The Unofficial SMART Scholarship Forum

As far as getting the scholarship, you can get the 5 or 10 pt Veteran's Preference. When I interviewed with my SF they quoted my Marine Corps service as "a big positive". I think its going to mostly come down to how well you fill those gaps and what degree type you're going for. I only just got accepted though so take my words with a grain of salt.

Hello sir,

I am an E-7 in the ARNG, and a full-time DOD employee, with a B.S. in engineering and a master's degree in homeland security. I was offered a scholarship last year by the MDA but it was withdrawn after I could not make the only scheduled date of the MDA site visit (I had to do NTC prep/orders) and the SMART program office would not accept my contract documentation without a digital signature (I was in the field without computer access at the time for training).

I was offered an award this year by APG but the sponsoring lab was told by the SMART office and the Army liaison that they had missed the March 15th website scholar selection deadline despite writing a letter of interest and requesting my candidacy specifically in December 2018 and submitting it in January to SMART HQ The bottom line is that military members are not understood or appreciated by the SMART office and that I was told by DOD IG that your USERRA rights do not apply since you are not a DOD employee, but instead some strange combination of student and contractor.

I am hopeful, sir, that your SF and the SMART program office may respect your service more than mine has been respected. My application for a program in cybersecurity has not been considered 'a highly sought or requested' program by the SMART office. I was also told that my military obligations must take a back seat to the SMART program.

Good luck!

Hey all. Here's a little background into my situation. I am a college graduate (undergraduate degree) looking to go back to school full time and work at a Navy facility. I studied history. I have worked for the Department of the Navy, specifically NAVSEA, as an admin assistant for three years as a contractor and I want to transition into a GS/ND position to research ocean sciences as a scientist/oceanographer. I am also a U.S. Army officer in the reserves where I do intelligence work. Since I studied history as an undergraduate, I am currently taking classes as a non-traditional student to back fill my lack of technical knowledge in the sciences. I plan to earn a masters and then a Ph.D ultimately.

Are there other service members or veterans who have gotten this scholarship? Does being in the military give you a leg up over a college student? Is there general advice others have that would be beneficial?