Columbia Central

Peter Thompson Endowed Memorial Scholarship

For continuing undergraduate students

The Peter Thompson Endowed Memorial Scholarship was established to assist outstanding undergraduate Photography majors and undergraduate students from the School of Film and Television in defraying tuition costs.

Deadline to Apply: February 01, 2025

• How to Apply

  Visit Internal Scholarships and click on APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIPS to access the College-Wide Undergraduate Scholarship Application. Only complete scholarship applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by the scholarship committee. 
  
  Please follow all directions carefully. Students must submit the following materials to make a complete Peter Thompson Endowed Memorial Scholarship application. There are three parts to the application:

  PART 1: CREATIVE SAMPLES

  Photography students:

  A submitted digital portfolio of work is required:

  • 15-20 images. Work from one or two sustained projects is recommended. A portfolio that demonstrates an ambitious commitment to exploring one subject or idea is an important plus.
  • All images may be submitted in one file, but additional upload space will be provided.

  
  Upload your sample in .pdf, .doc, .docx or .jpg format. Note: Upload size limit is 50MB.

  
  

  School of Film and Television students:

  • Submit a creative sample of your best work in your concentration, either a short film or video (no more than a total of seven minutes), script, or three to five photographs/drawings.

  
  Please upload documents in .pdf, .doc, or .docx format.

  Please upload videos in .mov, .wmv, .flv, or .mp4 format, or upload a .pdf, .doc, or .docx document with an external link to your video. Note: Upload size limit is 50MB.

  PART 2: LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

  One letter of recommendation is required from a Columbia faculty member who is familiar with your academic achievement or accomplishment in your major.

  For your convenience, the online application will send an email notification directly to the person you've chosen to complete your recommendation. Please be prepared with the email address of your recommender. 

  Remember to contact your recommenders directly before providing their information on the application. Since this application is part of the larger College-Wide Undergraduate Scholarship application, also note the specific scholarship(s) for which they will be recommending you. Be sure to give recommenders as much time as possible to write letters. Requests made at the last minute are often difficult to fulfill by the deadline.

  PART 3: FAFSA SUBMISSION SUMMARY

  A current FAFSA Submission Summary must be on file. To receive a FAFSA Submission Summary, students must complete a 2025-26 financial aid application (FAFSA) by February 1, 2025.
  
  

  Access online applications through Internal Scholarships.

• About Peter Thompson

  The Peter Thompson Endowed Memorial Scholarship was established in memory of Peter Thompson, a member of the Columbia College Chicago faculty for 36 years. Peter's dedication both to his craft and to education was exemplified by his authenticity, his precision, and his pursuit of perfection.

• Scholarship Terms
  • Application must be submitted by February 1, 2025 (11:59 pm) for review by the committee
  • Previous amount of this one-year scholarship was up to $1,550, awarded half in Fall and half in Spring
  • Scholarship is applied toward tuition only
  • Students’ scholarships that are applied toward tuition may not exceed the amount of their tuition costs
  • Recipients must maintain full-time, undergraduate enrollment during the 2025-26 academic year
  • Recipients who graduate in Fall 2025 may receive the full scholarship amount in Fall 2025
  • Recipients must have submitted all outstanding documents to Columbia Central before the scholarship can be disbursed. Students can review missing documents in the MyColumbia portal under MyFinancials
  • Scholarship may be used toward a study abroad program through one of Columbia's student exchange programs, excluding Summer sessions. Please note: Recipients who enroll in an independent study abroad program not associated with Columbia College will forfeit their scholarship during the semester spent abroad
  • Recipients may reapply in subsequent years to receive the scholarship more than once, provided they continue to meet eligibility requirements
  • The rules and regulations governing other sources of financial aid (federal, state, institutional and other grants, gifts, or loans) will apply
  • Columbia College Chicago reserves the right to withhold the scholarship in any year in which, at the sole discretion of the scholarship committee, suitable candidates cannot be found among applicants

IMPORTANT DATES

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