Awards & Scholarships

Undergraduate Graduation Speaker: The department selects a student to address graduates at the annual History Commencement ceremony. Selections are made by the department; students do not apply directly for the award.

Undergraduate Award for Leadership and Service: Awarded annually to an undergraduate who makes significant contributions to the History student community. Selections are made by the department; students do not apply directly for the award.

Elizabeth Sargent Lee History of Medicine Research Paper Prize: Honors the best undergraduate history research paper in the history of medicine and health each term. Papers must be the product of original research using primary sources, and should be 3,000 to 5,000 words.  Papers written for any History course are eligible for submission, if the paper topic focuses on some aspect of medicine or health over time. The prize includes an award of $250.

Students may submit their own work or faculty may do so on behalf of students. To apply for this prize, the research paper should be submitted as an email attachment to histmedleeprize@umich.edu. The email must include the instructor, the course number and title, and the full name and email address of the student. Deadlines: January 5 for Fall Term courses; May 1 for Winter Term courses.

Nancy Bylan Bratman Excellence in Writing Awards: Recognizes excellence in writing for undergraduate history majors in the following courses, for each fall and winter term: History 202, first prize $250; History 496 or 497, first prize $300, second prize $200 (or, when there are co-winners, two prizes of $250).

Instructors of 202, 496, and 497 sections nominate up to two outstanding papers each term. The winners are determined by a panel selected by the Undergraduate Committee.

The awards honor the memory of Nancy Bylan Bratman, who was born June 7, 1929, in Detroit, and grew up in Grand Rapids. After a year at Wellesley College, she transferred happily to the University of Michigan to complete her undergraduate education. She majored in History and remained proudest of her A+ junior-year thesis on the Boer War. She was also active on the Michigan Daily, where she served as a reporter and associate editor, and in the Gilbert & Sullivan Society, for which she was a chorister and treasurer. After receiving her BA in 1951, Nancy worked for several years as an editor in New York and Chicago, mostly for trade publications.

Grossman Family Award for Outstanding Michigan Journal of History Article: Recognizes the UM undergraduate author of an outstanding paper or article published in the student-operated Michigan Journal of History. Awarded annually.

Kraus Fund Scholarship: Recognizes excellence and accomplishment on the part of undergraduate History majors.

Rosenberg Family Scholarship: Presented each September to a senior-year history concentrator from Ohio who meets specific criteria. Selections are made by the History Department; students do not apply directly for the award.

Ruth Family Fund Scholarship: Awarded annually to recognize senior History majors who have demonstrated significant effort and scholarship.

LSA scholarships for continuing qualified LSA students who demonstrate high academic merit and verified financial need as determined by the Office of Financial Aid. Awards have ranged from $500 to $10,000 per year.

The Telluride House at the University of Michigan is a residential community that offers full room and board scholarships.

The Center for the Education of Women + (CEW+) offers CEW+ Student Research Grants for student-designed and -conducted projects related to their mission.

The LSA Honors Program provides assistance to individual students who are applying for major national scholarship competitions.

The International Institute offers a range of awards for undergraduate students.

The Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies has information about funding opportunities.

The Center for European Studies has information about their Summer Research and Internship Grants.

The Center for Global and Intercultural Study (CGIS) may offer grants for study-abroad programs.

LACS  - https://ii.umich.edu/lacs/students/funding.html

African Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/asc/ascfunding.html

Southeast Asian Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/cseas/students/funding.html

Donia Human Rights Center - https://ii.umich.edu/humanrights/students/funding-opportunities.html

Liberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/lrccs/funding.html

Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia - https://ii.umich.edu/wcee/students/funding.html

Center for Armenian Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/armenian/funding.html

Center for Japanese Studies- https://ii.umich.edu/cjs/Funding.html

Center for Middle East and North African Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/cmenas/undergraduate/funding.html

Center for South Asian Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/csas/undergraduate-students.html

Copernicus Center for Polish Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/polish/students/funding.html

Global Islamic Studies Program - https://ii.umich.edu/islamicstudies/undergraduates/funding.html

Nam Center for Korean Studies - https://ii.umich.edu/ncks/students/undergraduate-students/fellowships-and-grants.html

The U-M Provost’s Council on Student Honors administers some external scholarships.

The Gates Cambridge Scholarship allows students from outside the United Kingdom to study at the University of Cambridge.

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program provides awards for US undergrads who are receiving Federal Pell Grants to study abroad.

Marshall Scholarships finance young Americans of high ability to study for a graduate degree in the United Kingdom.

The Rhodes Scholarship is a highly competitive scholarship that brings outstanding students from many countries around the world to the University of Oxford.

The Harry Truman Scholarship emphasizes “those who want to make a difference in public service”.

The Undergraduate Awards is the world’s only pan-discipline academic awards program that identifies leading creative thinkers through their undergraduate coursework.