Faculty & Staff Resources

Faculty and staff support is vital to the process of identifying and developing candidates for nationally competitive awards as well as writing captivating letters of recommendation.

If you know a student who excels both inside and outside the classroom who may be interested in learning more about fellowship opportunities, please complete this NOMINATION FORM so that we can reach out.

Successful applicant characteristics vary greatly by award, but candidates typically have a 3.5+ GPA (or even a 3.9-4.0 for awards like Goldwater and Rhodes) and have chosen challenging coursework. Students should be passionate and have clear goals for their future. Extracurricular involvement, leadership, and service are also critical components to a winning application.

Are you working on a candidate letter of recommendation? Writing a letter of recommendation for a student applying to a prestigious national award can be a daunting task as each award has a different focus. Use the links below for guidance. If you need further assistance in writing your letter, please contact nationally competitive awards staff at nationalawards@iastate.edu or (515) 294-0172. 

We have created the form below as a resource for letter writers. Please feel free to share the link with any students who have requested a letter to gather more information and aid in writing a stronger letter of support. Once the student submits the form, the letter writer will receive an email prompt containing all of the responses.

Recommendation/Nomination Letter Request Form

Award-Specific Guidance

Use the links below to find information tailored to reference writers for the following awards.