FAQ Research Scholarship

The Mary Gates Endowment welcomes applications from all majors, fields of research, and types of research. These include curricular design, the creative arts, and other forms of scholarly endeavor.

The Office of Undergraduate Research defines research as “a creative and systematic process of asking questions and discovering new knowledge. Any student, regardless of major, year, or experience, can get involved in undergraduate research.” 

What research looks like varies widely across disciplines. Research may take place in a lab, in an art studio, on a theatre stage, in a medical center, in the library, at a computer, in an archive, or in the field – just to name some examples.  

Research can be highly collaborative in nature or a more individual effort. Some students collaborate with their mentor on a research project, for which the faculty mentor serves as the Principal Investigator (PI). Other students determine their own research question, and their faculty mentor may not be directly involved in doing the research but provide meaningful support and guidance throughout.  

Any undergraduate student from any of the three UW campuses (Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma), who is pursuing a Bachelor’s degree and is planning to conduct research under the mentorship of a UW-affiliated faculty member is eligible to apply for a Mary Gates Research Scholarship. Applicants from any major and at any stage of their undergraduate academic career are welcome to apply.   

If a student has already started working on the project, the application should clearly focus on a project/project phase the student plans to pursue during the quarter(s) in which they would receive the scholarship.  

The Mary Gates Research Scholarship is meant to support you while working on a research project. Mary Gates Research Scholars are required to be working on the project during the quarters in which they receive the scholarship funds. 

Yes, the Mary Gates Research Scholarship can support you in doing research for a capstone project, an Honors thesis, or an independent study, for example. However, you need to clearly explain how the scholarship will support you in carrying out the research you propose to undertake during the two quarters you receive the scholarship AND the guidance and mentorship you are receiving from a faculty member. 

No, you can still apply even if you have not started your project. However, you must be actively participating in your project during the quarters you are receiving the scholarship money.  

We accept applications from students who are still in the planning stages of their project. In your essay you should be able to explain the plan and goals for your proposed project, so we encourage you to connect early with your mentor to get support in thinking about what your project will look like in the quarters ahead. 

Yes, previous award recipients are eligible to apply for a second award. Please see eligibility information for more details. Please also see the additional selection criteria for previous award recipients to be prepared to address these heightened expectations.

You can have two letters of support submitted for your application. One letter of support needs to come from a UW-affiliated faculty member, but it might be helpful to include a letter from the grad student or postdoc as well if they have more thorough knowledge of you and your work. If you are planning to include two mentors in your application, your mentors can decide to write and submit two separate letters. Or the two mentors can decide to co-write and co-sign one letter, which needs to be uploaded into the application portal by the primary mentor (UW-affiliated faculty member). 

Please check with a Mary Gates Endowment staff member. You can contact us at mgates@uw.edu. 

If your mentor is not able to upload their letter between the time you submit your application and the date that the mentor letter is due, please contact us at mgates@uw.edu.

Research scholarships are very competitive. The number of applicants varies, but we anticipate an average of 500 to 600 applicants per year. Each application cycle is slightly different, but in Autumn 2025 we will award over 100 Research Scholarships.

If you are planning to reapply for the Research scholarship, we strongly encourage you to attend one of our “Reworking your MG application” workshops. These are catered to returning applicants and will cover reviewer feedback applicable to the majority of applicants.

Due to an increased demand for feedback, we cannot meet equitably through one-on-one appointments and instead invite you to attend a workshop if you would like to get support in reworking your application for a future cycle. Re-applying is highly encouraged.

Yes, it is fine if you reuse parts of your previous essay that are relevant to your current application, as we know students may be working on the same project for more than one award cycle. At the same time, many months will have passed since you last received an award, therefore be sure to make the appropriate updates relevant to your current standing with your project and your research plan, as well as your interest in your research and how it relates to your longer-term goals. Be sure to also reference the additional selection criteria for previously awarded Mary Gates Scholars.

Each of the two quarters you select to receive the funding, you will receive the scholarship money during the second week of the quarter, through your UW student account. If you set up direct deposit, the scholarship funds will be deposited into the bank account you indicate. Otherwise, a check will be mailed to your local address on file in your MyUW student profile. If your money does not disburse, double check that you have set up direct deposit. Contact Mary Gates Endowment staff at mgates@uw.edu if you still do not receive your award disbursement.

Need to update your addresses on file with UW? Get instructions here.

Generally yes. Mary Gates Research Scholarships support individual students to engage in research, and do not fund the research itself. This is student funding, not research funding. Receipt of other research funding, which supports the research project directly, is typically not considered a conflict.

Students who are receiving a Levinson Emerging Scholars or Washington Research Foundation Fellowship award in a given academic year are not eligible to receive a Mary Gates Research Scholarship in the same year. If you would like to discuss your situation, please contact the Mary Gates Endowment staff at mgates@uw.edu.

If you receive financial aid and have other scholarships, fellowships, awards or stipends and are also selected for a Mary Gates Research Scholarship, you may not be eligible to receive the full amount of the award. We will use the information provided by the Office of Student Financial Aid to finalize award amounts and we will be in touch with you if we are not able to disburse the full amount you were awarded.

Yes. However, based on the past experiences of previous scholars, we would advise checking with your mentor (PI) to determine how the scholarship will/will not affect your status as an employee. It is possible that a mentor will reallocate funds to maximize the budget if you are receiving money from another source.