Dr. Bart Kamen Memorial FIRST Scholarship Fund

Scholarship Sponsored by FIRST

Overview
The Dr. Bart Kamen Memorial FIRST Scholarship Fund awards financial support to undergraduates preparing for careers in biomedical engineering or medicine. The Fund advances FIRST’s mission to change culture so that science and technology are celebrated and young people aspire to become leaders in those fields. In Dr. Kamen’s honor, the Fund provides renewable cash scholarships to students who have demonstrated, through involvement in FIRST programs, the promise and drive to carry forward his dedication to improving patient care.

Award amounts and renewal
The Grant Selection Committee may award as many as four initial scholarships of $10,000 each. Those initial awards can be renewed for up to three additional academic years (four years total) if recipients continue to satisfy the eligibility requirements described below. Selection is guided by academic achievement, character, demonstrated enthusiasm for biomedical engineering and/or medicine, and participation in FIRST activities. Financial need may be taken into account but is not required.

Selection authority
All decisions by the Dr. Bart Kamen Memorial FIRST Scholarship Fund Grant Selection Committee — including selection of recipients and any other determinations regarding the Fund — are final and not subject to judicial or other review. By applying, candidates accept the Committee’s determinations as final.

Who may apply — Initial Grant Eligibility
To be considered for an initial $10,000 scholarship an applicant must meet all of the following:

- Be a high school senior or a high school graduate who has not yet begun full-time undergraduate study.
- Have been accepted to, or applied for admission to, an Eligible Undergraduate Program. Eligible programs are full-time college or university programs in Biomedical Engineering or Premedical Studies, or undergraduate programs that permit a student to complete the coursework required for medical school admission (for example, biology, physics, chemistry and organic chemistry). Institutions in the United States must be eligible to participate in Title IV federal student financial assistance programs; institutions outside the U.S. must hold comparable accreditation.
- Have served at least one year as a team member on a FIRST LEGO League, FIRST Tech Challenge, or FIRST Robotics Competition team.
- Submit the online application and required supporting materials by the published deadline at: https://bartkamenmemorialfirstscholarship.submittable.com/submit
- If requested by the Committee, take part in an interview conducted by telephone, in person, or online.
- If selected, provide FIRST with a completed IRS Form W-9.

Notification, publicity, and payment conditions
Recipients will be notified by April 1 each year and their names will be publicly announced during April. Scholarship disbursement is contingent upon admission to and enrollment in an Eligible Undergraduate Program by May 1.

Ineligible applicants
Employees and officers of FIRST, members of the FIRST Board of Directors, members of the Grant Selection Committee, and their immediate family members and household relatives are not eligible. This includes spouses, parents, children, grandchildren, siblings, and the spouses of any of those relatives.

By applying, applicants agree to the Fund’s terms and to the Committee’s final decisions.