The Department of Political Science offers several scholarship and award opportunities for our current graduate students.
A graduate student must be enrolled in at least nine graduate credit hours during the fall and spring semester to be considered full-time. An exception is made for a graduate student receiving a qualified graduate teaching or research assistantship. A graduate student holding a qualified assistantship with a .50 FTE appointment and is enrolled in a minimum of five hours during the fall and spring semester is classified as full-time for the purposes of scholarship and award eligibility.
Students may apply for our department scholarships through the Centralized Academic Scholarship Hub (CASH). Faculty nominated awards are not processed through the CASH web portal. The application deadline is February 1.
| Scholarships | Criteria | Faculty Nominated Only |
|---|---|---|
| John Halvor Leek Memorial Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarships for Political Science majors. To be eligible, students must be a full-time, regularly enrolled undergraduate or graduate student. Undergraduate students must have completed nine to twelve credit hours in their major field. | No |
| Hugh G. MacNiven Endowed Award | The award is for the most outstanding research paper written by a student in the Master of Public Administration program for the previous calendar year. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | Yes |
| Les J. Martin Memorial Endowed Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarship for Political Science majors. To be eligible, students must be a full-time, regularly enrolled undergraduate or graduate student, with a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Priority consideration will be given to students shown to have good character, who show professionalism and have financial need. | No |
| David R. Morgan Endowed Scholarship | The scholarship is for full-time, regularly enrolled graduate students in the department and recognizes continuous development growth as a scholarly researcher as demonstrated by a record of seminar papers, conference presentations, research accepted for publication, or published research or dissertation. The student must have demonstrated independence as a scholarly researcher as indicated by the completion of single authored work, co-authored work with other graduate students, or lead authorship with a faculty co-author. High-quality and professional competent research as judged by the student’s faculty chair, or other faculty mentors, journal reviews and acceptance, or other means, innovative and professional application of research methods and skills. preference is given to research conducted in the fields of American government and politics, public administration and public policy, scholarly research accomplishment in all areas of political science with be considered. This is not an award for a single paper or article. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | Yes |
| Edmond and Joyce Peters Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarship for students in the department's Public Administration programs. To be eligible, students must be a full-time undergraduate or graduate student who are Oklahoma residents with a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Preference is given to students who graduated from either Blackwell High School or Edmond High School. | No |
| Ronald L. Platt Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund in Political Science | The scholarship is a merit and need-based scholarship for students seeking a degree offered by the Department of Political Science, with priority consideration given to students from Ada, Oklahoma. To be eligible, students must be in academic good standing with the degree program, making progress toward graduation, and have a demonstrable financial need. | No |
| Walter F. Scheffer Scholarship Award in Public Administration | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarship for students currently enrolled in the MPA program who have completed a minimum of eight (8) hours of OU graduate work, have no more than twenty-four (24) completed hours and have a minimum 3.50 GPA. The award is based on grade point average, letter of recommendation, career accomplishments or other evidence of academic promise. | No |
| George B. Williams Memorial Award | An endowed fund established in the name of George B. Williams to assist students of the Department of Political Science at the University of Oklahoma. This political science faculty nominated award is for an outstanding graduate research paper, thesis or dissertation completed during the calendar year, with a preference for, but not limited to, work in state and local government. | Yes |
| Scholarships | Criteria | PhD Scholarship Only | Faculty Nominated Only |
|---|---|---|---|
| Richard C. Kearney Endowed Fellowship | The award honors Prof. Richard C. Kearney, a 1977 graduate of the Department's doctoral program. The fellowship recognizes and encourages scholarly excellence in student research by providing support for a doctoral student to present his or her research at a conference, attend student academic or professional development workshops that aid in the advancement of a student's research, or provide funding for conducting field research. Candidates for this award must meet the following eligibility criteria for consideration: a.) Should be regularly enrolled in the Political Science Ph.D. graduate program; b.) Must have written an elite paper in the area of state and local politics or policy, or be working on a dissertation in that area; c.) Shall provide evidence that his or her research is ongoing. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | Yes | Yes |
