National Fellowships Office Launches
Early Identification Program

Loyola’s National Fellowships Office has created an Early Identification Program designed to help motivated students identify academic and career goals, and to provide them with useful tips on seeking competitive scholarships and fellowships that can help them attain those goals.

“Despite being well prepared for programs such as the Rhodes, Fulbright, Goldwater, Udall, Marshall and other prestigious scholarships, Loyola students under-apply for these opportunities in comparison to students at our peer schools," says National Fellowships Director Arthur Sutherland, whose office identifies appropriate candidates, encourages them to apply for funding opportunities and guides them through the application process. “In part this is due to the number of students who are abroad for junior year. However, that very experience ought to be a prime motivator in applying since many of the awards are for international study as graduate students.”

The Early Identification Program’s small group sessions are designed to help motivated students identify academic and career aspirations, and to provide them with useful tips on creating competitive scholarship applications. In general, students with GPAs of 3.5 have the greatest success in obtaining these awards, but a record of leadership, creativity, and initiative, along with a distinctive research proposal and strong letters of reference all are compensating factors.

The Office holds periodic information sessions on each of the major fellowships and is eager to consult with faculty, students and their advisors. The Office also supports and advertises "stepping stone" or "gateway" scholarships that are often quite lucrative or meaningful, such as ones sponsored by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Explorers Club and the Lilly Graduate Fellows Program.