Robert E. Dickenson Scholarship program

The Graduate School is pleased to announce the Robert E. Dickenson Scholarship program, providing scholarships for incoming and continuing master's and doctoral students. 

About Robert E. Dickenson

The late Robert E. Dickenson, a rancher, and entrepreneur desired to provide financial assistance to help students successfully pursue an undergraduate degree as a junior or senior, or to successfully pursue a post-graduate degree, primarily through (but not necessarily limited to) agriculture science. In that regard, the Donor is particularly interested in providing financial assistance to those pursuing a degree, or an advanced degree, in connection with the following: livestock use and management in ranching operations; farming; forest and rangeland management; mining; natural resource management; and disciplines which develop the skill and knowledge necessary for, or which help facilitate, conducting the business of ranching and/or farming and for properly managing forests and rangelands.

Scholarship details

Scholarship amounts can vary between $3,000 and 10,000 per student per year and awarded amounts will depend on the number, quality, and financial need of the nominees. Nominees must be US citizens with demonstrated financial need, so this program provides an excellent opportunity to support the education of graduate students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds. Nominees must have completed the annual general scholarship application, which is available in the supplemental forms section of students' MyNEVADA account between October 1 and February 15 for the subsequent academic year.

Eligibility

  • U.S. Citizen
  • Graduate student
  • Graduate degree programs, in order of preference, are in the following areas:
    • Agricultural Science
    • Environmental Science, Forestry Management & Ecology
    • Rangeland Ecology & Management
    • Hydrogeology, Geo-Engineering
    • Other areas consistent with the donor's desire to foster productive, responsible, and economical livestock and land management (examples may include: Geological Sciences, Business Administration, Medicine, Health Sciences and Education)
  • Financial need — requires the completion of the FAFSA between October 1 and June 30 for scholarships awarded during the subsequent academic year July 1
  • Minimum 3.0 University of Nevada, Reno GPA if a continuing student
  • New graduate students must be regularly admissible, i.e.,
    • New master’s students: 2.75 UGRD GPA, 3.0 GRAD GPA if the student has any graduate coursework
    • New Ph.D. students: 3.0 UGRD GPA, 3.0 GRAD GPA if the student has any graduate coursework
  • Minimum 9 credits per semester (6 credits if on a teaching or research assistantship)
  • Make satisfactory academic progress
  • Must have been admitted to their program without an exception-to-policy (e.g., due to low GPA).
  • Non-renewing scholarship

Nominations

Nominations for these scholarships must be submitted to the Graduate School by the graduate student’s graduate program director.

The nomination requires a statement of support (800 words or less) from the graduate program director that includes an explanation of how the student's current or future work fosters productive, responsible, and economical livestock and/or land.

Graduate program directors: The submission deadline is August 16, 2024. Notification of awards will begin around August 29. Scholarships will be disbursed in equal amounts during the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 semesters.

Submit a nomination