| John Halvor Leek Memorial Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarships for Political Science majors. To be eligible, students must be a full-time, regularly enrolled undergraduate or graduate student. Undergraduate students must have completed nine to twelve credit hours in their major field. | No | No |
| Les J. Martin Memorial Endowed Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarship for Political Science majors. To be eligible, students must be a full-time, regularly enrolled undergraduate or graduate student, with a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Priority consideration will be given to students shown to have good character, who show professionalism and have financial need. | No | No |
| David R. Morgan Endowed Scholarship | The scholarship is for full-time, regularly enrolled graduate students in the department and recognizes continuous development growth as a scholarly researcher as demonstrated by a record of seminar papers, conference presentations, research accepted for publication, or published research or dissertation. The student must have demonstrated independence as a scholarly researcher as indicated by the completion of single authored work, co-authored work with other graduate students, or lead authorship with a faculty co-author. High-quality and professional competent research as judged by the student’s faculty chair, or other faculty mentors, journal reviews and acceptance, or other means, innovative and professional application of research methods and skills. preference is given to research conducted in the fields of American government and politics, public administration and public policy, scholarly research accomplishment in all areas of political science with be considered. This is not an award for a single paper or article. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | No | Yes |
| Ronald M. Peters Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award | The award is given in recognition of exceptional teaching as a graduate teaching assistant. Outstanding teaching is determined by assessments from the P SC 1113 coordinator and faculty visitations, as well as evidence of accessibility to students. Such evidence includes high scores on student evaluation surveys or testimonial letters from students, rigorous reasonable grade distribu1ions, well-prepared course syllabi, demonstrations of interest in and care for students found through holding regular office hours, advising students, and writing letters of reference. The award is given only when an outstanding candidate is presented. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | No | Yes |
| Ronald L. Platt Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund in Political Science | The scholarship is a merit and need-based scholarship for students seeking a degree offered by the Department of Political Science, with priority consideration given to students from Ada, Oklahoma. To be eligible, students must be in academic good standing with the degree program, making progress toward graduation, and have a demonstrable financial need. | No | No |
| Allan A. Saxe Political Science Endowed Scholarship | The scholarship is a merit-based scholarship for Political Science majors. To be eligible, students must be a full-time, regularly enrolled undergraduate or graduate student, with a 3.0 cumulative GPA, and demonstrated financial need. | No | No |
| V. Stanley Vardys Award | The award honors scholarly excellence and commitment by recognizing and encouraging outstanding research and writing by students in the Ph.D. program. Articles submitted for publication to professional journals, papers delivered or accepted for delivery at professional meetings, or other scholarly papers nominated by members of the faculty are eligible for consideration. The paper must have been written while the student is still enrolled in course work before the completion of the General Examinations. The award is open as to field of study and topic of research; however, the quality of work being equal; preference will be given to work in comparative politics and international affairs. The award need not be given if no eligible work satisfies the standard of excellence. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | Yes | Yes |
| George B. Williams Memorial Award | An endowed fund established in the name of George B. Williams to assist students of the Department of Political Science at the University of Oklahoma. This political science faculty nominated award is for an outstanding graduate research paper, thesis or dissertation completed during the calendar year, with a preference for, but not limited to, work in state and local government. | No | Yes |
| John W. Wood Endowed Award | The award is for the best graduate or undergraduate paper, thesis or dissertation paper and is faculty-nominated. Students must be a regularly enrolled student in the Department, must have written a paper, thesis, or dissertation in the field of American political theory, political leadership, or the Presidency. Undergraduate work may include either a single paper or a series of papers amounting to ten to twenty pages. A lengthier paper is expected for a graduate thesis or dissertation. Students must not receive a like award for the same research. Students can only be nominated by OU Political Science faculty. | No | Yes |
