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Awards and Scholarships

The English Department annually awards Continuing Student Scholarships to English majors who usually have at least one year of full-time study remaining for the B. A. degree, as well as a thesis prize to summa cum laude degree candidates and a poetry prize. Students with declared English majors (formally declared by scholarship application deadline) must have completed 30, but normally not more than 75, semester credits by September 1 of the scholarship year. To receive your Department of English award, you must register as a declared English major in the College of Liberal Arts as a full-time student and complete at least 30 credits in the 2012-2013 school year (at least 13 each semester), unless otherwise noted. Students who anticipate graduating "early" in December at the end of Fall semester may apply for a one-semester scholarship (half the annual dollar amount) and include an added statement briefly explaining how they will complete major and degree requirements during Fall semester, again as a full-time student.

Scholarships offered by the Department of English are intended for students who will receive their Bachelor of Arts degrees in English from the UM-Twin Cities College of Liberal Arts(CLA); those who plan to complete their undergraduate degrees in a different college (e.g., the Carlson School of Management, the Institute of Technology, etc.) are not eligible for these awards.

Scholarships Open to All English Majors

Read the instructions and complete the application form and checklist, available through CLA to be considered for CLA Continuing Student Scholarships, including these English awards. You will be considered for any scholarships for which you are eligible and for which you provide the necessary information. You are invited to use the application cover sheet to specify those scholarships you think most appropriate. Only complete applications will be considered. Letters of recommendation from the Department of English faculty are encouraged for your application to be most competitive.

The faculty selection committee requires a writing sample from each applicant. Therefore, by February 15, 2013 the English Department requires that you email to englmaj@umn.edu a formal course paper that the committee will review as part of your application for any of the English Department scholarships. Applicants for the Phelan Scholarship must email an additional writing sample, specifically a creative writing manuscript as stated in the Phelan description.

All supplemental materials including the graded formal paper (above) must be emailed to englmaj@umn.edu, Attn: Rachel Drake no later than 4 pm, February 15, 2013. Late submissions will not be accepted.

Applications for the CLA and English Major Continuing Student Scholarships must be received (online, in person, or U.S. mail postmark) no later than February 15, 2013 by the CLA Office of Undergraduate Programs, 113 Johnston Hall, 101 Pleasant Street SE, MPLS, MN 55455.

Scholarship awards will be made for the academic year. Half the amount of the total award will be paid in each semester of the academic year. If you anticipate graduating in Fall semester of the award year, and believe you are competitive, you may choose to apply. If selected, you would receive scholarship funds for Fall semester only, again as full-time student.

The CLA Selmer Birkelo Scholarship requires departmental nomination. Complete the CLA Continuing Student Application to be considered for the Birkelo Scholarship English Department nomination.

Beverly Atkinson Scholarship for Outstanding Non-Traditional English Majors

This scholarship of approximately $1,000 is awarded to non-traditional English majors, registered for 15 credits per semester, with a GPA in the 3.0-3.5 range; other full-time undergraduate non-traditional English majors may be considered. Students must be eligible for financial aid according to the standards of the University's Office of Student Financial Aid. Complete and file your FAFSA by the annual deadline.

Examples of non-traditional students include, but are not limited to, displaced homemakers (regardless of gender), students with disabilities, individuals starting their college careers after age 23, students with family responsibilities, individuals experiencing mid-career changes, etc. The purpose of this award is to congratulate and encourage exceptional CLA English major students who have overcome remarkable odds by enrolling and successfully pursuing their college degrees.

To be considered, students also must email the Department of English a statement of two or three sentences explaining the extraordinary demands in their lives that have taken time away from their academic studies. Send statements to Rachel Drake, englmaj@umn.edu, and statements must be received no later than 4 pm, February 15, 2013.

Sharon Borine Scholarship

This scholarship of approximately $800 for each of three students is awarded to continuing students enrolled as University of Minnesota English majors. Sharon Borine is an alumna of the University and was an English major. She and her family have made this award possible through their generosity.

