Below are several scholarships offered or managed through the UW.

Mary Gates Scholarships

Summary:  The Mary Gates Endowment for Students supports University of Washington undergraduates to become independent learners and community leaders. Initially established with a $10 million gift and reinvested in 1999 with an additional $10 million, the Mary Gates Endowment for Students is one of the largest endowments at the University of Washington. Annual proceeds are dedicated exclusively to undergraduates. The Mary Gates Endowment provides four kinds of scholarships that support and enrich undergraduate students’ learning.

1. Honors Scholarships support new UW undergraduates, identified and selected through the Honors Program application process, to fully engage in their studies and other personally enriching activities by funding two years of their tuition and book costs.
2. Research Scholarships enable students from a wide range of disciplines to deepen their involvement in work with faculty on research, curricular design, the creative arts, and other forms of scholarly endeavor.
3. Leadership Scholarships are designed to foster students’ growth as leaders by supporting them to pursue a challenge or project, often focused on public service in the community or on campus.
4. Innovation Scholarships enable students interested in entrepreneurship in their field of interest to work in faculty-led start-up companies.

Mary Gates Leadership Scholarship

Summary: Mary Gates Leadership Scholarships encourage undergraduate students to develop their leadership abilities through practical experience, personal reflection and in community with mentors and peers.

Eligibility:   Applicants must be matriculated UW undergraduate students registered full time during the award period and pursuing a bachelor’s degree at the UW Bothell, Seattle or Tacoma campus. You are eligible to apply even if you are not enrolled full-time during your quarter of application (Autumn) as the full-time enrollment requirement only applies to the quarter(s) in which you receive the award.  Once awarded, recipients must be actively engaged in their leadership project and remain full-time undergraduate students (enrolled in 12 credits or more) during their award period. During summer quarter, students only need to be enrolled for one credit to receive their award. This only applies to students who select Summer quarter as one of their quarters of award.

Funding Amount:    Applications are accepted once per year, every Autumn Quarter. The scholarships are $5,000 and disburse in installments of $2,500 each over two quarters. You can choose two of quarters between Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn of the following year. Graduating seniors with one quarter left of enrollment may request to receive a one-quarter award totaling $2,500.

Application Open and Due Date:   **Autumn 2025  Important Note: We are moving to one application cycle per academic year, so the Autumn 2025 application cycle will be the only application cycle in the academic year 2025-2026. Over 100 Research Scholarships and over 50 Leadership Scholarships will be awarded in this cycle.

Mary Gates Research Scholarship

Summary: Mary Gates Research Scholarships are competitive scholarships intended to enhance the educational experiences of undergraduate students at the University of Washington while they are engaged in research guided by faculty. 

Eligibility:   Applicants must be matriculated UW undergraduate students registered full time during the award period and pursuing a bachelor’s degree at the UW Bothell, Seattle or Tacoma campus. You are eligible to apply even if you are not enrolled full-time during your quarter of application (Autumn) as the full-time enrollment requirement only applies to the quarter(s) in which you receive the award.  Once awarded, recipients must be actively engaged in their leadership project and remain full-time undergraduate students (enrolled in 12 credits or more) during their award period. During summer quarter, students only need to be enrolled for one credit to receive their award. This only applies to students who select Summer quarter as one of their quarters of award.

Funding Amount:   Applications are accepted once per year, every Autumn Quarter. The scholarships are $5,000 and disburse in installments of $2,500 each over two quarters. You can choose two of quarters between Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn of the following year. Graduating seniors with one quarter left of enrollment may request to receive a one-quarter award totaling $2,500.

Application Open and Due Date: Autumn 2025   Important Note: We are moving to one application cycle per academic year, so the Autumn 2025 application cycle will be the only application cycle in the academic year 2025-2026. Over 100 Research Scholarships and over 50 Leadership Scholarships will be awarded in this cycle.

Fulbright U.S. Student Program

Summary: The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is the largest U.S. exchange program offering opportunities for students and young professionals to undertake international graduate study, advanced research, university teaching, and primary and secondary school teaching worldwide. The program currently awards approximately 1,900 grants annually in all fields of study, and operates in more than 155 countries worldwide. All students are encouraged to consider this great opportunity, whether as part of your academic program or outside of it.

Eligibility:   U.S. citizens (international students should go to the Fulbright Foreign Student Program website). Master’s or doctoral degree student, professional degree student (without a Ph.D.), graduating senior, or alumni who hold at least a bachelor’s degree but not a Ph.D.. In good health

Funding Amount:   Grant amounts vary but include round-trip transportation to the host country, funding to cover room, board, and incidental costs, based on the cost of living in the host country, and Accident & Sickness Health Benefits.

Due Date:  Current UW graduate students must apply through the UW campus process and meet our earlier campus deadline. The UW campus deadline for the 2026–2027 Fulbright U.S. student competition is August 27, 2025. Although the official Fulbright deadline is later, currently enrolled students MUST complete and submit all application materials by our earlier deadline. 

Tillman Military Scholarship

Summary: The mission of the Pat Tillman Foundation is to invest in active and veteran military service members and their spouses through educational scholarships; building a diverse community of leaders committed to service to others. This is accomplished with the Tillman Military Scholars (TMS) program, which aims to identify high-impact active or veteran service members and their spouses and invest in their higher education, covering the needs left unpaid for by the GI Bill and other government support.

Eligibility:   

Who is Eligible?

The Tillman Scholar program is open to applicants who meet the following criteria:

• Veteran and active duty military service members from all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces including the National Guard who have served in both pre-and post-9/11 eras.
• Current Spouses of veteran or active service members, including surviving spouses

Spouses, veterans and service members who apply must be a full-time* student pursuing one of the following degrees at a public or private, U.S.-based, accredited institution for the upcoming fall/spring academic year:

• • A full-time undergraduate degree (No certificates or associate’s degree) 
  • A full-time graduate or professional degree (No certificates or associate’s degree) 
  • You do not need to be attending a University Partnered school to apply. See video in regards to the University Partnered vs At-Large process for more information.

Funding Amount:    The average amount of scholarship awarded to our Tillman Scholars is around $10,000 per academic year. Scholarship funds may be used to cover either academic or living expenses and exclude the following: investments, vacation travel, business expenses or personal entertainment.

Due Date:  February