Mitchell Scholarship

The George J. Mitchell Scholarship is a fellowship awarded annually by the U.S.-Ireland Alliance funding graduate study in Ireland. Although relatively young—the first class of scholars began their studies in 2000—the Mitchell Scholarship has quickly established itself as one of the most selective fellowships in the United States. The scholarship is often considered one of the four primary and most competitive international fellowships for American students, alongside the Rhodes Scholarship, Marshall Scholarship, and Churchill Scholarship. Each year, approximately 300 young Americans are endorsed by their undergraduate institutions to apply for the 12 scholarships. Like the Rhodes, Marshall, and Churchill scholarships, application to the Mitchell Scholarship first requires nomination by your undergraduate institution.

The George J. Mitchell Scholarship is organized under the auspices of the US-Ireland Alliance, a non-profit non-partisan organization based in Arlington, VA. The program began in 1998, created by US-Ireland Alliance president Trina Vargo with early support from the Irish and British Governments. Over the last decade, the program has been largely funded by the United States Department of State, with additional support from the Northern Ireland Government, Becton Dickinson, and Cross Atlantic Capital Partners. In 2010, the Irish Parliament passed legislation whereby it will match any contributions, up to 20 million euros, to an endowment for the Scholarship program. A Mitchell Scholarship award includes tuition, housing, airfare, a cash stipend, and other benefits such as a travel bursary to encourage travel both in and outside Ireland and Northern Ireland. In recent years, Mitchell Scholars have used their travel bursary to explore countries as diverse as Oman, Cambodia, Senegal and Azerbaijan.

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