James O. Freedman Presidential Scholars

The James O. Freedman Presidential Scholars Program was initiated in 1988 and provides opportunities for juniors to work as research assistants with Dartmouth faculty. These opportunities are intended to prepare students for undertaking senior honors theses. In 1997, the Program was endowed by John (Launny) L. Steffens, Dartmouth '63. We are grateful to Mr. Steffens for his generous support of this program.  The program was renamed in January of 2007 in honor of James O. Freedman, 16th President of Dartmouth College, in recognition of his commitment to undergraduate teaching and scholarship.

• ORC section on Presidential Scholars
  
• Program Information for Faculty 
• Faculty Project Submission Information
• Program Information for Students
• Application Timeline

Awards (class of 2012 and later)

• Term 1: $750 (for 7-12 hours of work per week).
• Term 2: $750 OR academic credit as Independent Study.

Stipend payments for international students (non-resident aliens) are subject to a 14% tax.

** Independent Study credit must be arranged through the faculty advisor for the James O. Freedman Presidential Scholar project and approved by that professor's department.  Note that some departments have specific requirements and pre-requisites for approval of research for credit, and students must satisfy these requirements in order to be eligible for independent study credit.  If the independent study is approved by the department, students must register for the course through the Registrar's office.  Note that students may not receive both a stipend and independent study credit for their second term of Presidential Scholar research.  Independent study credit is not an option for the first term of the scholarship.

Eligibility

• Available only to rising juniors who have attained a GPA in the top 40% of the class at the end of fall term of sophomore year.
  • GPA cut-off for the class of 2015 is 3.56
• Eligible students will be notified winter term of sophomore year and can interview for the internships during winter and spring terms of sophomore year.
• Students may not participate in other research programs (e.g. Neukom Scholars) in the same terms as they are engaging in research for this program.
• Students who have received funding through another UGAR program (e.g. Sophomore Science Scholars) must be in good standing in that program in order to participate in this program (e.g. submitted all required paperwork and final reports).

Applying for a James O. Freedman Presidential Scholarship

(Instructions and Application Forms)

Senior Honors Thesis Fund

• Available to students who have successfully completed both terms of a James O. Freedman Presidential Scholar assistantship.
• Funds up to $300 for James O. Freedman Presidential Scholars who have departmental approval to do a senior honors thesis.
• Funds can be used for expenses related to honors thesis research or travel to an academic conference for the purpose of presenting research findings.

Senior Honors Thesis Fund Application (46K PDF File)