Awards Requiring UNC Endorsement

*Note* The endorsement deadlines for 2024-2025 have not yet been set. However, you can use the dates below from last year’s cycle to get an approximate sense of when the endorsement deadlines will likely be.
Please notify the Office of Distinguished Scholarships (ods@unc.edu) if you wish to apply for one or more of these awards. Note that some of the dates (endorsement deadlines in particular) may change or be updated. We encourage you to check this page regularly and reach out to our office!

Beinecke Scholarship

Open to third-year students

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, February 23, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Friday, March 29, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)

The Beinecke Scholarship provides $34,000 to support graduate education. Students receive an initial $4,000 during their senior year and the remaining $30,000 is distributed within a two- to five-year period while the student completes graduate studies. Beinecke Scholars are considered for superior strength of character, intellectual ability, and sense of purpose. Applicants must be a college junior pursuing a bachelor’s degree and plan to pursue graduate studies in the arts, humanities or social sciences. Eligibility for financial need is strongly considered. Applicants must be endorsed by UNC before applying.

Churchill Scholarship

Open to fourth-year students and alumni from the previous academic year

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Monday, October 2, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Wednesday, November 1, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)

The Churchill Scholarships are awarded for one year of study at Churchill College, Cambridge, in the fields of mathematics, biology, biochemistry, physical anthropology, computer speech and language processing, computer science, physics, chemistry or mathematical statistics. The scholarship is research oriented. The award covers all fees and tuition and provides costs for international travel and a maintenance allowance. Applicants must be endorsed by UNC before applying. 

Goldwater Scholarship

Open to second- and third-year students

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Tuesday, November 21, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Friday, January 26, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)

The Goldwater Scholarship provides up to $7,000 per year for educational expenses to 300 third and fourth year students majoring in mathematics or sciences. The award encourages outstanding students to pursue careers and advanced degrees in these fields. Third year students awarded the scholarship can expect to receive two years of support; fourth year students will receive one year of support. Students must be nominated by UNC faculty before applying for endorsement.

James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program

Open to fourth-year students and alumni from the previous academic year

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Tuesday, November 21, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Monday, January 15, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)

The James C. Gaither Junior Fellows Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace offers one-year fellowships to undergraduates who are graduating or those who have graduated during the past academic year and have not begun graduate studies unless it is a joint bachelors/master’s degree program. Fellows are hired to work at the Carnegie Endowment on a full-time basis and work as research assistants to the Endowment’s senior associates. Assignments may vary each year. Recent projects and topical areas include democracy, nuclear policy, energy and climate, Middle East studies, Asian studies, Economics, and Russian studies. Applicants must be endorsed by UNC before applying.

Marshall Scholarships

Open to fourth-year students and recent alumni

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, August 11, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Tuesday, September 26, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)

British Marshall Scholarships provide 40 Americans the opportunity to study for two to three years in the United Kingdom. Students are selected on the basis of academic distinction and a strong potential to make a significant contribution to their future society. Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.700 and must be endorsed by UNC before applying.

McCall MacBain Scholarship

Open to fourth-year students and alumni

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, August 11, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Wednesday, September 27, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)

Michel David-Weill Scholarship

Open to fourth-year students

  • Applicants who wish to be nominated need to apply to a Science Po master’s program no later than October 29, 2023
  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, October 13, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Wednesday, November 15, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)

The Michel David-Weill Scholarship covers the cost of tuition and living expenses during a two-year master’s program at Sciences Po, an international research university which specializes in the social sciences and offers multidisciplinary programs taught in English and French. The scholarship is awarded each year to one American student who exemplifies the core values embodied by Michel David-Weill: academic excellence, leadership, multiculturalism, tolerance and high achievement.

Mitchell Scholarship

As of March 2024 the Mitchell Scholarship has “paused” and there will be no scholarship competition for the 2024-2025 cycle. ODS will update the website if the scholarship reopens or more information becomes available.

Rhodes Scholarships

Open to fourth-year students and recent alumni

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, August 11, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Wednesday, October 4, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Other competitions have final deadlines that may be much earlier than the US competition; check with ODS regarding endorsement for non-US competitions

The Rhodes is one of the most prestigious scholarships in the world, and 32 Americans are among the 80+ Scholars-elect from across the world selected to study at University of Oxford for two years. Scholars can pursue a course of study of their own choosing while working toward a master’s degree or a second bachelor’s degree. Applicants are selected on the basis of intellectual distinction, leadership, and service. Applicants must be endorsed by UNC before applying.

Truman Scholarship 

Open to third-year students

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, December 1, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Tuesday, February 6, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)

Third year students planning careers in public service are encouraged to apply for the Truman Scholarship. Scholars selected as third year students are eligible to receive $3,000 for their senior year of undergraduate education and a total of $27,000 for graduate studies. Applicants must have a strong academic and service record and plan to pursue a graduate program geared toward public service. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and must be endorsed by UNC.

Udall Scholarship

Open to second- and third-year students

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, February 2, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Friday, March 6, 2024 (5:00 pm ET)

This scholarship provides up to $5,000 (or the cost of tuition, fees, books, room and board, whichever is less) to sophomores and juniors who have demonstrated a strong academic record and outstanding potential for leadership. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of merit to two groups of students: those who study the environment or related fields, and those with native American or native Alaskan backgrounds who study health care or tribal public policy. Applicants must be endorsed by UNC before applying.

Yenching Academy

Open to fourth-year students and alumni

  • Endorsement Application Deadline: Friday, November 3, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)
  • Final Application Deadline: Sunday, December 10, 2023 (5:00 pm ET)

The Yenching Academy of Peking University builds bridges between China and the rest of the world through an interdisciplinary master’s program in China Studies for outstanding graduates from all over the globe. This initiative brings together young people who show promise to lead and innovate in their fields in an intensive learning environment where they can explore China and its role in the world – past, present, and future. The Academy aims to thereby shape a new generation of global citizens with a nuanced understanding of China and its role in the world. The Yenching Academy provides a generous postgraduate scholarship that covers tuition fees, a travel stipend for one round-trip journey between each Scholar’s base city and Beijing, accommodations, and living costs on Peking University’s campus.