How to be a Mitchell Scholar

The Mitchell Scholarship is a program that provides funding for a 1-year master’s degree, which usually runs for 9 months, at a university in Ireland or Northern Ireland.

It covers full tuition, housing and a monthly living and travel stipend. The Mitchell Scholarship is highly competitive, and it welcomes students in any discipline.

Let’s begin by taking a look at some stats on the Mitchell Scholarship program:

• 350 – the average number of Mitchell Scholarship applications every year
• 12 – the number of Mitchell Scholars every year
• 4% – the average acceptance rate for the Mitchell Scholarship
• 70% – the average percentage of female applicants for the Mitchell Scholarship
• 15 – the number of Mitchell Scholars Georgetown University has had
• 14 – the number of Mitchell Scholars Harvard University has had

Quick Intro Into Mitchell Scholarship

It was in 1998 when the Mitchell Scholarship came into being.

It was created by the president of the US-Ireland Alliance back then, Trina Vargo, who was also the founder of the said association.

The Mitchell Scholarship is named as such in honor of George J. Mitchell, who was a former senator from Maine from 1980 to 1995 and a Senate Majority Leader from 1989 to 1995, for his contribution to the Northern Ireland peace process.

He was also the founder of the Mitchell Institute, whose mission is to make college accessible to students in Maine.

Apparently, the Mitchell Scholarship has a short history.

Since its founding, however, the program has helped more than 3,000 scholars pursue a postgraduate career in Ireland, around 45% of whom are first-generation college students.

How To Apply

When filling out the application for the Mitchell Scholarship, there’s no need to complete it in a single go.

Such is the beauty of creating an account with the program’s website — you can save your online application and return to it some other time. But make sure that everything is finished in time for the deadline.

Speaking of which, your application as well as all required materials should be in on or before September 23.

However, it’s highly recommended that you start the process earlier given that you will have to obtain a total of 4 recommendations as well as the endorsement of the college or university you are attending.

Yes, you can apply for the Mitchell Scholarship if you are still working on your bachelor’s degree.

There’s no need to obtain recommendation letters and an institutional endorsement, though, if you have already completed your degree program at the time of your application to the Mitchell Scholarship.

Other than the recommendations and endorsement of the institution (for those who are still enrolled), the following are the rest of the requirements that you should submit together with your online application form:

• Passport-style photo
• College transcripts
• A scan of one’s signature
• Personal statement

Regarding the personal statement, the maximum word count is 1,000.

The Mitchell Scholarship itself says that you should use your personal statement as an opportunity to talk about your interests as well as academic and career goals.

It should also serve as a platform for addressing the reason why attending an institution of higher education in Ireland or Northern Ireland is important for your future.

Obtaining feedback from your advisor or mentor for your personal statement draft is perfectly fine, says the Mitchell Scholarship itself, to make sure that it’s something that can impress on all levels.

But do not use any AI assistance, such as ChatGPT, when writing your personal statement.

In your Mitchell Scholarship application, you will have to check a box before submitting it — doing so is a sign of attestation that your personal statement is in fact your own and is truthful and accurate.

Who is Eligible to Apply

It’s important to remember that should you be selected as a Mitchel Scholarship finalist, you must withdraw your applications to the Marshall Scholarship and Rhodes Scholarship, both of which send their scholars to the UK to study.

There’s no need to withdraw your applications to other programs should you become a Mitchell Scholarship finalist.

Let’s take a look at the eligibility requirements for the Mitchell Scholarship:

• Be a US citizen
• Be 18 years old to 30 years old
• Have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university

According to the US-Ireland Alliance website, US citizens who hold dual citizenship are eligible to apply for the Mitchell Scholarship for as long as they meet other eligibility requirements.

Needless to say, having a bachelor’s degree is a requirement given that the program is intended for scholars who are pursuing a graduate degree in Irish institutions of higher education.

Students who are still completing their undergraduate program are eligible to apply, too.

However, they should already have their bachelor’s degree before studying abroad as a Mitchell Scholar.

Technically speaking, there is no minimum GPA requirement Mitchell Scholar hopefuls must meet.

But because you will be competing against others in getting the prestigious scholarship award as well as undergoing a rigorous screening process, it goes without saying that having a high GPA is a definite plus.

Selection Process

Members of the Mitchell Scholarship selection committee consider 3 different criteria when choosing Mitchell Scholars.

First, applicants must show academic excellence.

Second, they should have leadership excellence.

Last but not least, applicants must have a sustained commitment to service and community.

They will also measure you against the following criteria:

• Academic excellence and intellectual distinction
• An outstanding record of leadership
• A sustained commitment to service and community

The goal of the Mitchell Scholarship is to introduce and connect future generations of American leaders to Ireland.

As such, it isn’t surprising that having a stellar academic reputation is not enough for an individual to be considered a Mitchel Scholar.

The program’s selection committee also looks for those with a proven track record and a promising future in community service and engagement as well as who have the attributes of a good leader.

