Requirements

College/School Eligibility:

  • Agriculture and Life Sciences
  • Brooks School of Public Policy
  • Architecture, Art and Planning
  • Arts and Sciences
  • Bowers CIS
  • Engineering
  • Human Ecology
  • Industrial and Labor Relations
  • SC Johnson Business - Dyson
  • SC Johnson Business - Hotel
  • SC Johnson Business - Johnson

Class Year Eligibility:

  • Fourth Year + (undergrad)

Open to:

  • Cornell Undergraduate Students

GPA Requirements:

Minimum GPA: 3.70

Please note: The Marshall Scholarship requires a Cornell endorsement to be nominated to the national competition. In order to be considered for an endorsement, a candidate must submit all application materials to the Office of Fellowships by 1pm ET on August 1, 2025. 

Application Information:

Applicants must receive endorsement from their undergraduate academic institution. Cornell endorsement is given by the Cornell Endorsement Committee for the Marshall Scholarship and coordinated by the Office of Fellowships. 

 

To apply for Cornell's endorsement, a candidate must submit all application materials in the official Marshall application portal no later than August 1, 2025 at 1pm ET. The candidate's 3 letters of recommendation must be sent to ccs-fellowships@cornell.edu by the same deadline. 

Applicants must also look carefully at the official Marshall website and rules for candidates.  There are very specific instructions on how to select a degree program and other instructions that a candidate must read through before starting an application. 

 

Following institutional endorsement, candidates apply to national Regional Committees. After examining the applications, Regional Committees invite selected finalists for personal interviews in November, and winners are announced shortly thereafter.

 

Interested applicants, after doing some research of their own, are urged particularly to schedule a meeting with the Cornell contact for the Marshall Scholarship, Clare Jones, ckj23@cornell.edu.

Candidates must:

  • be citizens of the United States (at the time they apply for a scholarship);
  • receive their first undergraduate degree from an accredited four-year college or university in the United States before beginning their studies in the UK
  • have obtained a grade point average of not less than 3.7 at the time of application
  • not have studied for or hold a degree or degree-equivalent qualification from a British University.
  • not have studied for or hold a degree or degree-equivalent qualification from a British University.

 

Candidate Profile:

  • Intellectual distinction, strong motivation, and a mature character
  • Rationale for pursuing your chosen program of study at a particular university in the U.K.
  • Preparedness for rigorous, independent graduate study
  • Potential to make a significant contribution to society and to one’s field of study
  • Demonstrated leadership and community involvement that denotes courage, self-awareness, strength of purpose, creativity, and the ability to deliver results
  • Desire to act as a U.S. cultural ambassador to the U.K. and to understand the "special relationship" between the U.K. and U.S.

 

Application Components:

  • Online application, including 5 short written components:
    • 750 word Personal Statement
    • 150 word Post-Scholarship Plan essay
    • 500 word Proposed Academic Programme essay
    • 500 word Leadership essay
    • 500 word Ambassador Potential Essay
  • Certified transcript(s)
  • Three letters of recommendation
    • one preferred recommender (this is your primary academic mentor)
    • one general (should be academic) recommender
    • one focused on leadership

 

Special Eligibility Requirements:

See further the official selection criteria on the Marshall website.

 

Restrictions to Use of Award:

See official Marshall rules for candidates for details, including a list of ineligible degree courses.

Marshall Scholarships cannot be deferred.

 

Contact Information:

For questions about this application, please contact Clare Jones at ckj23@cornell.edu