For tips on requesting faculty recommendations, please visit the Faculty Recommendations subpage, linked here.

Please send all questions regarding scholarships and awards listed below to Carrie Lewis at clewis@msu.edu.

Recommendations are required for the following awards: 

College of Arts & Letters Outstanding Senior Achievement Award and Alumni Award for Undergraduate Excellence

Eligible students must have a primary major in the College of Arts & Letters, 3.5 or above GPA and expect to graduate any semester of the current calendar year (Spring, Summer or Fall). An award of $1000 will be given to the Outstanding Senior recipient, and special recognition to the Undergraduate Excellence recipient. The College of Arts & Letters will then send all applications to the appropriate department chairperson for endorsement. Only those applications endorsed by department chairs will be considered.

Louis B. Sudler Prize in the Arts

Applicants must be seniors with a major in one of the following areas: performing and creative arts, including the fine arts, music, creative writing, theatre, and electronic/photographic arts. Department faculty will submit nomination letters for this award, and nominated students will then be contacted to submit an essay and further application materials. The amount of the award depends on available funds. The Sudler Prize is a cash award. 

Hart-Davidson Memorial Scholarship

Students enrolled in the College of Arts & Letters will be eligible for this award. Preference will be given to first generation students. Additional preference will be given to those who have demonstrated an interest in activities beyond their required coursework related to the arts and humanities, including, but not limited to, internships, participation in MSU-sponsored organizations, volunteer work, etc.

Alumni Endowed Student Book Scholarship

Several $500 book scholarships are available to students whose primary major is within the College of Arts & Letters. Applicants must be of sophomore, junior, or senior status with a record of academic excellence, particularly in the College of Arts and Letters courses. 

The Marian Lee Aylesworth Award in Arts & Letters

Applicants must be a primary major in the College of Arts and Letters with a minimum GPA of 3.5. Preference will be given to students majoring in English with membership in the Honors College. The amount of the award depends on available funds. The award will be credited during the following fall tuition payment process. 

 

Recommendations are not required for the following awards: 

Arts and Letters Alumni Endowed Scholarship

Undergraduate students enrolled full or part time in the College of Arts and Letters and demonstrate academic achievement and financial need are eligible for this award. 

The Audrey and John Leslie Endowed Scholarship in Arts and Letters

This scholarship is based on financial need. Financial aid application must be on file with MSU (The Office of Financial Aid office will provide financial need determination).

Applicants must be a primary major in the College of Arts & Letters with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, be in their sophomore year when applying (28-55 credits earned), and be of junior status (56-87 credits earned) the semester following receipt of the award. Assuming the recipient maintains academic eligibility, he or she may reapply for the scholarship for a second consecutive year; if the second year is the student’s senior year the recipient may reapply for the scholarship to support graduate study in a program offered by the College of Arts & Letters. The amount of the award depends on the funds available. The award will be credited during the following fall tuition payment process. 

The Drs. Larry Landrum and Nancy Pogel Endowed Scholarship in Arts and Letters

Eligible students must be undergraduate students with an academic major in the College of Arts & Letters, with preference is given to students who are from underrepresented groups within the College of Arts & Letters or whose presence in the College of Arts & Letters otherwise promotes diversity, and who demonstrate academic achievement and financial need. 

Grand Hotel Endowed Scholarship for Arts and Letters

The goal of this scholarship is to enable as many Arts and Letters students as possible to participate in create activities both in classes and in co-curricular activities and to reward students who endeavor to enrich their lives through creativity. Therefore, this scholarship will be awarded to students in CAL who wish to explore creative pursuits as part of their educational experience at MSU.

Eligible students must be undergraduate students with an academic major in the College of Arts & Letters. 

Henry and Dolores Walczak Memorial Scholarship

This scholarship is open to undergraduate students pursuing a major or minor in the College of Arts & Letters.

Preference will be given to students who meet the following criteria in order of priority:
– Foster youth alumni attending MSU, as well as students who were in kinship care, have experienced homelessness, or are otherwise independent.
– Demonstrate financial need.
– Have a minimum GPA of 2.5.

Jon H. Saari Student Scholarship for the College of Arts and Letters

Applicants must be a major in the College of Arts and Letters with financial need, as determined by Federal Student Aid. 

Kyle Kehus Endowed Scholarship 

Applicants must be juniors or seniors enrolled in CAL and pursuing a major in one of the following departments: English, Philosophy, African American and African Studies, Linguistics, Languages, & Cultures, Religious Studies, or Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures.

Preference will be given to students who meet one or more of the following criteria in order of priority:
1) Demonstrated commitment to civil liberties, such as but not limited to equity, racial justice, free speech, religious freedoms, tolerance, and privacy as indicated through current or past employment, extracurricular activities, volunteering or a personal statement.
2) Demonstrated financial need.
3) Graduated from a high school located in an urban city.
4) Minimum GPA of 3.5

Lisa K. Lipinski Scholarship for Arts and Letters

CAL students with a 3.0 minimum GPA are eligible for this award. Preference will be given to students pursuing a degree in foreign languages, English, philosophy, theatre, art, or art history, to prepare for a career in the arts. 

Maria Lourdes Rios and Israel J. Gongora Endowed Scholarship

Undergraduate students with financial need pursuing a major offered within the College of Arts and Letters will be eligible for this award. Preference will be given to those students who have experienced hardships as a result of war, conflict or political oppression such as but not limited to disruption in their education, loss of home, family death, or community destruction as indicated in a personal statement.

The Nora Sager Stackhouse Endowed Scholarship in Arts and Letters

Applicants must be a primary major in the College of Arts & Letters, a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, be in their sophomore year (28-55 credits earned), and be of junior status (56-87 credits earned) the semester following receipt of the award. The amount of the award depends on the funds available. The award will be credited during the following fall tuition payment process. 

William J. and Pamela A. Lowe Detroit Endowed Scholarship

Current or incoming students with CAL majors who are city of Detroit residents and currently or previously attended/graduated from a public, charter or private high school in the Detroit city limits, with a preference to 3.0-3.75 GPA range are eligible for this award.