The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation was established by Congress in 1986 to serve as a living memorial to honor the lifetime work of Senator Barry Goldwater, who served his country for 56 years as a soldier and statesman, including 30 years in the U.S. Senate.

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By providing scholarships to college sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering, the Goldwater Foundation is helping ensure that the U.S. is producing the number of highly-qualified professionals the Nation needs in these critical fields.

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Over its 30-year history, Goldwater Scholarships have been awarded to thousands of undergraduates, many of whom have gone on to win other prestigious awards like the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Fellowship, Rhodes Scholarship, Churchill Scholarship and the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship that support our Scholars’ graduate school work.

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Today, Goldwater alumni can be found conducting research that is helping defend the Nation, finding cures for catastrophic diseases and teaching future generations of scientists, mathematicians and engineers.

• Accredited 2- and 4-year U.S. academic institutions that have a Foundation identified Goldwater Campus Representative may nominate up to four currently or previously matriculated students annually. A student may not be nominated by more than one institution in a competition cycle. A four-year school may nominate a 5th student if one or more of the nominated students is a transfer student. No direct student applications or nominations by campuses without a Goldwater Campus Representative will be considered.

To be eligible for nomination for a Goldwater Scholarship, a student must:

• Be a matriculated sophomore or junior pursuing a degree at an accredited 2- or 4-year institution of higher education and be a full-time matriculated student during the academic terms when receiving scholarship support from the Foundation.
• Intend to pursue a research career in a natural science, mathematics or engineering,1
• Have a college grade point average of at least a 3.00 on a 4.00 scale 2, and
• Be a U.S. citizen or national from the 50 States, District of Columbia, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Palau, and any other territory or possession of the United States; or a permanent resident. A permanent resident must submit a photocopy of their Permanent Resident Card, also known as a Green Card.
• The natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics fields and sub-fields used by the Goldwater Foundation to determine eligibility are those used by the National Science Foundation for its Graduate Research Fellowship Program. These include: Chemistry, Computer and Information Sciences and Engineering, Engineering, Geosciences, Life Sciences, Materials Research, Mathematical Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, and Psychology. To view a field’s sub-fields, click on the field in the table below.
• While research in medicine is not supported by the National Science Foundation, students interested in pursuing careers in medicine or veterinary medicine are eligible for a Goldwater Scholarship IF RESEARCH IS A CENTRAL PART OF THE STUDENT’S CAREER GOALS.
• In the 2022 Goldwater competition, GPAs ranged from 3.53 to 4.91 on a 4.0 scale.