Scholarship information
You will be eligible to apply for CLS type scholarships when you are a T3, T4 or T5. The following scholarships recur at regular intervals. They usually require letters of recommendation and personal statement (essays). Are the bottom of this page, you will see some helpful hints on recommendations and essays. If you currently have financial aid, the scholarship will be applied to your account. If you are at the maximum amount of your financial aid, this may actually impact your award.
The deadlines for the scholarships are listed in the table. Gathering your materials, getting references and transcripts take 2-3 weeks, so plan ahead. Descriptions of the scholarship are found below. If I get information from FSCLS, I'll add it.
Professor Emeritus Swarna Krothapalli endowed scholarship
In order to be eligible, applicants must be:
Academic excellence (GPA above 3.0 on a 4.0 scale)
Must be T3, T4, or T5
Potential to responsibly serve the laboratory science profession and community
Volunteer service activities to the profession/community
Honor/Award/Special Recognition for achievements
Committed to pursuing a career in clinical laboratory science
A member of the Medical Technology Student Association
Other evidence of excellence
Application process
• To apply, go to my.uwf.edu
• Search UWF Scholarship Portal
• Complete the General Information and submit your profile
• Search “Professor Emeritus Swarna Krothapalli Endowed Scholarship” and complete the application
ASCLS offers several scholarships and you only need to submit one application. Must be postmarked by April 1, 2018
No GPA minimum
Must join ASCLS to participate (student bowl members will also join, and there is a discount group rate.
Must be T3, T4, or T5
Selection criteria includes work experience, expenses, sources of income
Need your official transcripts
Need 1 LOR from Program Director or other academic faculty and one personal reference
Personal statement
To access the scholarship application, go to http://www.ascls.org/alpha-mu-tau-scholarships
Siemens-ASCP scholarship $1,000
Qualify with a GPA of 2.8 or over, must be US citizen or permanent resident
Must join ASCP to participate (join for free at www.ascp.org)
Must be a T3, T4 or T5
Selection criteria includes GPA, professional goals, leadership abilities, community activities
Need your official transcript (which will cause a 1 week delay)
Need 2 letters of recommendation (which will cause a 2 week delay)
Personal statement (delay if you procrastinate)
You need a resume or CV (write one anyway)
Go to http://www.ascp.org/Functional-Nav/Laboratory-Science-Students/Awards-and-Scholarships for the application
Apply to the Siemens-ASCP scholarship, or the Legacy scholarship if you are directly related to a medical technologist
American Proficiency Institute $2,000
Personal statement (3 essays)
Describe your interest in CLS and why you chose to become a CLS
Provide a paragraph that describes your future career vision and your role as a CLS
Describe your future goals in an ever changing field of Med Lab Science
Recommendation letter from program director
Go to www.api-pt.com for the application
AfterCollege scholarships $500
AfterCollege scholarships are awarded to students who demonstrate professionalism and a passion for their future careers. This means that we evaluate applicants' profiles with the eye of a hiring manager. These scholarships are offered twice a year.
Florida Society for Clinical Laboratory Sciences $1000
A completed application form, official transcript(s), three letters of recommendation, including a letter from the program director documenting GPA and academic status, must be received by February 16, 2018. One recommendation must be from an accredited clinical laboratory science program official, one must be from an instructor/professor, and one may be a personal recommendation. The recommendations must be submitted by the issuer directly to the scholarship committee. All of the information, the application and the reference forms are found at http://www.fscls.org/index.php/awards-scholarships/
Blue Cross Blue Shield Clinical Internship Travel scholarship
The University of West Florida announces the availability of 15 scholarships for $250 each for students who are enrolled in the internship courses of the Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Health Sciences and Administration, and the Public Health degree.
In order to be eligible, applicants must be:
• Completing the UWF degree within 2 semesters (T3, T4, T5 can apply, scholarship payoff during internship phase)
• Attending an internship site that is 50 miles or more from their home base
• In good academic standing
• Past recipients are not eligible
• Note: This award will be added to your HigherOne account, and may impact your financial aid distribution. Students who have exceeded UWF financial aid limits are not eligible
There will be 2 rounds of applications per year in Spring and Summer
Deadline for Spring submission is 2/12/2018; Deadline for Summer submissions is June 12, 2018
Application process
• To apply, go to my.uwf.edu
• Search UWF Scholarship Portal
• Complete the face sheet and submit your profile
• Search “Blue Cross/Blue Shield Clinical Internship” and complete the application
Tips for Getting Great Reference Letters
Identify the best reference for your strengths
Do ask people you have worked for, including school, jobs, volunteers. If you are still in school or recently graduated, your professors can write about your abilities in class such as intellect and critical thinking.
Do not ask an individual who is not affiliated with a business or school, their letter does not hold weight because it can easily be forged and their credentials are questionable.
Ask the reference this question
“Would you be able to write a strong letter of recommendation for me for XYZ scholarship?” Just writing a letter is a different from writing a strong letter of recommendation. Typically, you will not be able to see the letter itself. A weak letter of support is a buzz kill.
Give your reference something to work with, on paper
Your reference should have information about you that is pertinent to the application. Provide this information:
The completed application
Permission to discuss your GPA or grades in class if relevant
Your essay
Your resume, or a statement of your experience (and dates) with work, school,
leadership roles, volunteering, and hobbies
Think ahead
Give yourself a month before the deadline, and give the reference 2-3 weeks to write. You are asking for a chunk of time from a professional for free.
Follow up
2 weeks before the deadline, follow up with “Were you able to write that letter for me?” Follow up with a thank you card. When you receive an award, notify the reference. Celebrate!
Ask again
Your reference has probably kept a copy of the letter he/she sent. It is not difficult to revise a reference for a different grantor or school.
Tips for writing that essay
Applications for scholarships and post graduate schools and employment frequently ask for an essay. A common question is “What are your professional goals”, or “Why are you one of the best students in the nation”, or “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” These essays are an opportunity for the evaluator to tell if you are a focused writer and if you have goals.
Before you start, answer the following questions. Then create an outline of 3-4 paragraphs that has a logical flow.
1. What is your GPA? Favorite classes, and why? Least favorite, and why?
2. What clubs have you belonged to in school, and the dates? Have you been an officer, or headed a project? What is the evidence that you are a good student/leader?
3. Are a disadvantaged compared to most students, by financial, family responsibility, minority or disability?
4. Have you ever taught, tutored, TA’d, RA’d, peer counselor, led a group?
5. Are you a better student now than when you started college? What changed?
6. Have you visited a hospital (or venue where you expect to work)? Have you shadowed a professional of that type? Do you know what their work day is like?
7. Do you have a previous degree or did you change majors? Why did you switch?
8. Have you done research with a teacher/professor? What was the project? What was your role?
10. Where do you see yourself 5 years from graduation? 10 years? How will you get to that stage. Does it include post graduate school?
11. What drew you to health field? Family health issues, observation, TV or novel. What is your favorite disease or bacteria. What is your favorite CLS class?
13. Do you have a part time job? Have you ever? What did you do, and how is it similar or different from CLS?
14. Write about a time when you did a lab experiment and you said “Eureka! I get it”.