Alumni Memorial Scholars Program Grants

The abstract should provide a concise summary of the project — a "big picture" overview. Begin with a brief contextualization, then explain how the project will expand, redirect, or otherwise advance current discourse within a given academic discipline.

In this section, you must provide details about your project: the who, what, where, when, and why. Aim to address each of the following:

• What do you plan to do?
• What are the primary research questions your project will answer?
• Why is your project important?
• Where your project will take place? Why there?
• What are the sites and facilities you plan to visit — including information about any formal approval you will need in order to visit?
• Who you will speak and interact with?
• Be prepared to answer the "so what?" question and explain the significance of what you plan to do.

You should also detail the qualifications and background you bring to this project. Make sure to identify specific skills, experience, knowledge, and interests that will enable you to see it through to completion.

In this section, you should describe how you will complete your research. Detail specific theoretical approaches and disciplinary methodologies you will utilize and identify equipment and supplies you will need.

Keep in mind a few questions as you write:

• How does your work satisfy the academic goals of your project?
• What disciplinary methods are you drawing from?
• What theoretical approaches inform your research?
• What activities will help you to find answers?
• What are the concrete tasks you need to accomplish? Will you administer questionnaires, conduct quantitative measurements, take photographs and video, search archives, or some mixture of these?

Keep in mind: if your research involves human subjects, you might need approval from the Institutional Review Board.

Use this section to demonstrate your grasp of appropriate resources. An annotated bibliography is much like a regular bibliography but includes a few descriptive sentences beneath each entry, explaining its relevance to your work. Limit this to compelling and foundational resources only.

Your annotated bibliography must conform to APA, Chicago, or another commonly accepted style guide for your discipline.

Travel, health, and safety factors must be addressed, even if a country is not on the warning or alert list, and even if the project will be conducted in the United States. This section should therefore include detailed information on:

• Transportation
• Phone communication access
• Emergency plans
• Medical resources
• Pre-departure vaccinations
• Medications

If your proposal involves a country with a Department of State Warning or Alert, you must explain how you plan to incorporate necessary safety and security precautions. You can find a current list of warnings and alerts from the Department of State. Depending on the specific nature of the warning, you may also need to submit information according to Colgate's Travel Warning Policy. All proposals that concern travel outside of the country are subject to review by Colgate's risk managers.

Keep in mind that a country may not have an official travel warning, yet "significant risks" may be described within Country-Specific Information Sheets and Travel Alerts. You must be prepared to address these concerns on your itinerary, in your timeline, and in greater detail in this section of your proposal.

Describe what you will do with the information you obtain from your project. Will you:

• Post on the AMS blog? (required)
• Give a presentation at the Scholars Symposium? (required)
• Write an article for a peer-reviewed journal?
• Make a video or multimedia project for social media?
• Engage in activism or campign for reform?
• Use it as a basis for a larger honors thesis or fellowship project?

AMS grant applications require a minimum of two faculty to serve as academic references. They will be contacted and consulted if there are any doubts about your ability to effectively complete your project.

In selecting your references, you may wish to consider: What is your relationship to these professors? Is one of them your academic adviser? What is their involvement with your proposal? How will they help you successfully accomplish this project?

Please provide a statement indicating whether a part or all of the proposal is being submitted for any other research funding at Colgate or elsewhere.

All proposals should clearly articulate how the funding will be used to augment a particular academic goal.

Proposals may be submitted for any of the following experiences, but all proposals must clearly further academic goals:

• Initiating independent studies or research in an area of particular interest, including research-related or academically meaningful internships or experiences
• Extending academic work in any one of a number of ways outside the formal curriculum and programs of the college
• Supporting attendance at a relevant academic conference
• Supporting living expenses while researching off campus
• Supporting travel and research costs for independent projects

While many items will be considered, AMS grants cannot be used:

• To cover costs that would be funded through the regular channels of Colgate financial aid or programmatic funding, like Study Groups and Extended Studies
• To pay for skills training seminars or vocational programs
• To support test preparation courses or fees or pre-professional exams
• For coursework at another institution, university, or academic program
• To support projects that directly receive Colgate credit. For example, the funds cannot be used for regular expenses incurred by students participating in a Colgate study group
• For projects without academic merit, like those doubling as paid vacations and oceanic cruises
• Any projects that involve the consumption of alcohol or use of illegal drugs