GMS: PREPARING YOUR APPLICATION GATES MILLENNIUM SCHOLARS PROGRAM

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GATES MILLENNIUM SCHOLARS PROGRAM

The Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) program, established in 1999, is a 1.6 billion dollar initiative funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The goal of GMS is to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for 20,000 outstanding students with significant financial need to reach their full potential!

T H E G AT E S M I L L E N N I U M S C H O L A R S P R O G R A M A N D T H E H I S PA N I C S C H O L A R S H I P F U N D

P R E S E N T E D BY T H E G AT E S M I L L E N N I U M S C H O L A R S PR O G RA M A N D T H E H I S PA N I C S C H O L A R S H I P F U N D

GMS Program Structure

• UNCF-the United Negro College Fund is the administrator of the GMS initiative and has partnered with the following organizations:

• Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund

• American Indian Graduate Center Scholars

• Hispanic Scholarship Fund

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/


GMS PROGRAM OVERVIEW

• Selects 1,000 candidates a year• Funds unmet need determined by

the financial aid award letter provided by the institution

• Provides opportunity for college education in any discipline or field for undergraduates

• Provides graduate degree funding for continuing Scholars in: mathematics, computer science, engineering, education or library science, and public health

• Renews annually based on satisfactory academic progress, full-time enrollment and submission of all required documents

• 1,000=350 AA,

350 HA, 150 API,

150 AI

Unmet need:

Cost of

Attendance

---- Financial

Need---- Family

Contribution

= Unmet Need

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

There are three objectives

of the GMS Leadership

Development Program:

1. Enhance Scholar

Development

2. Provide academic

support services

3. Facilitate access to

academic and career

resources

The GMS Leadership Development Program provides opportunities for Scholars to achieve academic success and assume significant roles as leaders in their discipline, professions, and global community


Not just a Scholarship!


GMS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific American or Hispanic American

• Citizen/permanent residents of the United States• Cumulative GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (unweighted) at the time of

application• Matriculation for the first time at an accredited college or university as

full-time, degree-seeking freshmen in the fall of 2013, with the exception of students jointly enrolled in high school and college (GED recipients are also eligible)

• Significant demonstrated financial need as defined by the Federal Pell Grant eligibility criteria

• Demonstrated leadership commitment through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities that reflect leadership abilities


GMS APPLICATION

Opens: Mid-August

Closes: Mid-January• Applicants must plan

to enroll in a U.S. accredited college or university the following academic year


STEPS TO COMPLETING APPLICATION

Step 1: Familiarize yourself with the entire application

Step 2: Understand the evaluation criteria

Step 3: Select the appropriate nominator and recommender

Step 4: Tell your story

Step 5: Create a timeline to ensure your application is complete before the deadline


Nominee Form

Student application:Student completes comprehensive Nominee Personal Information Form

Nominator Form

Evaluation of the student’s academic record:Educator/Guidance Counselor, teacher or any educator who is familiar with the student’s academic background completes the Nominator Form

Recommender Form

Evaluation of the student’s community service and leadership activities:Community member or individual who is aware of the student’s community service and leadership activities completes the Recommender Form

STEP 1:

FAMILIARIZE YOURSELF WITH THE ENTIRE APPLICATION PROCESS

All three forms

must be completed by

the January

2014 deadline


NOMINEE FORM

Education• Name of school, class rank,

cumulative GPA, graduation

dateLeadership• Name of Organization• Dates involved• Title (i.e. President/secretary)• Description of activities (what did

you do?)Honors and Awards• Name of award• Date received• Description of award

Community Service / unpaid employment• Name of organization• Description of activities• Total number of hours

Paid employment

• Name of organization

• Description of activities

• Total number of hours

Academic Record• List the classes and grades

received for 11th and 12th grade

Financial Aid info

• Gross Annual Income

• Family Size

• Number of family members in

collegeEssays• Total of 8 essays!


STEP 2:

UNDERSTAND THE EVALUATION CRITERIA

• Applications are evaluated based on academic rigor, community service and leadership activities

• Evaluation of student’s academic record should reflect the rigor of his/her commitment to academics and determination to succeed academically

• Evaluation of the community service

and leadership should provide insight

to the student’s service to community

and his/her leadership potential

exhibited through extracurricular

activities


DEFINING LEADERSHIP

The purpose of the GMS application is to identify leaders in the community.

We want to read how YOU define leadership in your community!

Re-thinking usual Leadership roles:

Dance groupsSupporting parents with household bills and/or translating on behalf of your parents

Participated in quinceañeras

Watching over siblings or younger family members

Tutoring classmates after school

Church youth groups / Catechism


• Nominator must be an educator (i.e. Teacher, Counselor, Principal, etc.)

• Recommender must be familiar with the student’s community service and leadership activities (i.e. Club sponsor, church leader, Teacher, College Counselor)

• Neither the nominator nor recommender can be a relative of the student

• Provide your nominator and recommender with a resume or brag sheet

• Select someone who knows

you best and will be able to

provide a positive

recommendation

STEP 3:

SELECTING THE APPROPRIATE NOMINATOR AND RECOMMENDER


“Who am I? How do I talk about all of

the leadership activities I have participated in?

Tips on getting you started on your personal statement:• Tell your story and bring your experiences to life, the more details you provide, the better!

• We want to know all about your leadership activities and how you have grown over the years• Ask supporters to assist you in identifying how far you have come and

achieved during the course of your high school career• Ask supporters to review your essays for feedback (content and grammar!)• Provide your nominator and recommender with a resume

STEP 4:

TELL YOUR STORY


• Complete sections of the application weekly

• Contact your recommender and nominator to ensure they have submitted their forms to complete the application prior to the deadline

• Follow-up periodically to ensure they are progressing to complete their form prior to the deadline

• Submit BEFORE the deadline

Tips:

• Take each essay one at a time, one essay per week

• Give your

recommender and nominator enough time to submit their documents (at least 2 weeks)

STEP 5:

CREATE A TIMELINE TO ENSURE YOUR APPLICATION IS COMPLETE BEFORE THE DEADLINE


GMS APPLICATION – TOP MISTAKES

1. Not reading or following

instructions

2. Not addressing essay

question

3. Improper grammar & spelling

4. Entering wrong or forgetting

e-mail address

5. Having different names in

account and documents

6. Not double-checking answers

before submitting

7. Not completing all steps in

the application

8. Not submitting documents

on time

9. Not following up with

recommenders/nominators

10. CHECK YOUR EMAIL!

To Do List


NEXT STEPS…

After this presentation:

• Visit www.gmsp.org and begin the online scholarship application

• Begin working on your Application Essay Questions (8 total)

• Identify who your Nominator and Recommender will be

• Make a timeline and add important dates to your Student Planner

• Contact your College Counselor or our GMS Office if you have any questions

AFTER THIS WORKSHOP…

• Visit our GMS Imagine website

to begin preparing to become

a GMS Scholar! www.imagine.gmsp.org


QUESTIONS

Presented by:

WWW.GMSP.ORG

Documents

GMS: PREPARING YOUR APPLICATION GATES MILLENNIUM SCHOLARS PROGRAM