The Unofficial SMART Scholarship Forum

I don't think so, but SMART will most likely approve that. I have an SAAR to up my outside employment to 20 hrs/wk for exactly that reason. Somebody on the discord said they've changed the rules such that it might not even be required anymore, but I haven't seen that. Am looking to become a grad TA ...

The SMART debtors' Discord is probably the best place to look for an answer: https://discord.gg/MEhgRRC

Edit: Original had incomplete information regarding EO 14042. Sorry if my wording was confusing. There is not a universal vaccine mandate at this time. The Administration has not discussed issuing such a mandate and based on prior comments, it seems not to believe it has the authority to do so. Such...

Please reference Sections 2, 7, and 8 of the Service Agreement, which broadly indicate the obligation to fulfill a service agreement and comply with all program policies and procedures. The legal application of these clauses would be the same as is the case with denial of clearance. SMART interprets...

The service agreement obligates you to accept employment with the SF, including compliance with lawful conditions of employment handed down by the executive branch. You can file whatever lawsuit you like because that's how our civil courts work, but I'm not sure on what grounds you would do so. The ...

As a courtesy, I inform anybody I list as a reference for any type of application. I don't recall SMART contacting anybody I listed.

I'm a late-stage PhD student, and I now allow my resume/CV to reach 3 pages and even then I'm sometimes uncomfortable with that length. I maintained it at 1 page all the way through undergrad. It sounds like the person at your SF is probably in the minority regarding what they're looking for in resu...

I do not personally have experience, but I have a colleague in my field that was a SMART scholar all the way through a BS and a PhD for a cumulative service agreement of eight years. I don't see what it would hurt your chances. If anything, you're a known quantity that has managed to stay compliant ...

My SF doesn't touch my research in any way. I continued the project I was working on at the time I accepted the scholarship.

Yes, if you are offered a scholarship, you will be asked to submit an official transcript after the Spring 2022 semester and all following semesters until you graduate.

I've never seen any language indicating that SMART cares whether or not your SF is okay with you leaving. Best I can tell, it would be a violation of the service agreement and they would likely pursue repayment. Your SF could explore using its money to pay the debt or working through the OUSD R&E to...

The SMART Scholarship application opens today! This is a friendly reminder to all applicants that marijuana is a Schedule I substance in all jurisdictions of the United States. If you are awarded a scholarship, you will be held to the full standard of federal law during clearance adjudication even i...

$33k/yr

I do find it interesting that you mention the "sexual" side of things because I knew someone in DHS agent who was into a ton of crazy stuff that had no trouble maintaining clearance. It's a blackmail issue. There's is a deep history of our key adversaries using sexual blackmail to recruit spies. My...

It's 16 now

(Original response had typo saying 13... 16 hrs/wk outside employment is allowed)

I applied a few years ago during my Bachelors. Made it to semifinals and was told I was top 6 for the SF. Didn't get picked because my school wasn't top tier, so I didn't stack rank well. Things changed drastically for me the next year and I got a FAANG offer. I came back out of curiosity because I...

Follow-on funding is outlined in section 3.1 of the handbook but the short of it is that you can't "extend," you have to apply.

It sounds like some applicants had luck sending cold emails to SFs and asking to be put in touch with the SMART program contact in HR. Other than that, you could join the discord and ask for other scholars in your field to put you in touch with contacts at their SFs. You probably have already, but m...

So I would explicitly advise AGAINST contacting SMART to provide any detail on this matter. They don't need to know and they probably won't care. Bureaucracies generally don't hold grudges unless you are remembered by the people in them - they just follow their policies and procedures. If you have a...

Get in touch with Sisyphus on this forum and make your way to the debtors' Discord . They can offer more guidance, but it also may be worth trying to rope in one of your Senators. Many Senate offices have a "help with a federal agency" option in their contact form. I believe past dismissed scholars ...

Does anyone know if I can still request Smart to change my award length to 3 years scholarship only?

I suggest doing this in a couple years after you know you'll graduate faster. Reducing funding is always easier than requesting more.

SCI screening includes a polygraph. I thinking technically a poly could be allowable for base TS screening but it isn't at all common, as far as I know. A poly will not be part of the processing for an S.

If someone were to be completely truthful on the SF86 form and is denied a clearance, do they have to pay SMART back? Lots of discussions going on about this and I’m just curious. Failure to obtain a security clearance will result in a violation of your service agreement and likely termination from...

21 times over 3 years is a choice, not a mistake, and you need to make sure the language you use reflects that you have taken responsibility for that choice rather than passing it off as some sort of childish oopsie. You made a clear choice to become a semi-regular user of an illegal substance. It w...

Shouldn't be a problem. Don't lie about it. Your investigator(s) aren't the moral police and they aren't cops. They're investigating your reliability as a national security asset and their reports will be assessed by a panel with the same objective. The federal government typically doesn't appreciat...