Project Duration
August 2023 – December 2028
Application Deadlines
Applications are not being accepted at this time. Please check for updated information next semester.
Program Overview
The School of Life Sciences is implementing a new program titled “Strengthening the Skill and Will to Succeed in STEM”. This program will provide up to four years of scholarship support to a total of 45 academically talented undergraduate biology majors who are Pell-eligible with documented unmet financial need. A primary goal is to diversify and increase the number of students entering STEM professions. In addition to scholarship support, a number of curricular and co-curricular enhancements will be put into effect to increase achievement and career readiness of program participants.
To be eligible for scholarship support through this program, students must:
- have a STEM GPA ≥ 3.4 for high school courses or a STEM GPA ≥ 3.0 for 51ԹϺ courses
- be enrolled full time (12 to 15 credits) in a biology undergraduate degree program at 51ԹϺ
- have completed the FAFSA and have documented unmet financial need and Pell Grant eligibility based on the FAFSA
- commit to participating in program activities (i.e. monthly workshops, meetings with mentor, meetings with career seminar speakers)
- be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, U.S. national, or admitted refugee
- complete the application form
The application form includes a few items requesting personal information (i.e. name, address) and three open response questions. The open response questions are meant to provide insight into the interests and perspectives of program applicants.Your recent transcripts (required) and standardized test results (optional) will also be requested through the application form.
Note: In order to obtain your NSHE number, students should complete the 51ԹϺ Admissions application at least 48 hours prior to completing the Succeed in STEM Scholarship application.
Open Response Question Prompts
Your original, human-generated writing is required. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) programs like ChatGPT or similar programs is prohibited. It is also prohibited to use the work of others as your own. This means you cannot copy/paste or retype text from a website or other sources. Again, we want to learn more about you and your experiences.
There is a 2,000 character limit for each of the following open response questions:
- Tell us about yourself. Describe your journey to college, and describe four characteristics that distinguish who you are as a person.
- Why have you selected biology as your major? What are your specific areas of interest in biology?
- Besides positions focused on direct patient care (ex: doctor, nurse, dentist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, pharmacist, optometrist, etc.), describe three other careers/professions related to biology or biotechnology that you’d be interested in pursuing once you graduate with a biology degree.
Applicants are encouraged to compose their responses in a word processing program (i.e. Word, Pages) and then transfer them into the application form.
In addition to receiving financial support, the academic and professional success of program participants will be enhanced through
- monthly meetings with faculty mentors
- monthly “dinner and professional development” group meetings
- group meetings with STEM career seminar speakers
- participation in workshops presented by the Office of Undergraduate Research
- participation in 51ԹϺ’s Career Fair
- preparing applications for research and internship opportunities
- financial support for participation in research and internship opportunities
Important dates and deadlines
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| August 1, 2023 | 51ԹϺ application opens |
| October 1, 2023 | FAFSA opens |
| November 1, 2023 | 51ԹϺ Financial Aid and Scholarships Priority Deadline |
Contact
Please contact the leadership team at succeedinSTEM@unlv.edu with any questions.
Leadership Team
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DUE 2221635. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.