Beckman Scholar Selection Process & Eligibility

Selection Process

Each spring semester, eligible students are invited to apply for the Beckman Scholars program. The extensive online application consists of a personal data page, 3 one-page essays (Essay A, Essay B, and Essay C), a one page bibliography  for Essay B,  a one page short story (following a prompt), an unofficial transcript, and a recommendation form. The essays, bibliography, short story, and transcript should all be combined and uploaded as a single PDF into the application portal. 

This year the application will open at 9 am on Tuesday January 17, 2023.  Your application is due at 9 AM on Tuesday February 28, 2023.

Reference form guidelines: 

The Beckman  Scholars Program application requires a reference to be submitted on your behalf. The reference is a brief form, rather than a recommendation letter. Please provide the name and email address of the TAMU faculty or staff member who will be providing your reference. An email immediately be sent to the email address provided, so please ensure that you enter the correct TAMU email address.

You are welcome to use a professor, research advisor, student organization advisor, employer/manager, Teaching Assistant, PI, or another mentor who can speak to your academic and/or leadership abilities. THE PERSON WRITING THE RECOMMENDATION FORM MUST HAVE A UIN AND NET-ID. THEY MUST BE CURRENTLY EMPLOYED BY TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY - COLLEGE STATION. GRADUATE STUDENTS ARE ACCEPTABLE REFERENCE FORM WRITERS IF THEY HAVE INSTRUCTED YOU AS A TEACHING ASSISTANT OR MENTORED YOU IN A RESEARCH CONTEXT. A TEXAS A&M UNDERGRADUATE IS NOT ABLE TO WRITE A REFERENCE FORM FOR YOU UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. 

You are responsible for ensuring that your reference is submitted by 9 am on March 1, 2023. Any application not supported by a reference will not be considered. 

Additional application guidelines: 
 
  • Your Essay A, Essay B, Essay C, and Short Story each must be formatted in the following way before being combined as a single PDF: one page, single spaced, and Times New Roman, 12 point font size. You must also include a works cited formatted in the style of your choice for your Essay B. 
  • Your essays, bibliography, story and transcript should be combined into one PDF and uploaded into the portal. 
  • All documents must be PDF files and will not be uploaded if they are not.
  • If you have not saved the previous sections, please click the Previous button and do so before exiting the application.
Application is located at: http://launchportal.tamu.edu/ 

Essay A: Who are you? Do not include your name or anything on your resume/CV in your response. Think about what you have chosen to invest in and why, or how you think of yourself.
 
Essay B: Describe a problem or a need in society that you would like to address in your life after college and present possible solutions. Define the magnitude of this problem with data, statistics and quotes from authorities.
 
Essay C:  You are in charge of selecting the seven people to crew a spacecraft for the first one-way trip to Mars to set up a colony. The next set of people will not arrive for two years. All the crew are expected to stay on Mars to found the colony. The following four have already been chosen (all are in excellent physical and mental health with no known genetic or other illnesses or diseases):
 
  1. A black male in his 40’s, emergency room physician with extensive training and expertise in outdoor/adventure and extreme sports medicine.
  2. A Hispanic male in his early 30’s, clinical psychologist and family counselor with training and expertise in yoga, meditation, and physical fitness.
  3. An Asian female in her early 30’s, agricultural expert and master gardener with expertise in nutrition and excellent cooking skills.
  4. A white female in her late 20’s, mechanical and computer engineer with extensive training in set up and maintenance of the Mars modules for living and working.
 
What are the selection criteria you will use for each of the remaining three people and why? What knowledge, skills, and abilities will each one need to have for the team to have a successful mission?

Story: Write a short story using the following first and last sentences
 
First Sentence: “What on earth were you thinking of?”
 
Last Sentence: “The paper fluttered away with the breeze.”
 
Transcript: Download a copy of your unofficial transcript and combined it with all of your documents (Essays, Short Story, Bibliography.


Eligibility

To be invited to apply for the Beckman Scholars program, students must
  1. Be a US Citizen or Permanent resident.
  2. Be majoring in Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, or Engineering with an intent to major in Biomedical Engineering, Genetics, Microbiology, Molecular and Cell Biology, Neuroscience, Physics, or Zoology.
  3. Be a second semester Freshman at Texas A&M University-College Station
  4. Have established a cumulative GPR of 3.5 or better
  5. Be willing to make a substantial commitment to undergraduate research starting the summer after their freshmen year through spring of your senior year (three years) or until graduation with a Bachelor's degree, whichever comes first.
Criteria

The Beckman selection committee looks for candidates who demonstrate​​:
  • intellectual curiosity and adaptability
  • a depth of critical thinking and self-awareness
  • poise, maturity, and professionalism
  • the ability to engage in rigorous conversation
  • a sincere interest in and curiosity about research (prior research experience is NOT required)
Timeline
  • Applications will open January 17, 2023.
  • Application deadline is 9 am February 28, 2023. 
  • Reference form must be submitted by 9 am CST on March 1, 2023. 
  • Semi-finalists are notified in late March.
  • Interviews: April 6-13, 2023.
  • Final Decisions: Sent out by May 10, 2023.