Scholarships & Awards
The Criminal Justice & Criminology Department offers both scholarships and awards. These are handled and processed differently.
Students must apply to scholarships listed below through NinerScholars Portal at https://ninerscholars.charlotte.edu/. Please note that international students are not eligible to apply for scholarships.
Applications for awards will be accepted in a different format (see instructions below). International students are eligible to apply for awards.
Scholarships
~ The Dean Reep Scholarship (2 recipients)
Students must be a North Carolina resident who plans a career in crime prevention, possess a high moral character, have a minimum of 3.4 GPA and be a full-time student. The application must include of an unofficial transcript, 2 letters of reference from people who can attest to your high moral character, a personal statement of goals, and your local address and phone number. Both undergraduate and graduate students may apply. Typical award is $2,000.
~ The Law Enforcement Memorial Scholarship (2 recipients)
Students must have a minimum 2.5 GPA, be a criminal justice major at UNC Charlotte, and a full-time student. The application must include an unofficial transcript, a personal statement about your future career goals as a police officer (max. length: 2 pages, typed, double-spaced), 3 letters of recommendation, and your local address and phone number. For this scholarship, students must be enrolled full time in the Fall and Spring following the award. Typical award is $1,000 ($500 for the Fall semester and $500 for the Spring semester).
~The North Carolina Sheriff’s Association Undergraduate Criminal Justice Scholarship
Priority is given first to (1) the son or daughter of a sheriff or deputy sheriff or (2) any law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty or (3) any sheriff or deputy sheriff who is deceased, retired or is currently active in North Carolina law enforcement, or (4) a criminal justice major with a high GPA and financial need. Students must also be attending full-time. The application must consist of a letter of recommendation from the Sheriff of the county in which you live, an unofficial transcript, documentation supporting the criterion under which you are applying and your local address and phone number. For this scholarship, students must be enrolled full time in the Fall and Spring following the award. Typical award is $2,000 ($1,000 for the Fall semester and $1,000 for the Spring semester).
~The Wade H. Stroud Scholarship
Students must be a Criminal Justice & Criminology major at UNC Charlotte, have a minimum of 2.5 GPA and be enrolled full-time. The application must include an unofficial transcript, a personal statement about your intended career goals (max. length: 2 pages, typed, double-spaced), 3 letters of recommendation, and include your local address and phone number. For this scholarship, students must be enrolled full time in the Fall and Spring following the award. Typical award is $1,000 ($500 for the Fall semester and $500 for the Spring semester).
~The JCA Scholarship
According to the 2018 survey from the Association of Doctoral Programs in Criminology and Criminal Justice, there is a significant underrepresentation of minority scholars in our field. This scholarship will be one way to increase access to graduate study in the field of criminology and criminal justice which will, in turn, promote greater diversity in criminology and criminal justice scholarship in our nation’s academic and research institutions. The purpose of the fund is to provide scholarship support to outstanding graduate students in criminology and criminal justice who best meet the following criteria:
• Graduate student majoring in Criminal Justice or Criminology,
• Good academic standing as determined by the administering college or department,
• Demonstrated financial need as determined by the Office of Financial Aid,
• Preference for applicants with a demonstrated commitment to increasing diversity in the fields of criminal justice and criminology.
The application must include an unofficial transcript, a personal statement about your intended career goals (max. length: 2 pages, typed, double-spaced), 3 letters of recommendation, and include your local address and phone number. Typical award is $1,500.
Click here or on the image below to link to the application portal for scholarships.
**Instructions on how to apply for the awards listed below
Click here to download the Award Application. This application must be filled out in its entirety and submitted once with all of your application documents. Please include the completed application form as an attachment when you submit your documents for the awards via email to the CJUS Department.
If you are applying for more than one award, place all required documents for each award in a separate file and also attach the documents to the email. Please note in the subject line: “CJC Award Submissions”.
Awards
~ The Alumni Board of Governors Outstanding Senior Award
Students must be a senior who is anticipating graduating by May, have a minimum of 3.8 GPA, and possess an enthusiasm for, and a commitment to, excellence. The application must include an unofficial transcript, a personal statement describing university, departmental and/or community service activities (max. length: 2 pages, typed, double-spaced), and your local address and phone number. This award is a recognition award and does not include funding support.
~ The Robert Lassiter Outstanding Graduate and Undergraduate Paper Award (2 recipients: 1 undergrad and 1 graduate student)
Undergraduate and graduate students can self-nominate for the outstanding paper awards. Application packets must include a copy of the graded paper, the original assignment, and the evaluation criteria (if one exists). Typical award is $50.
~ Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology Undergraduate Research Award
The purpose of this award is to recognize outstanding, original undergraduate research by Criminal Justice & Criminology Students. Eligibility: To be eligible for this award students must be a degree-seeking undergraduate majoring in Criminal Justice & Criminology. Students must have completed a research project during the prior spring, summer or fall semesters under the direction of a UNC Charlotte Criminal Justice & Criminology Professor. Students must be enrolled full-time during the semester when you receive the award. Previous award winners are not eligible. Application: Submissions will be accepted from students. The nomination should include a cover sheet with your contact information, the title and description of the project, and the course and semester in which the project was completed. The nomination should also include a copy of the research paper or project in whatever format is appropriate. Evaluation Criteria: Projects will be judged on their sophistication, creativity, and originality. Typical award is $500.
~ The Barnes & Noble/UNC Charlotte Bookstore Award
Students must have a minimum of 2.5 GPA and must submit a personal statement describing your community service activities. The statement must be no longer than 2 pages. Additionally, students must include 3 letters of reference from the community that will support the personal statement described above. Student will receive a credit voucher for the bookstore; award amount varies.
~ The Julie F. Beeman Recognition of Excellence Award
One additional recognition award for students is only available through nomination by a CJ & C faculty member. The student for this award will be identified by Criminal Justice faculty as someone who can have a positive impact on the criminal justice community. The criminal justice major will exemplify the ideals of academic excellence, personal integrity, individual responsibility, and the motivation and dedication to succeed. This award is a recognition award and does not include funding support.