Pi Sigma Alpha

Political Science

Grants and Scholarships

Admitted to ACHS: 1949

Founded at the University of Texas, October, 1920

No of Active Chapters: 697

Total Membership: 252000

Publications: Newsletter, Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal of Politics

Grants and Scholarships: Pi Sigma Alpha has for 26 years sponsored a program of Chapter Activity Grants whereby chapters submit proposals to the national office for funding for activities they would not otherwise be able to do. The activities must fall within a set of guidelines provided by the national office. Proposals are submitted in October, and in November a selection committee of three political scientists judges the proposals based on the quality and feasibility of the activity itself, the completeness of the budget, and other factors. Most proposals receive at least partial funding; some are fully funded; and some are rejected. The maximum grant is $2,000. Grants are awarded by December 1. The activities funded must be carried out within the academic year, and the chapter must provide the national office with a full report, including an accounting of the expenditure of the funds, by the end of the Fiscal Year (June 30).

Examples of funded activities are student member trips to Washington, DC, or to their state capitals, campus-wide speakers on topics of political relevance, political candidate debates, student member travel to and participation in regional political science association meetings, essay contests, and annual induction/awards banquets.

In 2007 grants were made to nearly 90 chapters. This is Pi Sigma Alpha's biggest program both in budget and in the number of chapters and individual members it touches.

For more information on Pi Sigma Alpha grants and fellowships, see: www.apsanet.org/~psa/section_367.cfm

or contact Nancy McManus by email or at (202) 483-2512