The English Department offers many different scholarships including both merit and need based opportunities. Students may also participate in internship opportunities.

Internships

Internships can provide valuable experience for students in their field of study. It allows students to experience what working in their field will look like once they graduate. Internships encourage students to create connections in their field and with potential future employers.

Finding an Internship

There are many ways to find an internship that is right for you. Some of the ways to find an internship are:

• Contact Chair Gary Rees or your academic advisor.
• Visit Career Services at Decker Hall for further information.
• Contact a business or organization you would like to work at about internship opportunities.

Some places that Bemidji State students have interned at in the past include many of the publishing presses in Minneapolis/St. Paul such as Coffee House Press, Graywolf Press, Milkweed Press and the Minnesota Historical Society. Your professors may have more information about these opportunities.

How to Apply

To apply for all English Department Scholarships, students should use the BSU Foundation’s online scholarship portal and follow the same procedure as when applying for university-wide scholarships. To apply, fill out the foundation scholarship to be eligible for both the English scholarships and over 400 university scholarships. The due date for all scholarship applications is February 1^st. Applicants will be automatically considered for the English department scholarships as long as their major is listed as English in their BSU student record. The recipients of each English Department scholarship will be notified by May. Please send any questions to Scholarship Committee Chair Dr. Jessica Durgan.

Departmental Scholarship List

Dr. Ann Moore Flowers Scholarship – $1000

Criteria: Student majoring in Creative & Professional Writing.

Elaine Hazard Scholarship – $400

Criteria: Sophomore, Junior or Senior (next academic year) declared major in English with a concentration or emphasis in writing with a minimum GPA of 3.0.

Kathryn, Fred and Mabel Hamm Scholarship – $1,000

Criteria: Sophomore, Junior, Senior (next academic year) in any major with minimum 3.5 GPA, financial need, who demonstrates a high level of reading and writing competence. Applicants should exhibit leadership, a demonstrated commitment to learn and a strong interest in securing a college education. Applicant should also be in need of additional financial need. There is a preference given to students who demonstrate a high level of reading and writing competence.

Margaret Shepard-Thorbeck Scholarship – $200

Criteria: Scholarship awarded to an outstanding English major.

Phillip Sauer Scholarship – $900

Criteria: Senior (next academic year) who is one of the top students in the English major.

Ruth Stenerson Scholarship – $500

Criteria: Junior (next academic year) English major with highest GPA.

Sadie Rosenthall Jackson Melby Scholarship – $300

Criteria: Major in English and/or Creative Writing, to help defray costs of tuition. Students should be known to the selection committee to have a strong interest and talent in the field, as well as academic ability at a level that warrants scholarship support.

William D. Elliott Creative Writing Scholarship – $1000

Criteria: Sophomore or Junior English majors. Senior English majors and first-year graduate students will receive consideration if they will be graduate students at Bemidji State the following year. A GPA of 3.0 or higher in English is required. One or two $500 scholarships will be awarded, which will be applied to the student’s tuition and fees in the next academic year. The recipients shall be recognized each year during English Week at a ceremony and reading sponsored by the College of Arts and Letters.

The deadline is announced each spring in classes and on Verb_L, a list-serv for English majors. Submit a letter of application verifying eligibility, along with a sample manuscript (typed: 1-12 poems, one short story, one creative non-fiction piece, one chapter of a novel, one screenplay or one act of a play). Deliver to Bangsberg Reception Desk (2nd Floor).

This scholarship was established to recognize the contribution of Professor William D. Elliott, English Dept faculty member 1967-87, and founder of the Upper Midwest Writers Conference (1969). The award is made annually to recognize excellence in creative writing.

Celeste Jacobson Sperl and Duane A. Sperl Scholarship – $1000

Criteria: Recipient shall be an English major. Preference given to a student in their 2nd year or 3rd semester at BSU with a 3.0 GPA or higher and whose hometown population is 3,000 or less.