Student Academic Grants & Awards

In these pages we will introduce you to a myriad of opportunities, and provide a range of resources to help you decide where you are going and how to get there. Here you'll find information on a variety of competitive grants and scholarships, links to scholarship foundation home pages, and plenty of practical advice from programs and past applicants to help you put together an outstanding application.

Whatever your goals may be, a scholarship is a small part of the journey you are taking through Willamette, and beyond.

How can we help?  Here at SAGA we can work with you to:

•  identify your career goals
•  your values and interests
•  improve your writing and interviewing skills
•  move toward planning for graduate school and life after graduation

What can we offer you?

•  Help identifying which program might be a good 'fit' for you
•  Essay feedback and editing
•  Practice interviews for scholarships or graduate and professional school
•  Feedback from the selection committees and foundation representatives on your application

National scholarships and grants can provide financial and professional support for research, completion of your undergraduate education, and funding for graduate and international study and research. Unlike financial aid, scholarships such as the Truman, Rhodes, or Udall are merit-based; need is not a factor. Moreover, many of these scholarships will be used for study, research, and travel following graduation, and so will not affect your financial aid at Willamette. (For information about financial aid at Willamette, contact the Office of Financial Aid.)

Willamette also offers a range of internal programs that can help you carry out independent research or creative work during the summers.  An internal grant can help you pursue intensive work related to your major, develop interests that may lead to other academic or professional training and experience, and pursue passions in community outreach.  Having this experience under your belt can make you a more competitive and more confident applicant for postgraduate fellowships and service programs, graduate school, and employment.

Willamette students have a strong record achievement in national scholarships competitions-check out the list of recipients and see what your peers have been awarded.  In the last ten years Willamette students have been awarded 124 national scholarships (and those are just the ones we know about-alums have garnered many more).

There are numerous scholarships offered for specific groups like students of color, LGBT students, women, and first generation students.  We can help you locate and apply for programs with very specific requirements, or decide which more generally-defined programs are best for you.

If the program for which you want to apply requires institutional nominations, contact the SAGA office for campus deadlines and examine the support materials for these programs on the SAGA website; but feel free to come in for advice and support for any application. 

There are a range of other places to find funding opportunities and professional or volunteer experiences through Willamette. The Office of Career Services has information about volunteering and internships for during and after college. The Office of Community Service Learning can help you find satisfying avenues for community service and offers an extremely popular alternative spring break program. Willamette's Office of Financial Aid offers several internal scholarships that can help you pursue your academic goals while you are a student here.  The Lilly Project at Willamette offers grants and study opportunities that can help you find your vocation.