Engineering Scholarships

SCHOLARSHIPS MAKE A DIFFERENCE

   We’ve often wondered how we can get young people interested in a career in public works and how we can help support them.  
   One of our scholarship recipients, Dominique ‘Niki’ Stephanson, attended our fall 2006 conference in Pendleton and, through her background, provides some insight into these questions.

   Niki was a senior in Portland State University’s Civil and Environmental Engineering program. She attended high school in Aloha, Oregon, and received her Associates Degree at Portland Community College. Her interest in engineering began to take form at an early age, when she was “turned on” to science and math by enthusiastic educators and the Pacific University Summer Science Camp for girls. Through her career, Niki hopes to facilitate healthier, smarter, solutions to global challenges and to support other prospective students in discovering and realizing their goals.

   Niki has already gained hands-on experience through an internship at Washington State DOT and is currently working as a geotechnical intern at URS Corporation. She continues to develop professional networks through involvement in service organizations, such as American Society of Civil Engineers, Society for Women Engineers and Young Women in Math and Science. Through these organizations, she has worked to develop programs, such as Zoom Into Engineering to interest young people in engineering principles, and supported the concrete canoe and steel bridge teams, learning to test and apply new theories and products in the transportation and structural fields.

   Upon accepting the 2006-07 APWA scholarship, Niki writes:

   “It is an honor to be recognized for my hard work, and receiving this scholarship motivates me to continue to strive for excellence. I am in my final year of the engineering program at Portland State University and scholarship support will enable me to concentrate more on schoolwork without the worry of finances. Receiving the Oregon APWA scholarship is of tremendous benefit to me and has helped me to realize my dreams of becoming a civil engineer. Your generosity has made a profound impact on my life and I am truly grateful to be the recipient of your scholarship.”

Each year the American Public Works Association (APWA) Oregon Chapter Scholastic Foundation awards scholarships to civil engineering students at the Oregon Institute of Technology, Oregon State University and Portland State University.  The scholarships were established to recognize and financially assist civil engineering students who are interested in pursuing a career in the broad field of Public Works.

Applications Forms

• Oregon State University

• Portland State University

• Oregon Institute of Technology

Eligibility

Full-time civil engineering students who have achieved junior standing in Civil Engineering at the beginning of the academic year of the award will be considered for the scholarship.  Students who receive the award during their junior year will again be eligible for the award during their senior year, assuming they maintain eligibility for the scholarship.  Course work must be taken at the school where the scholarship is awarded. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.

Selection Criteria

• Junior or senior standing at the beginning of the academic year of the award.

• Student enrolled in a civil engineering program working toward a Bachelor of Science degree.

• Demonstrated financial need for the scholarship.

• United States citizen.

• Four-year resident of the State of Oregon.

Procedure

1.   Complete the Biographical Data Form provided by the Civil Engineering Department and deliver to the department.  Be sure that your application includes the following information:   academic achievement (GPA), employment experience, student activities, community service, financial resources, and long term career goals.
 

2.   Selection of the recipient shall be made by the Civil Engineering Department, subject to the concurrence of the APWA Oregon Chapter Scholastic Foundation Board.
 

3.   Awards will be disbursed one-half at the beginning of the Fall term, and one-half at the beginning of Winter term.
 

Department recommendations and supporting biographical data and transcripts must be submitted to the APWA Scholarship Committee by June 15.  Awards will be announced the following September.