Jessie M. Comstock Scholarship

This scholarship of approximately $2,000 is awarded to a continuing major student enrolled as a University of Minnesota English major. Students must be eligible for financial aid according to the standards of the University's Office of Student Financial Aid. Complete and file your FAFSA at your earliest convenience but no later than the annual deadline.

Joan C. Forester Scholarship

Undergraduate students selected to receive this scholarship will be among the strongest students majoring in English.

Donald V. Hawkins Scholarship

Donald V. Hawkins Scholarships provide a stipend of approximately $2,000 for juniors or seniors with at least a 3.3 grade point average in their English major courses. Junior year recipients may apply for the scholarship in their senior year as well. Donald V. Hawkins Scholarships are made possible by an endowment established in honor of Donald V. Hawkins' education and because of his love for the University of Minnesota. The endowment is intended to foster and support student and faculty excellence in undergraduate education in English and Communication Studies.

To be considered, students also must email to the Department of English an essay written for one of their 3000-level English literature classes and two letters of recommendation written by English faculty. Faculty may email letters to englmaj@umn.edu, Attn: Rachel Drake.

  • Recipients will be offered the opportunity to work on the Department of English's undergraduate journal, do research or an internship with a faculty mentor, or work on a project with one of the department's committees, depending on their interests.
  • Typical Hawkins Scholars emphasize communication and the arts by taking courses in the Departments of English, Communication Studies, Theatre, Art History, Journalism, and Cultural Studies.

Moses Marston Scholarship

Moses Marston Memorial Scholarships provide approximately $1,000 of support for English majors who demonstrate outstanding achievement in literary studies. Moses Marston held the Professorship of English Language and Literature from 1874 (five years after the University began instruction) until his death in 1883 (the Department of English was organized in 1885).

Robert Etheridge Moore Scholarship

Robert E. Moore Scholarships provide a stipend of approximately $1,000 for English majors who have demonstrated a high potential for graduate studies in literary scholarship. We anticipate giving two awards each year: one to a junior who will receive the same award for the senior year pending continuing high academic achievement; and a second award to a senior who was a Moore Scholar in her/his junior year. Established in the 2006-2007 academic year, Robert E. Moore Scholarships are made possible by a gift established by a former student of Professor Moore, whom he described as one of the four best teachers he had in eleven years of higher education. Professor Moore was expert especially in the literature, opera, and visual arts of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and was a lively and influential teacher.

Captain Dewitt Jennings Payne Memorial Scholarship

Captain DeWitt Jennings Payne Memorial Scholarships provide a stipend of approximately $2,000 for the academic year. The scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit, with particular attention paid to depth of study in the major, general breadth of coursework, and interest in advertising and similar pursuits. These scholarships come from a fund established by the late Olivia Payne Stover in memory of her brother, Captain Payne, who was the first American aviator killed in World War I. It is awarded to students "who show special capacity for literary studies."

Anna Augusta Von Helmholtz Phelan Scholarship

This scholarship of approximately $1,250 is awarded annually to a currently enrolled undergraduate student in English or in an individually designed major with an emphasis in creative writing, a student whose creative poetry, fiction, or literary nonfiction show much potential. Eligible applicants are juniors who have a financial need as determined by the Office of Student Financial Aid (includes CLA undergraduates working on individualized degree programs with a creative writing emphasis). Criteria include quality of writing, academic progress, and financial need. This fund was established by former students of Anna Phelan who taught journalism and creative writing.

Complete and file your FAFSA at your earliest convenience but no later than the annual deadline.

To be considered, students also must also email the Department of English a creative writing sample of 6-8 pages of poetry or 15-20 pages of literary fiction or nonfiction. Samples may be sent to englmaj@umn.edu, Attn: Rachel Drake, and must be received no later than 4 pm, Feb. 1, 2013.

Martin B. Ruud Memorial Scholarship

Martin B. Ruud Memorial Scholarships provide a stipend of approximately $3,000. The scholarships are awarded on the basis of outstanding achievement in literary studies and writing, with particular attention paid to depth of study in the major, general breadth of coursework, and clarity of academic purpose. Ruud was a Professor of English in the 1920s, ‘30s, and ‘40s.

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