In 2012, applicants can choose between three deadlines to apply for a Bush Fellowship. While there are three deadlines during the year, an applicant can only apply for one of them. Each deadline has a corresponding required start date, so applicants should keep both in mind when making their plans. The application and references deadlines, Fellowship announcement schedule and required start dates for 2012 Bush Fellows are:

To review a PDF of the online application, please click on this link (Note: This document will be updated at the start of each application round.) Applicants can begin working on their responses to the application questions by using this PDF as a guide and creating a document with their responses. Those responses can then be cut and pasted into the appropriate fields of the online application once the applicant has decided which deadline he/she is applying for.

NOTE: Applicants who begin filling out the online application, but then do not submit it by their chosen deadline will not be able to save their application for another deadline. Instead, they will have to begin a new online application for another deadline.

References

In addition to the written application, each applicant is required to obtain three written references. The job of the reference writers is to help the applicant make his/her case for a Bush Fellowship. In order to do that effectively, reference writers should:

• Review drafts of the written application.
• Have an understanding of the problem and community that is being impacted by it.
• Understand the motivation for applying for the fellowship and its potential impact.
• Understand the learning plan for the fellowship.
• Be willing to advocate on behalf of the applicant.
• Be clear about when their completed reference form is due.

The form reference writers are required to complete is a Word document that applicants can email as an attachment to their reference writers or that can be downloaded by reference writers from this web page. The form can be found by clicking on this link.

Complete reference forms are due approximately one week before the completed application (see deadlines chart above).

If no references are received for an application, then the application will be considered incomplete and be denied. After each deadline we will dispose of any completed references we receive that do not have a corresponding application. We strongly encourage applicants to stay in touch with their reference writers to make sure they get their completed reference forms in on time and for the correct application deadline.

Privacy of Application Materials

Application materials submitted for the selection of Bush Fellows will be used by participants in the selection process. The Foundation will maintain an application file for each applicant who applies. We will destroy the files of those not selected as Bush Fellows once the selection process is complete. For those selected as Fellows, the Foundation will maintain electronic and hard copies of correspondence and other materials generated during the fellowship period.

Once a fellowship is complete, Fellows’ hard-copy files will be stored by the Minnesota Historical Society. Those files will be made available to the general public 50 years after their initial storage date.