Mentoring FAQs

Having a mentor is an excellent opportunity for Mary Gates Scholars to learn and grow with guidance and support. Since mentor involvement depends on individual students and projects, we expect your scholar to share her/his mentor needs with you at the beginning of the project to clarify expectations on both sides. To this end, it’s a good idea to look at your student’s application essay. Additionally, we would expect you to be available to your scholar as needed in order for her/him to have the support necessary to gain the skills and hone the abilities s/he has set up for her/his goals.

As part of the requirements of the award, scholars and mentors are asked to complete a mid-quarter survey during the second and third quarters of the award. The purpose of the surveys is accountability and feedback. We ask for feedback to address needs during the award period and gladly accept suggestions to improve our program.

If a student receives an award, s/he will have the funds directly deposited into her/his student account. These funds are unrestricted and we receive no reports on its use. Students on financial aid may find that the award replaces loans. If your student is on financial aid, we advise her/him to check with the financial aid office for information on how the award will affect her/his financial aid package.

Please try to contact your student directly. If this does not work, please let the Mary Gates Endowment for Students office know and we will follow-up.

The Mary Gates Leadership Scholarship is designed to foster the civic education of University of Washington undergraduate students. Named for former Regent and civic leader, Mary Gates, the Leadership Scholarships honor the commitment, responsibility, and courage that characterized her life of leadership and service to the community. Through Leadership Scholarships, we aim to invest in students, helping them to develop their leadership capacity – vision, initiative, commitment, skill, and values – in an endeavor that delights and inspires them. We seek applicants who are imaginative and passionate about their endeavors, and who can envision how they can stretch, grow, and contribute through this opportunity.

Our website offers guiding questions for applicants to think about in writing a successful essay: http://expd.uw.edu/mge/apply/leadership/tips

Students will need to apply to the Carlson Leadership and Public Service Center in order to participate. Further information can be found on its website at: http://uw.edu/carlson

We are happy to answer any specific questions so please do not hesitate to contact the Carlson Center or the Mary Gates Endowment staff.

Mary Gates Research Scholarships are competitive awards available to enhance the educational experiences of UW undergraduates who are engaged in research with University faculty. The intent of these scholarships is to provide support for outstanding students, enabling them to learn research methods and explore current research questions and challenges in a variety of disciplines. Funds from the Mary Gates Endowment for Students are dedicated exclusively to students; they may not be used to defray the costs to departments for things such as equipment or supplies.

Our website offers guidelines for applicants in writing an application essay. These guidelines can be found at: http://expd.uw.edu/mge/apply/research/tips
Applications are evaluated using the criteria explained here: http://expd.uw.edu/mge/apply/research/review

Students will need to apply to the Undergraduate Research Program (URP) to present at the Undergraduate Research Symposium. The application deadline is in late February. Detailed information is available on its website at: http://www.washington.edu/undergradresearch/. In February, URP holds information sessions for students to discuss the Symposium and writing abstracts. In the spring, URP has sessions on poster and oral presentations.

The Undergraduate Research Program offers opportunities for travel grants for currently enrolled Undergraduates who have a poster, paper, or creative scholarly work that has been accepted for professional presentations. Travel must be completed before graduation. Please visit http://www.washington.edu/research/urp/students/urta.html for more information.