GRADUATE Applications for AY 2025 Due by Monday, May 20th at midnight.

UNDERGRADUATE application deadline: May 27th at midnight.

Undergraduate Scholarships

The Shuart Scholarships

• Maud Smith Paddock Undergraduate/Graduate Scholarship - 5,000
  
• Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship - 5,000

The Eichhorn Scholarship

• Patricia A. Eichhorn Endowed Scholarship for Returning Students - $500

Graduate Scholarships

The Shuart Scholarships

• Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship - $5,000
• Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship - $5,000
• Patricia A. Eichhorn Endowed Scholarship for Returning Students - $500

FWGSS Funding

• Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Graduate Certificate Travel Grant - up to $750/grant

Essay Prizes

• Friends of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Graduate Student Essay Prize - $500
• Friends of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Undergraduate Student Essay Prize - $500

Undergraduate Scholarships 

The Shuart Scholarships

Maud Smith Paddock Undergraduate Scholarship - $5,000

Awarded to a rising junior or senior who has completed at least two WGSS courses.

Requirements

• Minimum GPA of 3.0
• Full-time or part-time student (Award may be split between two part-time students.)
• Both merit and financial need will be considered.

Application Materials

• Cover Sheet
• Current Transcript (need not be official, sealed transcript, but must be current)
• Biographical essay (200-400 words), including a description of your career plans and the impact of your WGSS courses on your work
• Two recommendations from people familiar with you and your work (may be included in packet or emailed by recommender directly to wgss@uh.edu with YOUR NAME and the word RECOMMENDATION in the subject line)
• Financial Aid Statement form
• Combine all materials (excluding recommendations) into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions outlined at the top of this page.

Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship - $5,000

Awarded to a rising junior or senior who has completed at least two WGSS courses OR a graduate student with at least two WGSS courses completed (WOST certificate preferred).

Requirements

• Minimum GPA of 3.0
• Full-time student taking 12 hours in the fall and spring semester of application
• Both merit and financial need will be considered.

Application Materials

• Cover Sheet
• Current Transcript (need not be official, sealed transcript, but must be current)
• Biographical essay (200-400 words), including a description of your career plans and the impact of your WGSS courses on your work
• Two recommendations from people familiar with you and your work (may be included in packet or emailed by recommender directly to wgss@uh.edu with YOUR NAME and the word RECOMMENDATION in the subject line)
• Financial Aid Statement form
• Combine all materials (excluding recommendations if coming separately) into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions outlined at the top of this page. 

Returning Student Scholarship

The Patricia A. Eichhorn Endowed Scholarship for Returning Students - $500 award

After raising five children, Patricia A. Eichhorn returned to school and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree with distinction. In recognition of her leadership in providing financial assistance to students in transition seeking a second chance to have a productive and rewarding career, her family established the scholarship through an endowed gift to the University of Houston.

This scholarship is in support of non-traditional, returning students who are furthering their education.  Finalists may be contacted for a personal interview.  Preference will be given to a student who demonstrates financial need; however, merit and motivation are also important considerations in selection for this scholarship.

Requirements

• Be a non-traditional student
• Applicants must be certified, degree-seeking students at UH. Candidates may be entering or re-entering a program.
• Recipients must enroll for a minimum of six credit hours of undergraduate or graduate studies for both fall and spring semesters.
• Recipients must maintain a GPA of 2.5 or better to receive the second payment.
• Preference will be given to students who demonstrate financial need.

Application Materials

• Cover Sheet
• Typed biographical essay of 200-400 words that includes the applicant’s educational goals and ways the scholarship would assist the applicant in attaining these goals
• A list of special honors or awards
• Financial Aid Statement form
• Transcripts (need not be official, sealed transcript, but must be current)
• Two letters of recommendation from educational or professional relationships (may be included in packet or emailed by recommender directly to wgss@uh.edu with YOUR NAME and the word RECOMMENDATION in the subject line)
• Combine all materials (excluding recommendations if coming separately) into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions outlined at the top of this page.

FWGSS Undergraduate Student Essay Prize

Friends of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Student Essay Prize - $500

The WGSS Program awards a prize of $500 to the best undergraduate essay on a WGSS topic. The prize is funded by the Friends of Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies.

Essays will be judged by a three-person committee appointed by the director of Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies. The committee will include two faculty members and a member of the Friends of Women's, Gender & Sexulaity Studies Board. The WGSS Program retains the right to not grant an award.

