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Award Information
Description
The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program was established by Congress in 1986 to honor Senator Barry M. Goldwater. The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship offers one- and two-year awards to college juniors and seniors who intend to pursue careers in math, the natural sciences, or engineering. Awards range up to a maximum of $7,500 annually, covering eligible expenses for tuition, fees, books, and room and board.
“Equality, rightly understood, as our founding fathers understood it, leads to liberty and to the emancipation of creative differences… My faith in the future rests squarely on the belief that man, if he doesn’t first destroy himself, will find new answers in the universe, new technologies, new disciplines, which will contribute to a vastly different and better world in the twenty-first century… To my mind the single essential element on which all discoveries will be dependent is human freedom.”
Barry M. Goldwater, United States Senator from Arizona
Eligibility
NOTE: WSU will nominate students following the WSU review process. Students may not apply directly to the Goldwater Foundation.
For detailed eligibility requirements, please see the Goldwater webpage. In general, students should:
- Be a United States citizen, a permanent resident, or, in the case of nominees from American Samoa or the Commonwealth of the Mariana Islands, a United States national.
- Have a college grade-point average of at least “B” (or the equivalent) and be in the upper fourth of his or her class.
- Be a full-time matriculated sophomore or junior during academic year of application (defined as two years or one year of undergraduate study remaining after application year).
- Intend to pursue a research career in mathematics, the natural sciences, or engineering.
At Washington State University, competitive students generally have high grade point averages (typically >3.8) and research experience. The research experience most often includes at least one of the following: some experience outside of WSU, presentations locally and nationally, publications, or other evidence of effective work. Most students will be seeking a Ph.D., but other terminal degrees such as MD/Ph.D., DVM/Ph.D., etc may also qualify if the program is tied to long term research interests.
Deadline
The WSU internal deadline is December 1.
Applying for a Goldwater
Preparation
To prepare to submit an application, students should:
- Carefully review the goals and criteria of the Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program. A copy of questions contained in the Goldwater application is available on their website.
- You will need three letters of recommendation. These will be from individuals who are familiar with your potential as a future leader in science, math, and engineering research. All of your references must be scientists or engineers. Cultivate relationships with faculty and other scientists and engineers so that they can get to know you.
- Plan on a research career in mathematics, the natural sciences, or engineering.
- Engage in undergraduate research at the earliest possible time. (Your first year at WSU is not too early!) To learn more about undergraduate research go to the website for Office of Undergraduate Research. You may also take advantage of their undergraduate research peer mentoring program to discuss the research process with a mentor who is an expert in undergraduate research.
- Seek every opportunity to present or publish your research, or in some way expand your research portfolio. Present every spring at SURCA. Apply for summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs or other competitive summer research programs.
- Maintain a high GPA (see above), particularly in your major.
- Consider enrolling in WRIT 311, Composing and Evaluation Strategies, to prepare for writing a personal statement.
- Attend a WSU Goldwater workshop as well as other workshops provided by the Distinguished Scholarships program.
- Schedule a meeting with the Director of Distinguished Scholarships program.
Application Process: Multiple Steps with Deadlines over Several Months
The Goldwater application process has significantly changed, and we are currently working on a detailed update to this web page. In the meantime, please make a note of the deadlines below and reach out directly to the Distinguished Scholarships Program DistinguishedScholarships@wsu.edu if you are planning on applying for a Goldwater Scholarship this year or in the future.
October 25 (Preferred deadline)
Reach out to the Distinguished Scholarships Program via email, stating your intent to apply and list the three research/STEM individuals you intend to ask for letters of recommendation. Our office will follow up with you regarding your choice of references and will send you the WSU application materials you need to apply.
December 1 (Firm deadline)
Email the following materials to DistinguishedScholarships@wsu.edu with “Goldwater: your name” in the subject line:
- Goldwater application—using the WSU application forms, filled in completely in black font, submitted as a Word document or link
- Research essay
- Official or unofficial transcripts from any college/university, other than WSU, that you attended after graduating high school. (We do not need any transcripts from schools you attended as a Running Start student or from college-in-the-high school classes.)
- Unofficial transcript from WSU.
- Confirm your three letter of recommendation writers have sent their letter on your behalf no later than December 1 to DistinguishedScholarships@wsu.edu. Their subject line should also say Goldwater: Your name.
