That is a good question… Hopefully we will hear more soon.
I have always believed that the program would be viable as long as they produced (top notched award winning STEM scholars who go on to get advanced degrees and also help boost philanthropic results at Howard University). So far, they are doing well on both points and getting positive press and the newly named Karsh STEM Scholars Program has been championed at Howard so that bodes well for the program’s long term prospects (and the money definitely helps).
Wow, that was really fast. I guess this thread probably could be retired and a new one with the new name [Karsh STEM Scholars Program (KSSP)] created.
@ChangeTheGame I am so happy to have come across this thread. My daughter has been accepted to Howard and now about to submit her application for the KSSP. I just have 2 questions. (1) On the application it ask about scholarly activities. If she has no research activities or publications what are they looking for on this question from a high school student? And (2) are you able to give me an idea of what questions to expect if she is invited to selection weekend? Thanks!
That essay prompt (prompt 2) asking about scholarly activities also gives an option of describing creative activities and accomplishments as well. My opinion (so I could be wrong) is that they are looking to get a feel of a student’s early scholarly look at STEM fields, any early achievements and what has started the student down this path. My daughter did not have any research experience when she applied 2 years ago, but she has had a long love affair with her major of Chemistry (my wife is a high school Chemistry teacher) and I believe that showed in her essay. I have watched my daughter “geek out” over figuring out tough Stoichiometry problems. (That love is helpful when a student may have another 10+ years of schooling left).
The questions that will get asked during the interview will most likely be different from year to year, but my suggestion for all students applying to the program is to think about there future plans, why do you want to get an advance degree (PhD or MD/PhD) in STEM, and to be able to articulate that position well.
I may have mentioned this in another post (or maybe not), but there is a Karsh STEM Scholar from the 1st cohort on YouTube who has made fabulous videos on many parts of her journey towards getting an advance degree including application tips. Just look up Karsh STEM Scholar on YouTube and you will find her Vlogs. Also take a look at the link on post 195 to hear directly from the Director of the program. Good luck.
@ChangeTheGame Hello! I am currently finishing up my application for the KSSP, however, I had a question about the letter of recommendations. Should I ask the recommenders to send the letters to me so I can submit them to the application, or do they send them to the email following the specific format?
Hey @squiretheo. My daughter just asked for her teachers to send a PDF copy of their recommendations which she attached when submitting the application. I believe they can send them to the e-mail for the Scholarship as well, but my daughter did not want to take the chance of the e-mail getting misplaced.
@ChangeTheGame As everyone has stated, thanks for all of your knowledge and sharing related to this program. I have a question I haven’t been able to get an answer to. Hypothetically, assuming a student is accepted to the KSSP, if there post undergrad plans change (either during undergrad or after graduation), are they liable for returning any or all of the scholarship? I’ve heard that the “contract” they receive says something about having to apply to 12 or so phd or md/phd programs but have never heard about what happens if those plans change or life happens for the student? Thanks
@Dmoneydad I just read through my daughter’s contact and I see only 2 instances where they note that a refund of the scholarship must occur and that is if a student does not finish the summer bridge program or attends summer bridge program, but does not attend Howard during the fall semester (refund of the summer session costs in both cases).
All of the other wording in the contract talks about either “reduction or forfeiture of funding and/or dismissal” from the scholarship program. I don’t know for certain what happens however (the 1st cohort group of students are currently finishing up junior year). If a student decides to change their major to a non-STEM major, the student would lose scholarship funding. But some students in the program have 2 majors (at least one has to be STEM) which is okay.
Thanks @ChangeTheGame. I also wonder if the student ends up not wanting to pursue a md/phd, but opts for just an MD, if applying to the joint programs but not attending would satisfy the program requirements?
@Dmoneydad, in the contract, it just says that scholars will be required to apply to at least 13 doctoral programs in their STEM discipline. There are no other requirements listed in the contract around further schooling.
Social media Post says not coming out today.
“The application response this year has been outstanding. We are in the process of continuing our review of a very strong pool of applicants. Semi-Finalists will not be notified today as reported on @hu24_center. Today was originally intended to be the date. Semi-finalist will be notified and invited to Selection Weekend by the end of this month. “
I just saw the IG post and was going to report but see that you took care of that @bala2425. Thank you for keeping everyone posted. I am sure this next 7 days will move slowly, but the decision is coming…
I don’t think the dates will slip much. They had 140 at Selection Weekend last year and I think they under estimated the appeal of the program. I know they learned some lessons from last year. Also until recently Mr. Smith was understaffed but with the infusion of funding and taking time to find the right people I think he has found a good crew. Just realize no matter what happens, your young person is top notch. If you do make it to Selection Weekend, you will find that it is not necessarily about academics anymore, but the individual. All of the kids will tend to have high ACT scores, high GPA’s, many extracurriculars, etc. Many will be Valedictorian or Salutatorian of their classes. The keys to success are a) be yourself, b) enjoy the moment, and c) walk in Faith! Finally, the math exam kind of surprised a number of the young people and many of them had taken several AP math courses. All of this occurred right before the interviews (which probably did not help). My daughter did not find out she made Selection Weekend until three days before because her file was accidently placed in the wrong pile. Hang in there!