Requirements & Application Procedure

• Entrants may be students at UH, not necessarily a WGSS major or WOST or GLBT minor.
• Essays must be the student's own original work, written for a UH class in the academic year of the application. Course name, semester and professor's name must be indicated on essay.
• Electronic copies must be submitted to the Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies office at wgss@uh.edu, along with student's name, year, major/minor (if applicable), address, email and phone number. Please see submission instructions at the top of this page. 

Graduate Scholarships

The Shuart Scholarships

Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship - $5,000

Awarded to a graduate student working on a thesis or dissertation on a WGSS topic. Selection is based on the merit of the student's project and academic record.

Requirements

• Minimum GPA of 3.0
• Full-time student in both fall and spring semesters of fellowship

Application Materials

• Cover Sheet
• Summary of your project and its current status
• GRE Scores
• Current transcript covering all graduate coursework (need not be official, sealed transcript, but must be current)
• Two letters of recommendation from people familiar with you and your work (may be included in packet or emailed by recommender directly to wgss@uh.edu with YOUR NAME and the word RECOMMENDATION in the subject line)
• Combine all materials (excluding recommendations) into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions outlined at the top of this page.

Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship - $5,000

Awarded to a junior or senior, not necessarily a WGSS major or minor, who has completed at least two WGSS courses OR a graduate student with at least two WGSS courses completed (WOST certificate preferred).

Requirements

• Minimum GPA of 3.0
• Full-time student taking 12 hours in the fall and spring semester of application (or required hours if a grad student)
• Both merit and financial need will be considered.

Application Materials

• Cover Sheet
• Summary of your project and its current status
• GRE Scores
• Current transcript covering all graduate coursework (need not be official, sealed transcript, but must be current)
• Two letters of recommendation from people familiar with you and your work (may be included in packet or emailed by recommender directly to wgss@uh.edu with YOUR NAME and the word RECOMMENDATION in the subject line)
• Combine all materials (excluding recommendations) into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions outlined at the top of this page.

FWGSS Graduate Student Essay Prize

Friends of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Graduate Student Essay Prize - $500

The WGSS Program awards a prize of $500 to the best graduate essay on a WGSS topic. The prize is funded by the Friends of Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies. 

Essays will be judged by a three-person committee appointed by the director of Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies. The committee will include two faculty members and a member of the Friends of Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies Board. The WGSS Program retains the right to not grant an award.

Requirements & Application Procedure

• Entrants may be students in any UH department, not necessarily a WGSS Graduate Certificate student.
• Essays must be the student's own original work, written for a UH class in the academic year of the application. Course name, semester and professor's name must be indicated on essay.
• Electronic copies must be submitted to the Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies office at wgss@uh.edu, along with student's name, year, major/minor (if applicable), address, email and phone number. Please see submission instructions at the top of this page. 

WGSS Graduate Student Travel Grant - $750 max

Graduate students currently enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program at the University of Houston may apply for a limited number of supplemental travel funds in order to facilitate travel to professional conferences or for research projects on WGSS topics. Preference will be given to students who have completed or are currently enrolled in at least one course toward the Women’s Studies Graduate Certificate, but students need not be enrolled in the WS Graduate Certificate program in order to apply. The maximum amount awarded per student will be $750. Prior authorization from the University is required before travel.

1. Download the application. 
2. Combine all materials into a single pdf and submit to wgss@uh.edu following the Submission Instructions on the application.

Please contact the WGSS office for additional information or for applications.
Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program
Room 624 Agnes Arnold Hall
713.743.3214
wgss@uh.edu
http://www.friendsofwomen.org

Links to Forms:

• Cover Sheet
• Financial Aid Statement form
• Graduate Travel Funding Form

Past Winners - 2023-2024

Past Winners - 2022-2023

Undergraduate
Drew Yearwood (WGSS major)- Maud Smith Paddock Scholarship

Graduate Students
Heather Butina-Sutton (History/WGSS Graduate Certificate)- Blanche Espy Chenoweth Fellowship 
Rebecca Shields (Sociology) - Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Fellowship 

Past Winners - 2021-2022

Undergraduates
Sharon Anwana – H-E-B / WGSS Undergraduate Scholarship
Susy Flores – H-E-B / WGSS Undergraduate Scholarship
Austin Mitchell – Maud Smith Paddock Undergraduate Scholarship
Sarah Montero – H-E-B / WGSS Undergraduate  Scholarship 

Graduate Students
Grete Norquist – Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship
Sloan Rucker – Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship

