Call for Applications - Piatt Fellowship 2022-23

The Graduate Division and the Office of Foundation Relations are pleased to invite qualified students to apply for the Henry and Vera Piatt Fellowship, underwritten by the Capitola-Aptos Rotary Foundation. Please distribute this call widely among graduate students in your departments. 

UCSC Contacts:   Peter Biehl, Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies, pbiehl@ucsc.edu

                               Almut Wolf, Foundation Relations, awolf2@ucsc.edu

Funder:                 Capitola Aptos Rotary Foundation

Opportunity:        Henry and Vera Piatt Fellowship

Deadline: April 20, 2022

Overview

Underwritten by the Capitola-Aptos Rotary Foundation, the Piatt Fellowship will provide a single award of $15,000 to a graduate of a Santa Cruz County Public High School who is pursuing a graduate degree at UC Santa Cruz in one of the science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) disciplines during the 2022-23 academic year.

 Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

●      Be a US citizen.

●      A graduate of a public high school in Santa Cruz County and possessing a Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.

●      Pursuing a Ph.D. in the science, math, technology or mathematics (STEM) disciplines. If no suitable Ph.D. candidate can be found, then a second-year Master’s student is acceptable.

●      Student recipient must be in good academic standing and in successful pursuit of their graduate degree. Ranked priority for qualified recipients shall be a student who:

1.     Is in the final stages of their graduate degree, i.e. conducting original research and preparing their dissertation,

2.     Has passed their qualifying exam(s) and is advanced to candidacy,

3.     Is a second or third-year student, or

4.     Is a student entering a graduate program in the appropriate disciplines at UCSC. 

To apply:

Please send the following materials in electronic format (PDFs or scanned documents) to Peter Biehl, pbiehl@ucsc.edu and to Almut Wolf, awolf2@ucsc.edu  by April 20, 2022:

             1.     Completed Piatt Fellowship Application/Information Sheet form (attached).

              2.     A letter of recommendation from the department chair, faculty advisor, or faculty sponsor that describes the student’s       academic merit and how the student will benefit from the award.

3.     Unofficial Transcripts

4.     (Optional) Relevant material that would assist with the selection process - in the past this has included visual aids (charts, diagrams, formulas), research results, published articles/reports – Please limit optional material to 10 single spaced pages or 1 published article/report.

Selection Process and Distribution of Funds

The Graduate Division will convene a committee of faculty members from STEM disciplines to select the Piatt Fellowship awardee in early May 2022. 

Piatt Fellowship funds will be awarded for the 2022-23 academic year and can be used for all costs related to successful pursuit of the graduate degree, including but not limited to fees, tuition, research, equipment, childcare or living expenses, etc. The Piatt Fellow will receive their award prior to the beginning of the 2022-23 academic year, probably in August 2022. 

Please note: The selected student is required to attend at least 1-2 meetings of the Capitola Aptos Rotary Club. Typically, the first is in the fall where the recipient will be officially presented with the award and meet the benefactors, and second, later in the year, the Piatt Fellow will give a presentation to the Capitola-Aptos Rotary Club on their research supported by this award. 

Questions

Please contact: 

●      Peter Biehl, Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies, or pbiehl@ucsc.edu

●      Almut Wolf, Assistant Director Foundation Relations, 831-459-2902 or awolf2@ucsc.edu

Timeline

Wednesday April 20, 2022               Applications Due

May 15, 2022                                     Piatt Scholar selected and notified

May 25, 2022                                     All forms signed and collected

June 1, 2022                                      Submission to the Capitola Aptos Rotary Club

Call sent: March 17, 2022