Udall Undergraduate Scholarship
Apply - Advice and Guidance
Here you will find advice from the Udall Foundation, Udall faculty representatives,
and our alumni that will help you prepare an effective application for the Udall
Scholarship.
Advice from the Udall Foundation
Work closely with your Udall faculty representative
Ask them for feedback on your short essay answers and essay.
Articulate a career "path" or field
Even if you don't know exactly what you want to do, be clear about what issues you
want to work on and how you're preparing yourself to have an impact. Clearly explain
how you plan to use your education and experiences to affect environmental issues,
or benefit your tribe or Indian country.
Show your commitment
Use the short essays to highlight your community service, activities, internships
and research in support of environmental causes or Native issues.
Demonstrate how you go about problem-solving or consensus-building
Choose examples that show you working with others, mediating conflicts, or identifying
solutions to problems.
Illustrate your leadership potential
The readers will look for students who can motivate others, bring people together,
take initiative, and implement practical solutions.
Request your transcripts well in advance
Remember that you'll also need to submit transcripts from any colleges or universities
that you attended before your current school (except for courses taken during high
school).
Briefly identify and explain any activities or honors that readers are unlikely
to understand
Answer Question #8 (additional personal information)
Write about an interest, activity, research project, or anything else that hasn't
been expanded upon elsewhere in the application. Making a plea for the scholarship
based on financial need is a wasted opportunity.
Alert the Foundation to any unusual circumstances or hardship
Examples include situations that may have affected your academic performance or
limited your activities.
Advice from Alumni
As far as the application goes, get an early start on it, make sure your passion
is evident in your writing, and ask numerous people to edit it for you. Also, don't
settle for just two drafts. Go over your writing with an editor until you can't
even stand it anymore!!
Use Word to type out your answers to essay questions (even when adding a little more)
because if you type your essays in the submission boxes first, the application system
will time out and make you start over!
Make the application tell a story. Track your passion in each of your essays; have
everything you write support and prove just how much you care about your specific
field.
Don't be afraid to revise your essays 3, 5, or 3,500 times.
Make sure you're telling a concise story about what you’re currently doing and how
it connects to what you want to do in the future! You can be doing the most amazing
things in the world, but if you don't know how to talk about them your chances of
getting the Udall are slim. Practice articulating your story!
Just be yourself and represent your true passions; there is no stronger version of
you than that.
Think strategically. Let each part of the application tell a different chapter in
the same narrative, each section adding a complementary, yet novel piece to your
"argument" for the scholarship.
Even when you feel like throwing the application out the window because it's so long
and you've gone through so many drafts, and your professor tells you that you're
almost certainly not going to get the scholarship because you're from California
so the odds are against you, don't do it! Finish the application, and at the very,
very, least it will be a good learning exercise in self-identity and self-expression.
Don't try to fit into what you think a "perfect" applicant is; dig into what makes
you so passionate for what you do, and let your originality and individuality shine.
Be genuine and candid: the Udall Foundation is looking for real change makers who
are passionate, authentic, and creative.
Show that you've thought about your future, especially by thinking of a real job
that a) currently exists and b) that you can see yourself doing. It was really exciting
to dig deeper into specific prison horticultural programs, and gave the rest of
my application direction. Then be okay with whatever plan you write about changing!
Application Tips from a Udall faculty representative: David Schug, University
of Illinois
The Udall Foundation is looking for students who will be change agents in their
fields. Here are some tips to consider when writing your essays and filling out
the application:
-
Make sure to give each essay question its full weight (especially "What else would
you like us to know?").
- Your interest in the environment or Native American affairs has to be more than
a cursory interest; the reviewers are looking for students who are going to make
a career (the next 30 to 40 years) in their field of study.
- Do not mix your academic focus. You have to be committed to the environment, tribal
policy, or tribal health care.
- Focus on your leadership role within groups and organizations. How did you make
an impact, how did you create consensus within a group, and how is the organization
or group different because of your actions?
- Make sure to connect your career plans to your coursework.
- Demonstrate that you have taken some actions regarding the issues raised in the
essays.
- Don’t just summarize the Udall speech, essay, or book that you’ve chosen. Try to
demonstrate how it has influenced your thinking about the issues you’re passionate
about. Read more than just one piece so that you are aware of what Udall stood for
as a whole.
- Previous research experience is not required, but you need to demonstrate that you
have an actionable plan for your project(s).
- If possible, demonstrate that you can see both sides of the issues at the center
of your studies.
- Your commitment to community and public service is more important than your academic
history.