While the competition is not a typical type of scholarship program and does not offer direct tuition assistance, the program does recognize discoveries, research and innovations by awarding unrestricted cash prizes. Prizes for the competition scholarship are awarded to the top three entries within each division. Advisors for winning entrants will also receive a cash prize.
Collegiate Inventors Competition Scholarship has many awards
The Gold award in the graduate division is awarded $15,000 while their advisor receives $5,000. The Silver award winner in the graduate division receives $10,000 and their advisor receives a $2,500 award. The Bronze winner in the graduate division receives $5,000 and their advisor receives $1,000.
The Gold award in the under-graduate division is awarded $10,000 while their advisor receives $2,500. The Silver award winner in the under-graduate division receives $5,000 and their advisor receives a $1,500 award. The Bronze winner in the under-graduate division receives $2,500 and their advisor receives $500.
In addition, other prizes are awarded solely at the discretion of competition judges.
Applying criteria for the Collegiate Inventors Competition Scholarship
To apply for the little known competition scholarship, applicants must complete an application comprised of general student information as well as an essay that includes a short description of their invention. Information from the student’s faculty advisor should also be provided along with a letter of recommendation from the student’s faculty advisor. In addition, there should be a patent search and summary conducted. The applicant should also submit any supporting documentation or materials that are relevant. This may include graphs, charts, CDs or DVDs, samples, slides, etc.
All entries are required to be the original idea as well as work product of either a student or a team of students. In addition, the work or product must not have been made available to the public as either a process or a commercial product. Furthermore, the work or product must not have been described in significant detail in a publication that is a year before the submission. Finally, the work or product must not have been issued patent more than a year before the date of application.
Machine submissions must be fully operable. Chemical submissions must be fully complete. Students should not submit their inventions, only the information and supporting documentation required.
The deadline to apply for this unknown competition scholarship is typically prior to the end of June. In order to be eligible to enter, students are required to be enrolled or have been enrolled full-time for at least a portion of the twelve month time period before the entry date. In the case of a team entry, at least one of the team members must be able to meet the full-time criteria for eligibility. A maximum of four team members are allowed on a single team. Applicants do not need to be a Canadian or U.S. citizen to enter the Competition. With that said, applicants are required to be eligible for enrollment in a Canadian or U.S. college or university. Advisors are allowed to be from another institution. Applicants need not have an advisor that has worked directly on the project with them in order to be eligible.
Applicants are allowed to send multiple entries. There are no limits on the number of entries that may be submitted by a team of students or a student. Only one prize will be awarded to a student or a team for the Collegiate Inventors Competition scholarship.