Amazon SCOT/INFORMS Scholarships

 Amazon Supply Chain Optimization Technologies (SCOT) and INFORMS Scholarship to Attend the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting

INFORMS is pleased to announce the Amazon SCOT and INFORMS Scholarship for undergraduate and graduate students to attend the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting in Phoenix Arizona. This scholarship program, sponsored by Amazon SCOT, aims to foster the professional pipeline of operations research, management science, and analytics researchers by providing undergraduate juniors and seniors as well as graduate students from underrepresented groups an opportunity to experience these exciting fields and gain professional development opportunities by attending the INFORMS Annual Meeting. Scholarships will provide conference registration, hotel accommodations, and reimburse reasonable transportation expenses.

We encourage applications from undergraduate and graduate students across a variety of quantitative disciplines, including (but not limited to): operations research, mathematics, industrial engineering, statistics, business, economics, and related fields. This scholarship is aimed at two types of students: 1) those already engaged in operations research and management science studies and/or research projects, and 2) those who have had little to no training in traditional OR/MS courses, but are considering pursuing graduate studies or careers in this area (example: third year undergrad math major who is now considering what to do after graduating).

The awardees will be provided with a recommended schedule to help them enjoy and learn from the conference and other scholarship winners. Specific activities may include:

• Meeting with ambassador graduate students
• Meeting with members of the Minority Issues Forum (MIF)
• Meetings with committee members and INFORMS Staff
• Attending plenaries, selected talks/posters, and tutorials
• Attending new member breakfast
• Attending INFORMS society meetings and university-sponsored receptions

Eligibility

• Must be an undergraduate junior or senior, or graduate student at the time of the INFORMS Annual Meeting in October 15-18, 2023
• Identify as underrepresented minority or identify as a woman 
• Attend any accredited college or university and be enrolled in an OR/MS program or related field of study (math, IE, computer science, economics, etc.)

Additional Consideration

• Ideal candidates will have an overall GPA equivalent to 3.0 or better on a 4.0 system
• Additional consideration may be given to students that have taken significant mathematically technical coursework.
• Ideal candidates will be representative of the disproportionately underrepresented groups within the OR/MS profession 

Submission and Selection

The submission requires:

• A one-page CV/resume
• An unofficial transcript 
• A letter of recommendation from an instructor at the applicant's college/university. The instructor must speak to the applicant's quantitative skills and submit the letter on official college or university letterhead.  Letter should be sent to Awards@informs.org (Optional).
• Applicants must also indicate which OR/MS discipline topics in which they have special interests*
• Agree to sharing application information with Amazon for recruiting purposes.
• Each applicant will have the option to a submit a short summary detailing what one expects to gain from attending the INFORMS Annual Meeting.

Applications must be submitted by Wednesday, September 13, 2023.  Click here to begin your submission

This scholarship program hopes to attract a pool of broadly diverse applicants and increase the participation of disproportionately underrepresented groups within the OR/MS profession.

If you have any questions, please send an email to awards@informs.org.

Additional Links

Minority Issues Forum

Annual Meeting Plenaries & Keynote Presentations

 The Amazon SCOT/INFORMS Scholarship Committee will evaluate and select the scholarship recipients.

*Special Interest Topics