Funding and Scholarships for the Minor in Professional Writing
Chen Ya and Siuha Anita Liu Award for Professional Writing for STEM majors
Each year, this $4500 award supports one student who minors in professional writing and who majors in a STEM (science, technology, engineering or mathematics) field. To be eligible, you need to
- declare the Minor,
- by the end of the term you apply, have completed 3 of the 5 required courses toward the Minor (required course options: 2367 course, Elective A, Elective B, English 4150).
- Plan to complete capstone internship fall or spring the following academic year.
The Dept. of English Scholarships page has more details on eligibility and how to apply.
Funding to Offset Unpaid/Minimally Paid Internships
A few internships in the Minor in Professional Writing are paid. For the majority that are unpaid, the university has a few other sources of funding you can apply for to support yourself for the semester. Whether your internship is paid or unpaid, you will receive three hours of academic credit for a successful internship and 4189 course completion.
Funding from Career Success
Career Success in the College of Arts and Sciences offers the Career Accelerator Fund for Arts and Sciences students for Summer semester internships. Please check their website for up-to-date information. This fund supports unpaid or minimally paid internships, on a need basis. The application is in-depth, but the funding amount is up to $5,000, depending on the internship needs.
See both the Primary Fund and the OSEP Career Accelerator Fund for Visual and Performing Arts, depending on your eligibility.
You will need to complete several other steps to be eligible to apply for this fund, including meeting with a career coach and getting a letter of support from your internship supervisor or Yanar Hashlamon to prove your placement in your internship, so plan ahead.
Funding from Dept. of English
The Department of English and Minor in Professional Writing solicit applications for need-based grants that will offer funding to support interns in unpaid Minor in Professional Writing capstone internships. The total amount of each award is $1428 for Fall and Spring internships, equivalent to approximately $12.75/hour.
The goal of this award is to support an MPW student intern in committing fully to the writing internship instead of overcommitting to the internship alongside paid work as well as a full courseload.
Details about Funding from Dept. of English
Minor in Professional Writing students who have been approved for a capstone internship (that is, who have gone through the portfolio review process, are eligible. The internship must be an unpaid experience, and students may not have another source of funding secured for an unpaid internship.
A statement (approximately 350-500 words) on your financial situation and the difference receiving this funding will make to your financial, work, and academic plans for the semester in question. Take the time to spell out how the semester would look without the funding, and then describe what difference the funding will make.
Consider the following questions. You don't have to answer them all--just the ones that are relevant to you. Note that none of these items is specifically required--These are just some ideas for compelling cases one might make for how funding might improve their financial, work, or academic picture this semester or in the future.
- Will receiving this money allow you to quit a part-time job or scale back on hours and focus more thoroughly on coursework or your internship? Be specific about what it will allow for you.
- How will you be able to better focus on your internship if the grant lets you scale back in another commitment?
- Will it allow you to consider working more hours (up to 12/week) at the internship, if the company could use the assistance?
- Will receiving this grant make a difference to post-graduation plans and create more opportunities to secure a paid position? If so, how, specifically?
The more specific this statement about your financial and workload reality, the better. Include your name, the semester you want funding, and the place you are interning, if you are already placed.
Your most up-to-date resume capturing your work history. This may be different from your writing-based resume you completed to apply for the capstone internship. Your goal here is to showcase your employment history, since you will be speaking to what you might scale back if you get the grant.
1 writing sample, 500 words or less (though it may extend up to 800 words), that showcases your skills in producing clear, clean copy, with the appropriate tone and style suited to the audience and context.
Selection criteria will be based on financial need and how much the grant helped you, which we'll determine by looking at two things:
- FAFSA/Student Financial Aid information
- Your personal statement
The recipient of the award agrees to the following:
- The recipient will sign a contract agreeing to the employment terms proposed in the personal statement, and agreeing that they have obtained no other source of funding for this internship.
- The recipient will take part in entrance and exit interviews (online surveys distributed via Qualrics) at the beginning and end of the internship.
- If requested by the program and if allowed by the worksite, the recipient will submit a full portfolio of work produced during the internship.
- If requested by the program, the recipient will interview with program staff who will produce a feature article on the student’s accomplishments during the internship.