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IEEE Computer Society offers $40,000 in student scholarships to recognize and reward active student volunteers in IEEE Student Branches or IEEE Computer Society Student Branch Chapters who show promise in their academic and professional efforts. Students are eligible for up to US $1,000.
Created in honor of the late Richard E. Merwin, past president of the IEEE Computer Society, to recognize and reward student leadership.
Winners serve as IEEE Computer Society Student Ambassadors for one year serving as a liaison between the IEEE Computer Society leadership and student members in their region.
Application deadlines: 30 April and 30 September of each year.
Undergraduate and graduate students in electrical or computer engineering, computer science, or a well-defined computer related field of engineering who are active members of the Computer Society. Undergraduate students must be in the final two years of an undergraduate program.
IEEE Computer Society membership for at least three (3) months prior to the application deadline is required. Students applying should have a minimum one year in which to complete their degree, or be considering or enrolled to immediately start further study upon completion.
Applicants are required to have a minimum grade point average of 2.5 / 4.0 (or exam marks of at least 60%), and be a full-time student as defined by his or her academic institution during the course of the award. Recipients of the Computer Society's Richard Merwin or UPE/CS award for the previous year (13 months) are not eligible.
Evaluation criteria include participation in student IEEE branch/chapter activities (30%), academic achievement (30%), extracurricular activities (10%), letter of recommendation from student branch/chapter advisor (20%), and quality of Student Ambassador vision statement (10%).
A minimum GPA of 2.5 / 4.0 is required. GPA's based on percentages and NOT a 4.0 grading scale, must include mark sheets to notate how the GPA was calculated
Students should get a letter from their Student Branch Chapter Adviser or Student Branch Counselor. If this is not feasible they can substitute a letter from the Section Computer Society Chapter Chair. The option of a letter from the Section Computer Society Chapter Chair is intended to allow a letter of support in cases where a student's activities occur outside their Student Chapter, for example Graduate Student Members whose primary volunteering is serving on the Section Chapter committee. These letters should come from the faculty advisors associated with the student branch or chapter; officers of any associated professional chapter or section should not be involved in vetting, reviewing or approving these references. Students may also submit a 2nd letter of reference, which may come from anyone else familiar with your efforts in an IEEE context. If you have questions about this or other aspects of the application process you can submit a query to chapters@computer.org.
All recipients of the Richard E. Merwin Student Scholarship are required to submit progress reports at two key intervals following their award—six months and twelve months post-receipt. These reports should detail the recipient’s activities as an IEEE Computer Society Student Ambassador, including contributions to their IEEE Student Branch or Chapter, outreach efforts, and any initiatives undertaken to enhance student engagement in the society. Additionally, winners should provide updates on their academic progress and professional development. These reports ensure accountability and help track the impact of the scholarship program while allowing winners to showcase their leadership and continued involvement.
Access the report here.
