National Scholarship Program
Assisting talented students pursuing national and international scholarships and fellowships. The Central Michigan University National Scholarship Program assists top academic students competing for prestigious annual awards, including the Boren, Fulbright, Gates Cambridge, Goldwater, Mitchell, Madison, Marshall, Rhodes, Truman, and Udall scholarships and fellowships.
Since 2012, CMU has had:
- 13 Fulbright U.S. Students
- 9 Goldwater Scholars
- 4 Boren Scholars/Fellows
- 2 Humanity in Action Fellows (only 26 U.S. students awarded annually)
- 1 Udall Scholar – environment category (only 55 awarded annually)
- 1 Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) for Young Professionals
National Scholarship Program staff work closely with CMU faculty to identify prospective, highly qualified students, and will assist potential candidates throughout the application process to address guidelines, develop ideas, and strengthen and submit the application.
Many of the national scholarships and fellowships require nomination by or endorsement from CMU faculty and the National Scholarship Program Committee.
We encourage you to browse this website to learn more about the National Scholarship Program, and the scholarships and fellowships we support.
CMU graduate (’24) receives prestigious Fulbright grant
Kaleb Wever, a Central Michigan University graduate (’24) from Dewitt, Michigan, was in Europe this summer, preparing to volunteer at the Paris Paralympic games, when he received a life-changing email from the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Kaleb was offered a prestigious Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Grant to teach English as a second language in Cameroon, Africa.
Wever, who majored in economics and French, made the difficult decision to change his plans and return to the U.S. to complete the steps necessary for undertaking the Fulbright grant. He credits his preparation for the Fulbright grant to his many undergraduate experiences.
“I am excited to apply all the skills I have acquired at CMU, through substitute teaching and tutoring, and through various other experiences over the past few years, in a completely different environment which will challenge me to grow as an educator,” he said.
Wever arrived in Cameroon in late August where he participated in a weeklong orientation at the U.S. Embassy. He is currently teaching English at the Lycée Technique Bilingue de Nsam school in Yaoundé.
“I teach French-speaking students studying a variety of trades such as plumbing, home economics, clothes making, and electrical engineering,” he said. “The students range in ages from 12 to 20.”
In addition to teaching English, Wever hopes to complete several projects over the next nine months.
“Some of my goals for this year include to help integrate technology into the classroom, as that is a major goal for the school, and to help teach about entrepreneurship,” he said. “I am leading the Bilingualism Club, focusing on learning about other cultures and promoting language learning.”
Wever was supported by the CMU National Scholarship Program throughout the application process. Approximately 2,000 U.S. students, artists and young professionals receive Fulbright U.S. Student Grants annually to pursue graduate study, conduct research and teach English abroad in more than 140 countries worldwide. Students are selected based on their academic and professional record, host country-specific preferences, cultural competency, and the applicant’s potential to further the Fulbright goal of building mutual understanding between people of the U.S. and other countries.
Wever is grateful for the support he received from his faculty mentors and the National Scholarship Program.
“I am honored and grateful to have been awarded this grant and thankful to everyone who helped guide me through this process. I hope to use this opportunity teaching abroad to develop connections with my students from the diverse cultural backgrounds of Cameroon,” he said.