Through generous gifts, endowments and grants, the Department of Psychology is proud to award over $13,000 a year to our undergraduate and graduate students in support and recognition of their academic excellence, research creativity, service, and educational resilience.

Scholarships

General Instructions

For all scholarships, “student” refers to any matriculated individual in good standing pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree at San Jose State University. Students who graduated in the Fall semester prior to the Spring deadline are also eligible. “Psychology major” refers to an undergraduate student who has officially declared a major in Psychology. “Psychology graduate student” refers to an individual currently accepted and enrolled in a Master’s Program within the Department of Psychology. “Qualified” refers to any Psychology major or graduate student who meets the stated requirements for a given scholarship. Note that being qualified and submitting an application alone do not guarantee an award. These scholarships are competitive and applications will be judged on their merit.

Apart from requirements specific to the individual scholarships (e.g., additional supporting documentation), all applicants must submit the following as attachments to sjsu.scholarships@gmail.com ...

1. A completed application form by April 1, 2013 (5:00 p.m.). Later materials will not be accepted
2. The most current official degree progress report (with overall and Psychology GPA, declared major/degree program) or transcript
3. A clear personal statement that provides requested information for the specific scholarships for which they are applying. Personal statements should not exceed 2 pages (double spaced, 12-pt font); please use proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

FRANK D. PAYNE MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

In memory of Dr. Frank Payne, Professor of Psychology and former Chair, two $500 annual scholarships will be awarded to Psychology majors or Psychology graduate students.  Applicants must have a minimum grade point average of 3.5 overall and 3.5 in Psychology, and have plans to pursue a career that includes psychological research. In their personal statements, students must describe how they plan to pursue a career that includes research in psychology.

JAMES L. McGAUGH RESEARCH AWARD FUND

This award has been established to recognize Dr. James L. McGaugh's (SJSU BA 1953 Psychology and Faculty member of the Department of Psychology from 1957 - 1961) significant contribution to research and education in psychology and neuroscience.  Eligible candidates will be SJSU Psychology undergraduate or graduate level students whose research is being presented (or has been presented) at an annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association.  In considering worthy candidates, preference is encouraged but not required for students whose research involves advancing society’s understanding of learning, memory and/or biopsychology.  Financial need is not required.

ROBERT AND MARALEE HICKS SCHOLARSHIP

This award is in memory of Maralee J. Hicks (SJSU BA 1956 Philosophy) and Robert A. Hicks, PhD. (SJSU MA 1960 Psychology and Emeritus Faculty member of the Department of Psychology).  Eligible candidates will be SJSU Psychology undergraduate or graduate level students whose research is being presented (or has been presented) at an annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association.  In considering worthy candidates, preference is encouraged but not required for students whose research involves advancing society’s understanding of motivation.  Financial need is not required.

RONALD G. RABEDEAU MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

An annual $1000 scholarship in memory of Dr. Ronald Rabedeau, former chairman of the Department of Psychology, will be awarded to a Psychology major or Psychology graduate student. This award is to encourage and support students studying in areas related to Dr. Rabedeau’s professional specializations and interests. Qualified students are those who are studying (and/or conducting research in) the areas of Neuroscience, Psychobiology, Experimental Psychology, Statistics, Learning, Motivation, or combinations thereof, and they are encouraged to apply. In their personal statements, students must describe how their interests are relevant to the areas listed above. Relevant information includes coursework (and grades) in these areas, previous research experience in these areas, interest in conducting future research in these areas, etc.

CHARLES W. TELFORD MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

An annual $250 scholarship in memory of Dr. Charles Telford, the first Chairman of the Department of Psychology, will be awarded to one qualified Psychology major.  A grade point average of 3.5 overall and 3.5 in the major is required of applicants. In their personal statements, students should describe their current areas of interest in psychology and career goals.

EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE SCHOLARSHIP

Annual scholarships of $1,500 will be awarded to one or more Psychology majors or Psychology graduate students who have demonstrated exceptional service to the University and/or the community while students at SJSU. In their personal statement, students must describe how their activities have demonstrated exceptional service. Relevant information includes descriptions of volunteer work inside and/or outside of the University, participation in service learning courses, participation in community programs, work on University committees, participation in student governance (e.g., Associate Students), mentoring activities, participation in honor societies, and so on. 

OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIP

Annual scholarships of $1,500 will be awarded to one or more Psychology majors who have demonstrated outstanding research activities in any area of Psychology while students at SJSU. In their personal statements, students must describe how their research activities meet the criterion of “outstanding research” and provide supporting documentation. Relevant information includes descriptions of awards for research activities; first-author publications, presentations, or posters; or any other evidence of outstanding research-related activities. Supporting documentation includes published articles, conference programs, and so on. 

OUTSTANDING GRADUATE RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIP

Annual scholarships of $1,500 will be awarded to one or more Psychology graduate students who have demonstrated outstanding research activities in any area of Psychology while students at SJSU. In their personal statements, students must describe how their research activities meet the criterion of “outstanding research” and provide supporting documentation. Relevant information includes descriptions of awards for research activities; first-author publications, presentations, or posters; or any other evidence of outstanding research-related activities. Supporting documentation includes published articles, conference programs, and so on. 

EXCEPTIONAL EDUCATIONAL RESILIENCE

Annual scholarships of $1,500 will be awarded to one or more Psychology majors or or Psychology graduate students who have demonstrated exceptional educational resilience while students at SJSU. Through this award, Psychology faculty will have the opportunity to recognize, celebrate, and encourage students who succeed in completing their educations in spite of great personal challenges. Resiliency encompasses many facets; preference for this award will be given to students who have experienced significant adversity and have demonstrated the capacity to overcome this adversity. Such adversity includes¹: having severe financial need; experiencing parent/guardian death, incarceration, and/or abandonment; experiencing substance abuse in the household; suffering physical or verbal abuse; experiencing physical and/or mental disability; experiencing serious illness; experiencing homelessness; experience in foster care or as a ward of the state; and so on.  The scholarship will be awarded before the completion of a student’s last semester at the University. 

¹Categories adapted from: Wolniak et al. (2011). Understanding educational resilience. National Opinion Resource Center, University of Chicago.

Student Travel Awards

The Psychology Research Committee (PRC) has allocated up to ten (10) travel scholarships of $500 each for students who are first-author presenters of papers or posters at professional association meetings (e.g., WPA). 

• Travel award application 

Endowments

The ALAN E. KAZDIN Endowed Lecture in Psychology

In honor of Professor Alan Kazdin, Musser Professor of Psychology at Yale University, and an alumnus of our department (B.A. 1967). This generous endowment funds an annual lecture featuring distinguished psychologists from across the nation.