The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program was established by the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

in 1986 in honor of former

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and 1964 presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. Its goal is to provide a continuing source of highly qualified

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s, and

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

s by awarding scholarships to college students who are US citizens or permanent residents and intend to pursue careers in these fields. The scholarship—the most prestigious national undergraduate scholarship in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics—is awarded annually to about 300 college sophomores and juniors. The scholarship is awarded based on merit, and the actual amount given is based on financial need, up to a maximum of $7,500 per academic year. In addition, since at least 2006, about 150 exceptional applicants not awarded the Scholarship have been recognized with official Honorable Mentions. Colleges and universities are allowed to nominate only four of their undergraduate students per year to receive the final scholarship, making it a premier award in the US conferred upon undergraduates studying the sciences. In awarding scholarships, the Foundation considers the field of study, career objectives, commitment, and potential for a significant professional contribution. This is judged by letters of reference, student essays, and prior research experience. The number of scholarships per region depends on the number and qualifications of the nominees for that region. The regions are defined as each of the 50

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, the

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, and, considered as a single entity,

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, the

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, and the

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Goldwater scholars by university statistics

The table below represents the top 20 universities based upon the number of Goldwater Scholars they have produced as of March 22, 2006.

Change in number of scholarships awarded, 2019

In 2019, the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation partnered with the Department of Defense National Defense Education Programs (NDEP) to dramatically increase the number of scholarships offered from the historical average of 15-20% of nominees at the national level to over 40%. This awarded a Goldwater scholarship to all students who would have received an Honorable Mention in previous years.

Changes implemented in 2020

* Nomination materials will now be reviewed by discipline instead of state of residence. * Four-year schools that present a transfer student as a nominee can also nominate an additional (5th) student. * Institutions cannot reduce a student's institutionally-controlled scholarship funding after a student receives the Goldwater award. * The foundation will no longer reduce a student’s Goldwater award if the student receives additional scholarship funding during the same year.

References

External links

Goldwater Scholarship
at ACT.org
Goldwater Scholarship
at scholarsapply.org {{Barry Goldwater Awards established in 1986 Scholarships in the United States Barry Goldwater 1986 establishments in the United States