Letters of Recommendation: Goldwater Program
The Goldwater Scholarship Program, one of the oldest and most prestigious national scholarships in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics in the United States, seeks to identify and support college sophomores and juniors who show exceptional promise of becoming this Nation’s next generation of research leaders in these fields.
The characteristics the Foundation seeks in a Goldwater Scholar include:
- strong commitment to a research career in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering,
- effective display of intellectual intensity in the sciences, mathematics and engineering,
- potential for a significant future contribution to research in their chosen field.
Goldwater Scholars receive up to $7,500 each year for the subsequent years of undergraduate study (two year maximum).
Internal Recommendations
Please review the Goldwater recommender guidelines below, as they will help you evaluate the potential for the candidate to be a successful nominee for the scholarship. Your letter will be seen by the faculty fellowships & awards committee, and members of CLBR assisting the committee and applicants.
Should the student be selected as a nominee for the national competition, you will be asked to submit a revised letter.
External Recommendations
The Foundation has specific guidelines for how they would like recommenders to approach their letters. Please review their guidelines on the Goldwater site. Due dates will vary from year to year, but final letters will be due approximately two weeks prior to the external deadline. The external deadline is typically in late January.
Goldwater Letter Writing GuidanceLetter Format and Submission Requirements
All Goldwater recommendation letters should be directed to CLBR Fellowships for both the internal and external portions of the competition.
Questions? Please contact clbrfellowships@reed.edu