The Financial Aid Office at McDaniel College is offering the opportunity for all eligible juniors to apply for the $15,000 National Security Scholarship (formerly Homeland Security Scholarship) offered by the National Security Scholarship Program (NSSP). The NSSP focuses on the needs of the intelligence and defense industry in Maryland. It offers opportunities for a scholarship, assistance with national security clearance processing, internships, and future employment to qualified students.  The program has awarded more than 1.8M in scholarships to more than 135 students in ten years of operation. Additionally, the NSSP provides a network of opportunity to its partners for the purpose of maintaining a pipeline of future hires.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON

Eligibility Requirements

• Completion and timely submission of I-Fund NSSP application — includes typed essay, resume (both paper & electronic submitted to egeiman@mcdaniel.edu) 2 letters of recommendation (address to the National Security Scholars Program Board), and official transcript of grades (students who transferred to an I-Fund College/University must also request a certified copy of grades for credits from their transferring institution).
• U.S. Citizenship
• Expressed interest in a career in the national security field.
• Summer internship obligation if offered. (Internship is contingent upon successful completion of a national security clearance.) An internship is required as eligibility for the I-Fund NSSP scholarship. All applicants will be considered for summer internships with industry or NSA.
• Student must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0
• Minimum 24 credit hours at time of application, but not later than October deadline of applicant’s junior year.
• Please check page 2 of the application or the list on the upper right section of this page for most current list of preferred majors.
• Candidates must be available for an in-person interview.

How to Apply

      I.  Application

• An application for the I-Fund National Security Scholars Program may be obtained online. Complete the application, sign it and forward it with the required supporting documents to Ellie Geiman in the Financial Aid Office.
• Each student must complete an application form and include all of the information requested. The information on the form must be typed and legible. Please do not staple documents together. All documents should be single sided for ease of copying. The following information must be included with the application:
• Typed resume - (Submitted both with your application and electronically, in Microsoft Word format, to egeiman@mcdaniel.edu) Resume should have your name on top of all pages

    II.  Essay - A 300-500 word typed essay (choose a topic from the three provided)

1. President Obama has stated that his administration is committed to providing greater transparency of government operations and better access to public data. At the same time, there is great public concern of individual privacy and protecting personal information. Give us your views on the proper balance between better access to public data and protection of individual privacy.
   
2. Science and engineering have the potential to improve human lives but can also have unforeseen consequences. Describe a situation in which science and engineering has been or could be used to improve the security of our nation including negative repercussions. Your example may be drawn from history, current events, or speculative for the future.
   
3. Describe the ways in which the current global economic crisis represents a threat to the United States' national security. Outline specific measures that can be taken to preserve and/or increase national security in the midst of a global recession.

  III.   Letters of Recommendation at least two letters of recommendation address to the 
         National Security Scholars Program Broad). For example, letters may be from teachers,
         professors, counselors, clergy, community leaders, etc.

• A certified transcript of grades - request these early, as this time of year may present a delay for campus offices. Additionally, students who transferred to an I-Fund member college need to request an additional certified transcript of grades/credits from transferring institution.
• Selection and Notification:
• Scholarship candidate selection is a multiple step process. The NSSP process runs from September 1 through May 31 of each academic year.
• Deadline for submitting application WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON
• Initial review of applications is made by the NSSP panel in mid October. All candidates are notified whether or not selected for an interview.
• Candidate interviews are conducted TBD . Each candidate will be assigned a specific interview date/time. Due to the number of interviews scheduled, the date/time is not negotiable. Location of the interview is at the Booz Allen Hamilton offices in Annapolis Junction, Maryland 21701.
• All applicants receive e-mail notification with results of the scholarship interview process on or before December 1st. Selected applicants will move forward to security clearance processing.
• Candidates who are approved for a national security clearance are reviewed by the NSSP Board for internship placement with program partners and/or notified of scholarship award in early June.
• Successful candidates must confirm (email-signed) acceptance of internship by the deadline communicated to candidates via email from Lori Subotich, Director of Programs & Scholarships. A Thank You letter addressed to "The I-Fund NSSP Supporters" is required and should be signed and sent (along with an electronic copy to egeiman@mcdaniel.edu) to the I-Fund no later than July 5th each year.