College of the Environment Scholarships

The College of the Environment student scholarships for current students for the 2024-2025 school year are now OPEN. Please note that incoming first-year students are not eligible for these scholarships. Applications are due by April 21, 2024 at 11:59PM. To start your application, click here.

Incoming transfer student scholarship applications will open in Summer of 2024.

One application is all that is needed to be considered for all of the possible scholarships. Jump to application details.

General eligibility

All scholarships are both need- and merit-based (meaning students need to show financial need to be eligible). Students who wish to be considered for scholarships must complete the FAFSA or WAFSA form and demonstrate need based on the University of Washington Office of Student Financial Aid’s assessment of this form. Incoming graduate students will be recommended for applicable scholarships by their academic unit. No individual graduate student applications will be accepted. Current undergraduates may apply for College of the Environment Scholarships annually.

International students

Currently all scholarships awarded by the College of the Environment Dean’s Office have a financial need requirement (as determined by the Office of Student Financial Aid using the FAFSA/WASFA), so international students are not eligible for these awards. Check with your major department regarding international student eligibility requirements for departmental scholarship funds.

Award amounts

Award amounts for all scholarships will vary depending upon financial need and source of funds and range from $1,000 to $5,000. Awards are distributed over the course of the Autumn, Winter and Spring quarters the following academic year.

Successful applicants

For all majors, we search for students who have a high and/or positively trending GPA, and superior performance in courses related to their intended major. For Bachelor of Science (BS) degrees in the College of the Environment, the strongest applications describe a student who has done well in fundamental STEM coursework (mathematics, statistics, chemistry, biology, physics). Although all students with demonstrated financial need (as determined by the Office of Student Financial Aid) are eligible to apply, the majority of successful applicants have a GPA of 3.5 and above. Successful applicants with lower GPAs have demonstrated exceptional performance in an area other than coursework.

In addition to coursework, superior students are those who have involved themselves in a range of activities outside of the classroom, which might involve internships, volunteering, outreach and research opportunities. Students will have a wide range of opportunities they have taken advantage of, and challenges they have faced in pursuit of an education. It is important to explain in your application both opportunities and challenges as well as how you leverage opportunities and navigate challenges.

Apply

The application for current UW undergraduates, academic year 2024-25 is now open!

Scholarship descriptions

  • Clarence H. Campbell Endowed Lauren Donaldson Scholarship

    This scholarship is made possible by the generosity of Clarence H. Campbell in memory of Lauren “Doc” Donaldson. Professor Lauren “Doc” Donaldson earned his MS and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Washington in 1931. He served on the faculty of the School of Fisheries from 1932 until his retirement in 1973. Doc was a world-renowned expert in the development of fish stocks and trained countless students in freshwater fisheries research and management. Clarence Campbell, ’30, established this fund to recognize Doc’s lasting influence.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to any undergraduate student pursuing a major in Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, Oceanography and/or Marine Biology. Previous recipients may re-apply. Award decisions will be based upon academic merit and financial need.

  • College of the Environment Scholarship

    This scholarship is made possible by the generosity of donors. The scholarship was created to support undergraduate students pursuing degrees in the College of the Environment.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to any undergraduate student pursuing a degree in the College of the Environment. Previous recipients may re-apply. Award decisions will be based upon academic merit and financial need.

  • Dani Elenga Environment Scholarship

    Sigrid Elenga and Steve Smyth established the Dani Elenga Environment Scholarship in memory of their daughter, Dani Elenga, to encourage and support students with an interest in the environment who are participating in the Educational Opportunity Program, which promotes academic success and graduation for under-represented ethnic minority, economically disadvantaged and first-generation college students at the UW.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to undergraduate students in all College of the Environment degree-granting programs who are affiliated with the Educational Opportunity Program.

  • Del Rio Environmental Studies Scholarship

    The Del Rio Family Foundation established the Del Rio Endowed Scholarship Fund for Environmental Studies to encourage and support students with an interest in the environment who are participating in the Educational Opportunity Program, which promotes academic success and graduation for under-represented ethnic minority, economically disadvantaged and first-generation college students at the UW. The Foundation hopes that through their studies and participation in real-world environmental research and problem-solving, students will broaden their personal horizons to include issues of global concern and will develop a passion and the skill set for making a difference in the world.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to students who are pursuing or plan to pursue a degree in the College of the Environment and who plan to participate in the Educational Opportunity Program. The Del Rio Environmental Studies Scholarship is part of the “Students First” program at the UW. Recipients will be eligible for continued scholarship funding as long as they meet satisfactory progress requirements. Award decisions will be based upon financial need and, secondarily, academic merit.

