellowships
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October 6, 2008
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Official Postmark Deadline for Final 2009 Application
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November 2008
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Mock Interviews for Finalists
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November 21-22, 2008
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Rhodes Selection Committee Interviews
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November 2008
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Rhodes Scholars Announced
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Rhodes Scholarship Website
Email Scholarship Advising
Frequently Asked Questions
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