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MIT Think Scholarship (ID 1989)


Scholarship Description

Start Date:
7/1/2016
Deadline:
1/1/2017
Website:
http://think.mit.edu/overview/
Amount:
$1000 for six finalists to build their projects
Scholarship money ($500 for Grand Prize Winner, $300 for Second Place, $200 for Third Place)
Description:
The THINK Scholars Program is an educational outreach initiative that promotes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics by supporting and funding projects developed by high school students. The program is run by a team of undergraduate students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and sponsored by technology companies and educational organizations.

Proposal Guidelines

You must adhere to the below format strictly. Please make sure all components listed below are addressed and clearly presented in your PDF submission. Failure to follow this format may result in an invalid application.

The paper should be in 12-point Times New Roman or Arial font, double-spaced (1.5 not allowed), 1 inch margins, and no more than 10 pages. Please include references used at the end (see References below for more details). All images/diagrams that you did not create yourself should be cited.

The paper should also be divided into sections for readability. We suggest a title and abstract to begin the proposal, the first section for motivation and your approach or solution, the second section for project logistics and organization, and the third section for personal interest. We will only read the material you present in your proposal and will not evaluate information contained in external links included in the paper.

Tips on writing a good proposal

PROJECT TITLE

Name: your name(s), school
Mentor (optional): name, email address, affiliation (company, organization, school, university)

ABSTRACT

Write an accurate, interesting, and concise abstract for your project in up to 250 words. In paragraph form, please describe the following aspects of your project:

Motivation: What is the need or problem you are trying to solve?
Goals: What are the desired outcomes of your project?
Approach: How do you plan to implement your project idea?
For a good how-to guide on writing an effective abstract, please consult the following website (http://users.ece.cmu.edu/~koopman/essays/abstract.html).

IDEA

Problem: Clearly identify the need or problem that you are trying to solve. Then explain any relevant background information, including scientific theory and existing technologies.
Current Work: Identify the current state-of-the-art approaches/solutions, and why they are insufficient.
Solution: Describe your proposed solution and how it will address the need or problem. Compare your idea to existing solutions and show us why this solution is technically feasible.

PLAN

Approach: Explain the steps for how you will implement your project idea. Convince us that your project is feasible.Show calculations and be sure to include diagrams if necessary.
Resources: Specify the resources you will need during the whole process. How will you acquire these resources? Are you planning to work with a local mentor?
Goals: Establish milestones and completion criteria for your project. How will you test and evaluate your implementation? What are its performance specifications, if applicable? If you are working in a two-member team, discuss how you plan to divide the work and responsibilities and how you will facilitate collaboration.
Risks: Identify three issues you might encounter during implementation. How will you mitigate these risks? Propose some alternative solutions.
Timeline: Identify key deliverables and deadlines. How will you document the implementation process between these milestones?
Current Progress and Need for Funding: Describe any previous work you have done on this topic. How will the funding from the THINK program allow you to achieve your proposed goals?
Projected Budget: Table with columns: Item, Amount, Cost, etc. Include links to exact costs if you can find them. If you are unable to find exact costs, please estimate to the best of your ability.

PERSONAL

Interest: Write about your background and personal interest in this project.
Qualifications: Describe the skills you have and skills you need to learn to complete this project.

REFERENCES

Cite all sources consulted using the APA format. Include both in-text citations and a Works Cited page at the end of the paper. The Works Cited page(s) will not count as part of the page limit for the proposal.

Contact Information

Email:
[email protected]

Eligibility

Gender:
NA
Eligibility:
Rules of Participation

1) You must be a full-time high school student attending a public, private, or home school at the time of your application.
2) You must be a U.S. resident during the 2015–2016 school year.
3) One submission per applicant
4) One or two students per project
Special Criteria:
THINK helps high school students turn ideas into reality. THINK project proposals are science, technology, and engineering ideas that span many fields from green technologies and practical devices to software applications. As long as it can be completed in one semester with a $1,000 budget, almost anything is fair game! A good proposal has an insightful idea, clearly defined goals, and a well thought-out procedure for implementation.

Application

Applying for the THINK Scholars Program is a simple two-step process:

Register: create an account using your email address and some basic information.
Find a team: You can work alone, or work with a partner.
Submit your proposal: upload a document describing your idea, goals, and implementation procedure (see rules and guidelines).
Register now or log in to see the application, including specific guidelines and requirements for the proposal.

Judging

A panel comprising MIT students, faculty, and alumni will review the applications based on the following criteria:

Impact: How interesting and relevant is the identified problem?
Innovation: How original or creative is the proposed solution? How does it improve upon existing solutions?
Clarity: Are the goals and timeline clearly defined? Can the results be clearly evaluated?
Feasibility: Can the stated goals be accomplished within the time, cost, and resource constraints?
Benefits: How much will project benefit from THINK funding?
Finalists Trip

Through this process, 6 proposals will be chosen to participate as Finalists in the THINK Scholars Program, and invited to MIT for the Finalists Trip. You will be invited to MIT to attend Techfair, meet the THINK team, institute professors, program sponsors, and other selected students. All finalists will then be interviewed by the THINK team in order to determine the 3 THINK Winners. The THINK winners will then given funding and mentorship to complete their projects.

Implementation

While you implement your project idea, we will maintain an active relationship with you. We will provide you with funding, mentorship, and networking opportunities with sponsors, MIT students, faculty, and alumni. In return, we expect that you document the whole process online in the form of reports, photos, and videos. Documentation should show the successful completion of milestones and goals, and any difficulties or challenges encountered along the way. Your project experience will be shared with our sponsors and our community. In addition, we will hold regular phone or web conferences to check on your progress, provide advice, and teach you some useful skills.

By the end of the spring semester, you will let us know how you fulfilled the completion criteria – for example, a video demonstrating what you successfully created. At that point you will receive the THINK scholarship. The team with the best project will be designated the Grand Prize Winner.