Past Winners - 2020-2021

The Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship
Chelsey Cooper (Sociology M.A. program)

The Maud Paddock Smith Undergraduate Scholarship
Kristan Petrick (WGSS major)

The Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Undergraduate Scholarship
Justine Avery Singson (WGSS minor)

Our FWS 2019-2020 Essay Prizes winners:

BEST UNDERGRADUATE ESSAY
Jennifer Koshy (Anthropology major, WGSS minor) – for her essay, “Locked Up: Policies and Stereotypes That Reinforce the Juvenile Detention of Black Girls” (written for Prof. Quinn's class)
 
BEST GRADUATE ESSAY
Heather Butina-Sutton (History Ph.D. & WGSS Graduate Certificate student) – for her essay, “Yoruba Market Women in the Atlantic World: Tracing Profits and Practices from 1600-1970” (written for Prof. McNally's class)

Past Winners - 2019-2020

The WGSS Program and the Friends of Women’s Studies are pleased to announce our scholarship and fellowship winners for 2019-2020:

Maud Smith Paddock Undergraduate Scholarship—$2,500
Kat Newman, WGSS

Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship in WGSS—$2,500
Maryam Ahmad, Psychology

Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship in WGSS—$2,500  
Juana Campos, Sociology

Patricia A. Eichhorn Endowed Scholarship for Returning Students—$2,500  
Karen Waxler, WGSS

FWS Student Essay Prizes—$250 each

Undergraduate Award
Lida Hedayatpour

Graduate Award
Darah Vann

Past Winners - 2018-2019

The Shuart Scholarships

Maud Smith Paddock Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship 
Lesli Vollrath – English graduate student/WGSS certificate holder – for work on her dissertation entitled "Individual Differences and Workplace Factors that Promote and Hinder Career Success of Women in Academia" 

The H-E-B Undergraduate Scholarships for WGSS:

Emmanuella Aina 
Irina Alejandro
Texas Cook
Parnia Razinobakht
Cristal Solares-Bockmon 
Jacqueline Wostrel 

Faculty Summer Fellowships

Prof. Ann Christensen, English – for work her new edition of an early modern play, A Warning for Fair Women (1599)
Prof. Nancy Beck Young, History – for work on “The Lady Bird Treatment: Lady Bird Johnson, Liberalism, and the 1964 Presidential Campaign” and other projects. 

Graduate Student Travel Fellowships

Sylvia Fernandez, Hispanic Studies – MLA 2019 
Annette Zapata, Hispanic Studies – The Caribbean Digital V Conference December 2018
The Friends of Women’s Studies Student Essay Prizes
Undergraduate Essay – Cristal Solares-Bockmon – WGSS
Graduate Essay – Grete Torquist – English/WGSS
Many thanks to our donors: H-E-B, Carey C. Shuart and the Friends of Women’s Studies. 

Past Winners - 2017-2018

WGSS Travel Grant

Sylvia Fernandez (Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant
Isis Campos (Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant
Annette Zapata(Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant
Maria Monserud (Sociology)- Faculty Travel Grant 

Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship

Sylvia Fernandez – Hispanic Studies

Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Undergraduate Scholarship

Livia Garza – WGSS Major

Maud Smith Paddock Graduate/Undergraduate Scholarship

Devon Jones – Political Science

H-E-B Scholarships for Undergraduate WGSS Students

Irina Alejandro
Elizabeth Aguilar
Lauren Erickson
Kathleen Gonzalez
Tonya Huynh
Heather Poole
Parnia Razinobakht
Sara Rehman
Alia Siddiqui
Nnenna Umelloh

Patricia A. Eichhorn Endowed Scholarship for Returning Students

Elizabeth Aguilar

Past Winners - 2016 recipients!

Maria Ferreira (Political Science) - Elizabeth Smith Chenoweth Undergrad Scholarship - $2,500
Ally Castillo (History) - Blanche Espy Chenoweth Graduate Fellowship - $2,500
Hannah Richard (Sociology) - Maud Smith Paddock Grad/Undergrad Scholarship - $2,500
Regina Vitolo (History) - Patricia Eichhorn - $500
Rikki Bettinger (History) - WGSS Travel Grant
Crescida Jacobs (History) - WGSS Travel Grant
Sarah Pina (Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant

Fall 2016 Recipients
Rusquin Chadez (Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant
Sylvia Fernández Quintanilla (Hispanic Studies) - WGSS Travel Grant
Meera Jagannathan (English) - WGSS Travel Grant