2024 SWSS Endowment Enrichment Scholarship
Purpose: Provide an opportunity for SWSS graduate and undergraduate students to participate in a week-long educational experience with Industry or Academia.
Student Application Deadline: Jason Bond (JBond@drec.msstate.edu) must receive applications by May 3, 2024. Please put “SWSS Enrichment Scholarship Application” in subject line. Submission of all information into a single PDF file is preferred, but not required.
Description of Scholarship: Scholarship winners will choose a week-long educational experience among various areas of weed science including experiences from the field to the lab, in research or extension, and with industry or academia (Tables 1 and 2). Winners will be provided $1500 from the SWSS Endowment to pay for expenses incurred during their experience.
Eligibility Requirements: Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- The applicant must be an undergraduate or graduate student in good academic standing enrolled in a degree program (B.S., M.S., or Ph.D.) at an accredited college or university in the southern region.
- Graduate students must be actively conducting, or have recently finished, research in the area of weed Undergraduates must document their interest in the area of weed science.
- The applicant must be a member of the SWSS at the time of application.
- The applicant must present a 10-minute paper and submit an abstract about their experience at the SWSS annual meeting following their experience. Specifics will be provided directly to winners.
Application Procedure:
- Complete application form (provided on page 5).
- Cover letter describing applicants’ interest in weed science and the scholarship (< 1 page).
- Brief resume or CV summary highlighting recent relevant experiences (< 1 page).
- Two letters of support, one of which must be from the student’s graduate or major
- Academic transcripts (unofficial copy is acceptable).
- Email application information to Dr. Mike Lovelace (mike.lovelace@corteva.com) by May 15, 2024, with “SWSS Enrichment Scholarship” in subject line.
Selection Criteria and Process: Applicants will be evaluated based on contribution of research to the discipline of weed science and to the SWSS objectives, academic record and scholarly achievements, and potential contributions to the future of weed science. Submitted applications will be distributed to the Endowment Board members where each member of the committee evaluates and ranks the applicants as determined by the application form and the supporting documents. Judging will not be done by individuals with a personal or advisory affiliation with an applicant.
Timeline: Students must submit applications by May 3, 2024. The scholarship selection process will be completed by May 19, 2024. Scholarship winners and their host will determine the date in 2023 for the experience to occur. The Endowment Board will function as a liaison between the scholarship winners and their hosts throughout the process.
Revising Guidelines or Procedures: The Endowment Board can make changes or revisions to the scholarship guidelines and operating procedures as more experience is obtained. The Board welcomes suggestions from the membership on methods to improve this experience for students.