The Truman Scholarship is a merit-based grant awarded to undergraduate students for financial support to attend graduate or professional school in preparation for careers in government, the non-profit sector, or elsewhere in public service. Congress established these scholarships in 1975 to honor President Harry Truman. Madeleine K. Albright assumed the position of President of the Truman Scholarship Foundation on January 1, 2003.

SPU graduate Matthew Cooper (1998) received a Truman Scholarship to attend Harvard Law School.

Advice for Prospective Applicants:

• Contact SPU’s Truman Faculty Representative as early as possible in your collegiate career. The representative will be able to advise you how to prepare a record of leadership and service during your freshman and sophomore years that will lead to a strong Truman Scholarship application.
• Because the Truman Scholarship competition evaluates applicants in their junior year, it is imperative for serious candidates to engage in leadership and public service activities during their freshman and sophomore years. Good examples of appropriate activities include student government, student journalism, political campaigns, and internships with the government and/or public policy and lobbying groups. In particular, you should make the summer between your sophomore and junior years count!

Awards:
Awards are $30,000, of which $3,000 is to be used during the senior undergraduate year, and $27,000 for graduate school ($13,500 per year for a two-year program and $9,000 per year for a three-year program).

Priority is given to candidates who propose to enroll in graduate and professional programs specifically oriented to careers in public service. These include law, M.A. and Ph.D. programs in public administration, public policy analysis, public health, international relations, government, economics, social services delivery, education and human resource development, and conservation and environmental protection.

Selection criteria:

• Extensive record of public and community service.
• Commitment to career in government or elsewhere in public service.
• Outstanding leadership potential and communication skills.

Eligibility:

• Applicants must attend an accredited U.S. college or university and be nominated by SPU's Truman Faculty Representative, Dr. John West (candidates MAY NOT apply directly).
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens or U.S. nationals.
• Applicants must be in the upper quarter of their junior class, except for residents of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa or the Northern Marianas who must be in their senior class.
  

Am I a potential Truman Scholar? Click here to determine if you would be a good candidate for this scholarship.

Application:

• The deadline for notifying SPU’s Truman Faculty Representative that you intend to apply for a Truman Scholarship is
  December 3, 2007.
• The deadline for submitting your application to SPU’s Truman Faculty Representative is January 1, 2008.
• If you are selected as one of SPU’s Truman Scholarship nominees, your application must be received by the Truman Scholarship Foundation by February 4, 2008.
• Successful applicants are invited to interviews during the spring, first at the state and then the national level. The Center’s Graduate Fellowship Committee aids in preparation for these interviews.
• SPU Truman Faculty Representative: Professor John G. West, Jr., jwest@spu.edu

Please note:

It is very important to refer to the web site listed below for specific and complete information regarding this scholarship.

Web site: http://www.truman.gov