Alexander Graham Bell Scholarship

AG Bell College Scholarship Awards Program

The Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AG Bell) offers several scholarships for full-time students who are deaf and hard of hearing and who are pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree at an accredited mainstream college or university.

This is a merit-based scholarship program with award selection being extremely competitive. While the number and value of awards varies from year to year. In 2010, 144 eligible applications were received and 18 awards were granted, which ranged from $1,000 to $10,000.


2011 College Scholarship Program Eligibility Criteria

In order to be eligible for this program, applicants must meet all of the following criteria:

• Spoken communication must be the applicant's primary mode of communication.
• Hearing loss must have been diagnosed before the applicant’s fourth birthday.
• Hearing loss must be bilateral and in the moderate to profound range. Applicants must have an unaided Pure-Tone Average (PTA) of 60dB or greater in the better-hearing ear in the speech frequencies of 500, 1000 and 2000 Hz. Applicants with cochlear implants meet this eligibility requirement. Unilateral (one-sided) hearing loss does not qualify.

Formula for calculating the PTA
On the unaided audiogram, look at the results for the better hearing ear at 500, 1000 and 2000 Hz and add those three numbers together, then divide that total by three. The result is the Pure Tone Average. To be eligible for this award, the applicant’s PTA must be 60 or greater.

• Applicant must be enrolled in or have applied to a mainstream and accredited college/university as a full-time student.
• Applicants in the United States must have a minimum cumulative un-weighted GPA of 3.25 on a 4.0 scale (equivalent minimums: 4.06 on a 5.0 scale or 81.25 on a scale of 100). For high school seniors, this is a cumulative GPA for grades 9-11 and the first semester of grade 12. For college freshman, this is cumulative GPA for grades 9-12 and the first semester of college. For college sophomores or higher, it is the cumulative GPA on your college transcript for all semesters completed.

Students applying from countries other than the United States
Applicants must have a minimum 80% cumulative on their high school or secondary school transcripts.  For college outside of the United States, applicants must have a ranking equivalent to a minimum 3.25 GPA; for example, in the UK, Australia and India, a minimum of an Upper Second Class ranking is required.

PLEASE NOTE: We are very strict with the eligibility criteria. Without exception, applications that do not meet all of the criteria are screened out of the process and are not considered for an award.


Application

Click here for an application packet.


Application Deadline

The deadline for applications is March 15, 2011. All materials must arrive together in one package at AG Bell by 5 p.m. Eastern Time on March 15, 2011. Only transcripts sent directly from the educational institution will be accepted separately from the application.

Application package should be mailed/delivered to:
         2011 College Scholarship Program
         AG Bell
         3417 Volta Place, NW
         Washington, DC  20007

Please Note:

• AG Bell does not confirm receipt of applications. If you would like to know whether or not your application was received, you may choose to send your application using a service that can confirm delivery; please do not require a signature upon delivery. AG Bell does not accept any responsibility nor make exceptions for any delays that may occur due to delivery confirmation or a signature requirement.
• Late and incomplete applications will not be considered under any circumstances.
• Faxed applications will not be accepted under any circumstances.
• Applicants are encouraged to keep a photocopy of their application.
• Applications will not be returned for any reason.
• Please do not contact AG Bell seeking an exception.

Administrative Processes

In the weeks after the application deadline, all applications are screened for eligibility. Eligible applications are then forwarded to the award selection committee for review. Ineligible applications will be discarded.

Once the screening process is complete, applicants will be notified via email of the status of their applications – either the application is not eligible, or the application is being reviewed by the award selection committee. Applicants will also receive information about when they can expect to receive information about the award decisions.

Applicants not selected to receive an award will be notified by email only. Applicants selected to receive an award will be notified by email and will receive the award check in August 2011.