  • Michael and Rebecca McGoodwin Endowed Scholarship in Environmental Conservation, Atmospheric, and Earth Sciences

Dr. Michael McGoodwin established an endowment to support undergraduate students in the College of the Environment in December 2019. This endowment honors the life and memory of Rebecca McGoodwin and their shared passion for the natural environment. By supporting undergraduates on the basis of academic merit and financial need, this scholarship helps students who are pursuing the study, investigation, and conservation of the biosphere and its protection from human impacts. Areas of study may include but are not limited to, the study of relevant Earth and atmospheric sciences such as aquatic and terrestrial habitats including oceans, soils, forests, atmospheric physics and chemistry, and the interactions of these with past and current life forms. Read more about Michael and Rebecca’s story of their shared love for the environment and how it led to the creation of this endowment at  https://environment.uw.edu/alumni-and-community/giving-to-the-college/mcgoodwin-endowment/.

Eligibility

These scholarships are available to current undergraduate students who are pursuing the study, investigation, and conservation of the biosphere and its protection from human impacts. This may include, but not be limited to, the study of relevant Earth and atmospheric sciences such as: aquatic and terrestrial habitats including oceans, soils, forests, atmospheric physics and chemistry, and the interactions of these with past and current life forms. Award decisions will be based upon academic merit and financial need.

  • Nancy Wilcox Scholarship

    This scholarship is made possible by the generosity of former UW Provost Phyllis Wise, who established it to support students pursuing degrees in the College of the Environment. Dr. Wise named the endowment in honor and memory of her late sister, Nancy E. Wang Wilcox, a middle school teacher who tried to develop the minds of young adolescents using creative and innovative ways of learning. It is this legacy that inspired Provost Wise to establish this endowment to carry on her sister’s commitment to helping others achieve their educational goals.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to students who are pursuing or plan to pursue a degree in the College of the Environment. The Nancy Wilcox Scholarship is part of the “Students First” program at the UW. Award decisions will be based upon financial need, and, secondarily, academic merit.

  • Vontver Environment and Human Health Endowed Scholarship

Dr. Lou Vontver, whose name is reflected in the title of this endowment, was fortunate to have career changing experiential learning opportunities while serving as a flight medical officer with the U.S. Air Force in the Far East. He saw the effect of poverty, demography and environment on human health and well-being. Those experiences led him to a career he had never imagined during medical school. He finished a reproductive endocrinology fellowship, a residency in Obstetrics-Gynecology, a Master of Education, and became a faculty member of the UW School of Medicine. He tried to impress on students the importance of poverty, demography, and environment on human health. He was also a member of the Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility (WPSR). He is now an active member of WPSR’s task force on climate change, and has learned even more about its effect on human health. With this endowment Dr. Vontver hopes to give students in the College of the Environment opportunities for experiential learning such as he had, which hopefully will inspire them to pursue studies on the environment and human health.

Eligibility

These scholarships are available to current undergraduate and graduate students participating in experiential learning in the College of the Environment, with a preference for students working on projects involving aspects of human health and the environment. Award decisions will be based upon academic merit and financial need.

  • Yakama Nation Endowed Fund for Student Support

    Tom and Arline Hinckley established the Yakama Nation Endowed Fund for Student Support to help in the recruitment and retention of prospective and enrolled undergraduate and graduate Yakama Nation tribal members pursuing environmentally related studies at the University of Washington, and to deepen the connection between UW and the Yakama Nation through informal and formal gatherings, exchanges and co-learning.

    Eligibility

    These scholarships are available to any Yakama Nation tribal members who are incoming and current undergraduate and graduate students at the UW in an environmentally-related program or pursuing studies or research focused on the environment. Previous recipients may re-apply. Award decisions will be based upon academic merit and financial need. More information can be found here.