Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships & Awards (OMSFA)

Start here - what to expect

Scholarship advising areas we can help with:

• Goal setting & scholarship connections. Scholarships we specialize in (though we can support you to apply for anything)
• Workshops & information sessions
• Brainstorming & feedback on application drafts
• Building your curriculum vitae (CV)
• Getting strong recommendation letters

Appointment length & format

• Advising appointments are usually 30-45 minutes long.
• We will ask a lot of questions about your interests, activities, studies, goals, etc. Don't worry, we don't expect you to have all the answers!
• Ask us questions! After you do some preliminary research, bring us any questions you have about scholarships, applications, letters of recommendation, etc.
• While we may be able to suggest opportunities for you to consider, but we won't be able to give you a perfect list. Plan to set aside some time to do more searching to curate a list for yourself.

For feedback on drafts or brainstorming

• Please email your drafts the day before, as noted when you scheduled your appointment.
• There is no need to wait to share final drafts for feedback. We are happy to offer support all along the way, from the brainstorming phase to later drafts.
• Plan to bring the application prompts and all your ideas to the meeting.

More about our advising approach

• We are here to support you and we view the scholarship application process as a learning opportunity.
• We respect you and your experiences. Advising discussions can sometimes touch on sensitive topics (for example financial, legal, identity or other personal information). We will approach these conversations with care and emphasis on supporting you in reaching your goals.
• Applying for scholarships requires resilience and persistence! We will challenge you to approach applications as learning opportunities, rather than focusing only on the outcome.
• Remember, you won't get selected for everything you apply for - and you won't get selected for anything you don't apply for. 

Prepare for and book your appointment with a scholarship advisor

To get the most out of your meeting with us, please take a few first steps:

STEP 1: If you are just getting started with searching for scholarships, please first

• explore our Search & Apply resources or
• watch this short "how and where to search for scholarships" video.

STEP 2: Try some scholarship searching to identify specific scholarships you would like to pursue.

• Browse through these scholarship guides and expand your search using additional search tools.

STEP 3: Schedule an appointment to talk with an advisor.

• Please schedule one appointment as a first step. During your appointment, please discuss with your advisor if additional appointments might be helpful.
• For students/alumni working on specific applications over a significant time period, multiple meetings may be needed, and your advisor can talk with you about frequency.
• We are a small advising team, so we may limit appointments as necessary to equitably serve our student and alumni community.

STEP 4: For feedback on drafts:

• Please share drafts with us at least the day before your meeting so we can prepare robust feedback, generate questions and ideas. Email drafts to the adviser you are meeting with:
  • Chetana
  • Robin
  • Simon
• If you can't send drafts in advance, that's ok, you can share in the meeting, but please expect our feedback to be less thorough.

Need help with scheduling an appointment?

1. Click on the "i" icon to see important notes for each type of appointment.
2. Select the type of appointment that best fits your interests. General appointments get scheduled with any advisor. Or select an appointment with a specific person if relevant.
3. Select the date/time that fits for you.
4. Please fill out the information form as thoroughly as possible to help us best support you.
5. When ready, click "Book" to submit. You will get reminder emails and, if needed, we will send Zoom links in advance of your meeting time.