Penn State Schreyer Honors College

Phi Beta Kappa Honors Thesis Research Grants

The Penn State Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa awards up to four research grants to meritorious research projects proposed by Schreyer Scholars in support of the honors thesis:

Phi Beta Kappa Thesis Research Grants: Three grants of $500 each will be awarded for the best submitted proposals. The Phi Beta Kappa awards were established in recognition of the extraordinary quality of senior theses and the financial burden assumed by students in their completion.

James Rambeau Honors Thesis Research Grant in the Humanities: A $500 cash award will be made in honor of Dr. James Rambeau. The grant was instituted to honor and to thank Dr. Rambeau for his devoted leadership of the University Scholars Program from 1993 to 1997 and to make certain that his name will continue to be associated with the work close to his heart and with the students for whom he has shown great affection and in whose prosperity he found great joy.

Requirements

  1. The project must be undertaken in fulfillment of the Schreyer Scholars senior thesis requirement.
  2. The student must be a Schreyer Scholar in good standing.
  3. Award recipients must be majoring and/or the thesis completed in a discipline included within Phi Beta Kappa. Virtually all majors in the College of Liberal Arts and in the Eberly College of Science fall into this category, and there are numerous others in a number of other Penn State colleges. Here is the list of approved majors. (Students in a major not listed here should contact Thomas Beebee, tob@psu.edu, to see if they qualify.)
  4. Completion of the thesis must lie in the future at the time application is made.

Deadline

Applications are due no later than Friday, October 31, 2008, at 5:00 p.m.

Proposal Specifications

  1. The proposal must be typed, double-spaced, and not exceeding 750 words. The supporting documents must include:
    • a copy of the student's transcript
    • a letter of recommendation from the thesis adviser commenting on the quality and feasibility of the proposed project.
    • a relevant bibliography and supporting material (research instruments, etc.)

  2. If submitting via paper, three copies (double-sided is acceptable) of the proposal and supporting documents must be submitted.

  3. The proposal may conform to the conventions of the student’s discipline, but the author should keep in mind that not all readers will be specialists in the field of study, write with a general audience in mind.

Questions?

If you have questions, please contact Rodney Hughes (570) 905-6843 or rph144@psu.edu.