Past WSU Recipients
Prior Cougar recipients of the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship have included:
| Year | First (& Middle) Name | Last Name | Major(s) | Campus | Honorable Mention? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 View Nicole Diefenbach’s news release | Nicole | Diefenbach | Genetics and Cell Biology | Pullman | |
| 2026 View Taylor Page’s news release | Taylor | Page | Biochemistry | Pullman | |
| 2026 View Katy Touretsky’s news release | Katy | Touretsky | Neuroscience | Pullman | |
| 2025 View Joan Castaneda Gonzalez’s news release | Joan | Castaneda Gonzalez | Biochemistry and Chemistry | Pullman | |
| 2025 View Eva Rickard’s news release | Eva | Rickard | Data Analytics | Pullman | |
| 2024 View Clara Ehinger's news release | Clara | Ehinger | Chemical Engineering | Pullman | |
| 2024 View Julia Jitkov's news release | Julia | Jitkov | Physics/Astronomy and Applied Mathematics | Pullman | |
| 2024 View Brayan Osegueda Velazquez's news release | Brayan | Osegueda Velazquez | Bioengineering | Pullman | |
| 2023 View Jacob Buursma's news release | Jacob | Buursma | Neuroscience/Pre-Med | Pullman | |
| 2023 View Stevie Fawcett's news release | Stevie | Fawcett | Microbiology and Spanish | Pullman | |
| 2022 View Thomas Ballinger's news release | Thomas | Ballinger | Genetics and Cell Biology, Music | ||
| 2022 View John Bussey's news release | John | Bussey | Materials Science Engineering | Pullman | |
| 2022 View Kalli Stephens' news release | Kalli | Stephens | Genetics and Cell Biology | ||
| 2021 View India Dyke's news release | India | Dykes | Bioengineering | ||
| 2021 View Haley Morris' news release | Haley | Morris | Biochemistry | ||
| 2021 View Gunnar Sly's news release | Gunnar | Sly | Chemical Engineering | ||
| 2020 View Sean Thompson's news release | Sean | Thompson | Genetics and Cell Biology | ||
| 2019 View Daniel Goto's news release | Daniel | Goto | Electrical Engineering, Materials Science Engineering | ||
| 2019 View Kristian Gubsch's news release | Kristian | Gubsch | Chemical Engineering | ||
| 2019 View Courtney Klappenbach's news release | Courtney | Klappenbach | Genetics and Cell Biology, Microbiology | ||
| 2018 View Zachary Howard's news release | Zachary | Howard | Genetics & Cell Biology | ||
| 2017 View Amelia Brown's news release | Amelia | Brown | Materials Science & Engineering | ||
| 2017 View Julianna Brutman's news release | Julianna | Brutman | Neuroscience | ||
| 2017 View Keesha Matz's news release | Keesha | Matz | Microbiology | ||
| 2016 View Keesha Matz's news release | Keesha | Matz | Microbiology | Honorable Mention | |
| 2016 View Angela Rocchi's news release | Angela | Rocchi | Neuroscience | Honorable Mention | |
| 2016 View Ryan Matthew Summers' news release | Ryan Matthew | Summers | Computer Engineering | ||
| 2015 View Justin Niedermeyer's news release | Justin | Niedermeyer | Physics, Music, German | ||
| 2015 View Angela Rocchi's news release | Angela | Rocchi | Neuroscience | Honorable Mention | |
| 2015 View Seth Schneider's news release | Seth | Schneider | Genetics & Cell Biology | ||
| 2013 View Sarah Brewer's news release | Sarah | Brewer | Agricultural Biotechnology, Biochemistry | ||
| 2013 View Fiorella Grandi's news release | Fiorella | Grandi | Biochemistry, Genetics & Cell Biology | ||
| 2013 View Nicholas Negretti's news release | Nicholas | Negretti | Microbiology | ||
| 2012 View Nicole Clark's news release | Nicole | Clark | Biochemistry, Genetics & Cell Biology | ||
| 2012 View Mayumi Holly's news release | Mayumi | Holly | Microbiology | ||
| 2011 | Ian | Linde | Biochemistry | Honorable Mention | |
| 2011 | Ross | Rowsey | Genetics & Cell Biology | Honorable Mention | |
| 2011 | Melissa | Street | Mechanical Engineering | Honorable Mention | |
| 2010 | Kaori | Graybeal | Bioengineering | Honorable Mention | |
| 2010 View news release | Kristen | Meyer | Chemistry | WSU Tri-Cities | |
| 2009 | Svetlana | Lockwood | Computer Science | ||
| 2009 | Whitney | Patterson | Materials Science & Engineering | ||
| 2008 | Kole | Meeker | Neuroscience | Honorable Mention | |
| 2006 | Stephanie | Tintinger | Chemistry | Honorable Mention | |
| 2002 | Timothy | O'Connor | Biochemistry | ||
| 2000 | Marlene | Bakko | Animal Sciences | ||
| 2000 | Sarah | Herbison | Chemistry | ||
| 1999 | Stephanie | Gantt | Biochemistry | ||
| 1999 | Catherine | Ratliff | Biochemistry | ||
| 1997 | Arthur | Binner | Physics, Mathematics | ||
| 1997 | Nathaniel | Hicks | Physics | ||
| 1996 | Jennifer | Parish | Biochemistry | ||
| 1996 | Julia | Plummer | Physics | ||
| 1995 | Julie | Grandzielwski | Chemical Engineering | ||
| 1992 | Doug | Davies | Biochemistry | ||
| 1992 | Kimberly | Melde | Biochemistry | ||
| 1991 | Kathryn | Baldwin | Geology | ||
| 1990 | Kevin | Keatts | Geology |