The Thomas J. Watson Memorial Scholarship Program is a program that recognizes academic excellence among high school students planning to pursue a traditional baccalaureate degree at an accredited four-year college, university or military academy in the United States. Awards for colleges or universities range from $2,000 to $8,000 per year, with the amount based on financial need. The amount for military academies is fixed as a one-time award of $2,000.
Your child may submit an application if you are:
- A regular full-time or regular part-time employee in the U.S., its territories or Puerto Rico
- On international assignment (but scholarships are awarded only to U.S.-based institutions)
- On approved leave of absence
- An IBM retiree
- Receiving regular benefits under the IBM Long-Term Disability Plan
Surviving dependents of deceased employees are also eligible as long as the children continue to be eligible for IBM health benefits coverage. Certain other children may be eligible if they meet specific criteria; call the Employee Services Center at 1-800-796-9876 (TTY: 1-800-426-6537) for details.
How to apply
Applications will be accepted for the 2012 Watson Scholarship program beginning in September of this year.
Step 1: Complete an application form (1.1 MB, .pdf) and submit it to the high school principal, headmaster or guidance counselor. The application form includes a secondary school information section, which the high school official must complete. The application form must be postmarked no later than December 1, 2011. Mail to:
Scholarship and Recognition Programs (SRP)
P.O. Box 6730
Princeton, NJ 08541
Step 2: Take the ACT or SAT. The ACT or SAT may be taken as often as desired; however, the latest admissible test date for the Watson Scholarship is October 22, 2011 for the ACT and November 5, 2011 for the SAT. The highest combined (verbal and math) score on one test will be considered. There are two methods of reporting your test scores:
- You may have it transmitted electronically from the testing service. Please be sure you or your child include code 9928 on the ACT or SAT and all other forms for the Watson Scholarship.
- Scores may be reported directly on the Watson application by the school official who submits the application to SRP.
Testing agency Web sites
ACT - www.act.org
SAT - www.collegeboard.com
For additional questions, please call the SRP office at 609-771-7878.