But before you meet what the selection committee of the Mitchell Scholarship is looking for, you must first see to it that you have what it takes — and your college or university can see that, too.

The Mitchell Scholarship asks institutions to endorse only those who clearly exhibit the traits of Mitchell Scholars.

Interview Process

Applying as a Mitchell Scholar involves undergoing a required interview.

However, unlike a typical alumni interview for incoming freshmen students, the interview for the Mitchell Scholarship is guaranteed to be virtual.

After submitting your application for the program, you will receive an email containing the details for the online interview.

It’s completely up to you where you want to have the interview, provided that it’s a quiet place, you have a webcam and microphone around and, of course, a good internet connection.

There will be no actual interviewer — instead, you will see each of the questions on your computer screen.

You have 30 seconds to compose your answer.

No, you will not type in your answer.

Rather, you will respond to the questions one by one orally, which the site will record for evaluation.

The recording of your response will automatically stop after 1 to 3 minutes, depending on the amount of time allotted for each of the 4 questions.

When the recording stops and you are ready for the next question, you may ask for it.

So, how can you increase your chances of acing the Mitchell Scholarship interview?

The program recommends the STAR interview method.

Institutions Mitchell Scholars Attend

Candidates for the Mitchell Scholarship need not apply to the institutions of their choosing.

Instead, it’s the program itself that will determine which schools in Ireland that each of the Mitchell Scholars will have to attend — the institution will be selected from the names that each candidate has indicated in their online applications.

It’s a good thing that studying in Ireland is a matter that’s highly accessible to international students.

According to Education in Ireland pretty much has everything that the applicants for Mitchell Scholarships will want to research beforehand, from the different higher education schools to the various programs available.

Here’s a list of Irish institutions that Mitchell Scholars may go to:

• Dublin City University
• Galway University
• National University of Ireland Maynooth
• Queen’s University Belfast
• Technological University Dublin
• Trinity College Dublin
• University College Cork
• University College Dublin
• University of Limerick
• Ulster University

During the application process, applicants are asked to list at least 3 different institutions in Ireland and/or Northern Ireland of their choosing — they are allowed to name up to 5 colleges and universities.

Like when applying to an institution in the US, the Mitchell Scholarship program recommends making a balanced list.

After submitting their online applications, hopefuls are no longer allowed to modify the list of schools they provided.

Also, sadly, applicants are not guaranteed to be assigned to their top-choice institution. It’s exactly due to this that they should only name colleges and universities that they would happily attend.

Other Similar Scholarship Programs

Marshall Scholarship

The Mitchell Scholarship and Marshall Scholarship are designed for individuals with a bachelor’s degree and who want to earn a graduate degree from an international institution, particularly one in the UK.

In terms of eligibility, they are the same in terms of GPA requirement: a 3.7 at least.

What’s really nice about the Mitchell Scholarship is that it welcomes applicants whose undergraduate degrees were obtained from colleges or universities in the US as well as international schools, although they must be US citizens.

On the other hand, to be eligible for the Marshall Scholarship, your bachelor’s degree should be from an institution in the US.

The Mitchell Scholarship is a 1-year program, while the Marshall Scholarship is either a 1-year or 2-year program, and can be extended to 3 years in some instances.

While Mitchell Scholars are limited to attending universities in Ireland, Marshall Scholars can attend any UK school.

Rhodes Scholarship

Both the Mitchell Scholarship and the Rhodes Scholarship are programs suited for bachelor’s degree holders who dream of working on a postgraduate degree in Europe. However, they differ in terms of which colleges and universities scholars can attend.

Mitchell Scholars are limited to Irish institutions, while Rhodes Scholars are limited to the University of Oxford.

Bachelor’s degree holders who are interested in applying for the Mitchell Scholarship must have a GPA of not less than 3.7.

On the other hand, according to the Rhodes Scholarship itself, applicants must have a GPA that’s near perfect.

And when it comes to maximum age requirements, the Mitchell Scholarship is more lenient — 30 vs. 24 years of age.

As mentioned earlier, the Mitchell Scholarship runs for 1 year only. The Rhodes Scholarship, meanwhile, is 2 to 3 years in length. It can also be renewed in certain situations, thus making it a 3-year program.

The Mitchell Scholarship is open to US citizens, while the Rhodes Scholarship is open to US and Canadian citizens.

Gates Scholarship

Some of the things that the Mitchell Scholarship and the Gates Scholarship have in common include they are both scholarship programs and open to US citizens who wish to obtain financial support for their educational pursuits.

Being highly selective is also something that the Mitchell Scholarship and the Gates Scholarship share.

The similarities between them, however, end there.

While the Mitchell Scholarship is designed for bachelor’s degree holders who like to earn a graduate degree, the Gates Scholarship is intended for high school teens who aim for an undergraduate degree.

But it’s not open to just about any high schooler in the country: the Gates Scholarship is for minority high school seniors from low-income backgrounds.